Page 40 of Venomous King
A part of me wants to curl up into a ball and die. The memories of the assault keep trying to rise within my mind, and they threaten to make me insane, by reliving every second of my own destruction, but I refuse to give in. I have to survive for my daughter, and get us out of here. Once she is safe, only then can I mourn the part of myself that has died in this room, at the hands of that monster.
“Get up, Isabella, now,”my grandmother’s voice screams in my mind.
I push myself off the table, falling to my side as the impact of my body hitting the hard stone floor vibrates through all of my limbs, and causes me to close my eyes to stop the world from spinning. I force myself to take a few deep breaths through my nose, and out my mouth, until I am sure I won’t scream, then I pull myself back into a sitting position. I try to force my exhausted body to stand, but my legs refuse to obey, and my ribs scream in protest. Fuck it, if I can’t walk, I will crawl out of here. Either way, I am done being a victim, and being used by a monster.
“Keep going, sister. You will survive, you have to,“ Mia’s determined voice implores me.
I force myself onto my hands and knees, but at first, it doesn’t seem like my wrists will hold me up, and I smack my chin onto the ground. Once again, I push my limbs to obey me, even as the lashes on my back seem to open, and I can feel fresh blood trickling from the wounds. I grit my teeth, urging my body to take a step forward, and then another, until I slowly make my way across the room, to where the only door resides.
Keep going, Issy. We are almost there, there are just a few more steps.I pray for strength and mercy with each painful shuffle. I rage inside of my head, about the death I will cause to these people who have taken us, and in the same breath, I urge the universe to send Kai and Diego to me. I want to watch as they both tear our enemies limb from limb, until Joaquín and that bitch Sonja scream for mercy. Mercy, neither Diego nor I will grant them. Death will be too sweet for them; no, I will demand he keep them alive, until they plead for their miserable lives, and even then, it won’t be granted.
Just a few more steps. We are so close now.I force my head to rise and, despite the dizziness, look around for anything I can use as a weapon. There, just off to the side on the only chair in the room, is the whip he must have been using on me. A shudder runs through my body at the memory of the sound it makes, as it bites into my flesh. A groan escapes me, as I realize the distance between where I am, and how far the whip is.
Fuck, I almost have to go back to where I started from. I push myself in that direction, and determination and stubbornness fill me. I refuse to die here like an animal. I refuse to allow my little girl to be alone, frightened, and thinking I abandoned her. No, I will fight my way out of this place if it’s the last thing I do. I make it to the whip, wrapping my fingers around it and pulling it to the ground. The feel of the leather through my digits repulses me, and I gag, bile rising in my throat, and expelling from my lips onto the ground.
I force my fingers to tighten around it, as I turn around again and head back to the door.Julia, Kai, Diego, Mia, Grandmother, and my nephews.With each painful shuffle forward, I keep the mantra of their names going in my head. I will see them all again, I will allow nothing to stop me.
Once I reach the door, I push my body flush against the frame and reach up, grabbing onto the knob and using it to pull myselfinto a standing position. I press my head against the wooden door, as whimpers leave my lips and more tears coat my face. Fuck, everything hurts so badly.
Noises from the other side have me pressing my ear into the surface, and trying to discern the sounds.Men, multiple, are out there. Fuck, I am going to die before I ever get to Julia. I slide my body back down to the ground, my back pressed against the door. I have to come up with another way out of here. I can’t give up now.Julia, Kai, Diego, Mia, Grandmother, and my nephews.
“Momma, I am so scared, save me!”My daughter’s voice screams through my head, and sobs finally crest that I can’t hold back.
Julia, Mommy is coming, baby; hang on a little longer, my sweet girl.
Chapter twenty-seven
Stella
“Unity is strength... when there is teamwork and collaboration, wonderful things can be achieved.”
Mattie Stepanek
My eyes narrow on the two idiots before me as I exit the private plane, and incessant rage fills my blood, causing my whole body to light up like an explosive about to detonate. One is dressed in all black from head to toe, a standoffish and insulting look on his scarred face, as he meets my glare. He is a demon right out of my worst nightmares, coming to ruin the legacy that I have worked my entire life to attain. The other is entirely contradictory, in his pressed light blue dress shirt and dark khaki slacks, and he has the frightened expression of a confused and lost boy, that almost makes me want to reassure him that everything will be alright. Almost, but not quite. Light and dark are what my granddaughter has chosen for herself, and she is a fool. Neither of these men are worthy of a Stratford heir, or of my bloodline.
I warned her that these two would spell disaster for her and her daughter, but did she listen to me?Of course not.Love, that pesky emotion that has corrupted both my granddaughters, seems to demolish any good senses they may have had, leading them into danger for these worthless men. I should murder them all, and wipe the slate clean. My granddaughters would eventually forgive me, wouldn’t they?
I don’t hesitate as I take the last step to the ground. My hand flies out and makes contact with that rough, scarred cheek, and the sound echoes into the still night sky. I hear Clark’s footsteps, as he readies himself for retaliation, but I know better. This villain will take what I dish out, and more, if it means I can bring my Isabella back to him. She is his greatest desire, and that is the only reason I haven’t had him murdered since he reappeared in her life. Perhaps it is time to remedy that.
“Welcome back, Stella.” His sinister lips quirk upwards as if I didn’t just slap the shit out of him, and my hand isn’t currently imprinted on his skin.Asshole. He’s always trying what little patience I have with his unwavering need to one-up me.
“Demon, look at what you have caused. My precious granddaughters are in your enemy’s hands. How could you have allowed this to happen?“ The need to keep hitting him flows through me. I want to tear him to pieces, and rip his beating heart out of his chest, but I know doing so would mean losing Isabella forever. She believes herself in love with this unworthy monster. He, more than the others, rattles me; death permeates the air around him, as if he wears it as a thick cologne.
“I was careless, and I believed us safe. I let my guard down, but it will never happen again, and I will slaughter anyone who took part, and ensure I send a message to the rest of the world to stay away from what is mine,” Diego growls out, and I watch from the corner of my eye as Kai reaches forward and grabs his arm to restrain him. Diego doesn’t immediately shrug off the hold, inhaling deep breaths in an attempt, I’m sure, to calm himself. He knows he will get nowhere with me if he rants and rages. It’s amusing, and frightening, that these two have grown closer over the past weeks. They have unerringly put aside their differences for Isabella and Julia. I should be proud of that meager accomplishment, and that my granddaughter demands that respect and compliance from them, but right now, all I can think about is my girls are trapped in the hands of Diego’s enemies.
“Pretty words, but a bit too late, don’t you think?” I glance at Kai, who looks pale and unsettled, and he drops his grasp from Diego’s arm. “Stella, now is not the time to hurl blame. We already know we failed. Please help us get the girls back.”
An unladylike snort flees me at that statement.Failed?These fools haven’t just failed; they have lost the only two things preventing them from falling into an abyss of destruction. Isabella and Julia, my precious, beautiful girls. Diego is mere moments from becoming the feral animal I have always fearedhe was. That makes him more than dangerous; it makes him unpredictable, and I can’t have that if I am to get them back.
“Update me immediately, but do not think this discussion is over. I will have my pound of flesh from both of you, for allowing this to happen in the first place.” If I am truly fortunate, they will both perish in this rescue of my granddaughters, then they can be free of them once and for all. Neither are worthy, just look at all the misery Isabella has already suffered.
That’s not true, and you know it. She has been different since she returned from the jungle; stronger, more resilient, and less likely to falter. She has finally grown into herself, and these two have had a hand in that metamorphosis.My mind plagues me with images of the Isabella from before, the one who was weak, and gave in to her addictions so readily. The one I feared would languish in an early grave. She used to live life as if it was burdensome, a curse to endure, instead of the precious gift it truly is. They helped change her, and forced her to come into the light, and for that, I will always be indebted to them, not that I would ever utter those words aloud.
Heavy footsteps making their way down the metal stairs of the aircraft have me further grimacing, as a reminder of who else insisted on traveling here with me. I am overrun with psychopathic assholes of late. Jaxon, my love, please give me strength from the beyond to endure all these men who have made their way into our girls’ lives.
“I knew she’d strike him before we even left the tarmac, you owe me a hundred k, fucker,” Carter’s annoying, cheerful voice reaches my ears, and I roll my eyes at his words.
“I didn’t say she wouldn’t strike him, the bet was whether or not she would shoot him, and she hasn’t... yet,” Theo’s deep, irritating tone replies, and my hackles immediately rise.