Desecrated Beauty (Twisted Fairy Tales #1) (5 page)

“Alright, Striker is going to want to talk to her tomorrow.”

Quill nodded her head again, “yeah I know. Just make sure he’s gentle with her.” Orion nodded and she turned, guiding Rose through the looping hallway that broke off into each individual self-contained apartment.

She had never actually considered her own apartment before. It was scant and depressing . With its whitewashed walls and stone floor, she hadn’t even bothered to scavenge a rug to throw down to keep her feet warm. She just wasn’t around enough for that to be a problem. She had never found anything to use for decoration or anything that might add character to the small space. Even the kitchen was basic - a fireplace to cook from (because finding and getting electricity in this place was damn near impossible) and enough crockery for herself because she never expected guests.

It would be perfect for Rose once she was gone.

It was a clean slate from which her sister could paint all the beautiful colours of her life on. This place would be looking like Rose in no time and there wouldn’t even be a trace of “Izzy” left. Whoever Izzy was. She had forgotten about Isabelle when she left behind the city and came here. As soon as she walked in and they asked her name Quill had floated off her lips like a gift from God. That was who she was.

And her name was as much about that person as she knew.

“Home sweet home.” Quill dropped her hand to a lantern on a side table and twisted the pilot light watching it flicker on. It was a dull kind of light that didn’t shed much of its source on its surroundings.

“It’s… nice.”

“Don’t lie.” Quill smiled at her sister before moving over to the shabby couch she had forced Tate and Orion to drag in for her. It was her bed, and her sitting room.

“Where do I sleep?”

“You can have here. I have a few more things I’ll have to do after you go to bed.”

“Oh?”

“I have to report in with Orion about what I found at the auction house, see if we’re going to come up with a rescue plan… Talk about what I saw.”

“Oh right.”

“You won’t get off the hook about talking about it.”

“I know, but I don’t have to talk about it tonight right?”

“Right.” Quill smiled and watched Rose move over to her and sit down. An awkward silence fell over them as the sisters stared at each other, both trying to come up with a topic of conversation they would both be willing to discuss. Their former lives were off limits and their present lives seemed to be just as taboo.

“So, how did you find me then?”

“I didn’t. Not on purpose.”

“Oh.”

“We were looking for the people you were auctioning off tonight. I used a few of my old tricks to find out where they were taking the prisoners and I went alone to the auction house. When you peered out the window to me, that was the first time I even suspected we were so close to each other and there you were - right in front of my face.”

Quill smiled tightly and reached out touching her sister’s face in an uncharacteristic tender gesture. As quickly as it happened she dropped her hand.

“I’m sorry I let them have you.”

“You couldn’t have taken me with you if you tried.”

“I think you’d be surprised how resourceful I could be.”

“I know how resourceful you are, but you had to go alone. If both of us had left, he would’ve noticed us both gone. I distracted him so he didn’t notice you were gone until you were gone.”

“I don’t like how you say distracted.”

“It doesn’t matter now Izzy- Quill.
”
She sighed,
“
I’m not sure I like that name for you.”

“It fits who I am now.”

“Exactly who he wanted you to be.” Quill stood up defensively, frowning at her sister.

“I’m not his robot.” Rose’s lips puckered like she was holding a remark back. She wasn’t everything her father had trained her to be. She used her training against him, for the Desecrated. She was working for the enemy to bring him down. There was nothing similar to the woman she was now and the robot she would’ve become.

“Not a robot,” Rose said gently, reaching out to her and touching her arm as if trying to bring her back to reality. The logical voice in the back of her mind told her that her sister was trying to show her something she was too stubborn to see herself, but that was just the trouble… She was too stubborn.

She would never want to see whatever Rose saw and now, looking down at her little sister, she just saw judgment and pity.

“You need to sleep,” she declared with a sharp tone, moving over to a pile of clothes she left in a lump. She shrugged her jacket off and undid the leather corset, letting it drop. Her t-shirt underneath was sweaty from body heat and exertion so she tugged that over her head as well, wiped what she could of the blood from her chest and discarded it. Fishing through the pile she found a grey raggedy sweater. It was the least attractive thing she had. Therefore, it was perfect.

Pulling it over her head it hung off her shoulder in tatters and she covered it with her jacket for now. He wasn’t going to ever separate her from the comfort of her well-worn leather, even with the new rips in it.

She was zipping up the jacket as she turned around to face her sister. Rose was staring at her and worrying on her lip, knowing she had upset her. She wished, for half a second, she didn’t have such an awful temper but then… Hadn’t she also inherited that from her father too?

She shook her head, refusing to acknowledge any more similarities between her two identities.

“Don’t go.”

“You need to sleep off whatever they’ve been giving you. I’ll see you later.” She smiled tightly as Rose touched her cheekbones with a frown. If they were giving her anything, and Quill was purely going off a hunch from the state of her little sister’s body with its gauntness and skeletal framing, Rose didn’t admit to it.

“Okay…” She hugged herself and sat back down on the couch obediently. Quill scowled this time, hating the city and all its god damn rules to ensure tranquility.

“Unless you don’t want to. You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do here. That’s not how it works here.”

“No, I’ll sleep. You’re right… I want to wake up refreshed, start my new life.” She smiled tightly and Quill nodded in response, moving to the door.

The sisterhood they had once felt was fractured now by a despotic father and years of living totally separated lives guided by different ideologies. She hoped Rose lived a good life from now on. This was the best she could offer for the rest of her life, it wouldn’t be enough to make up for the last 5 years, but it was a start.

Quill was going to pay for it for the rest of her life.

30 hours wasn’t a lot of time when you thought about it and tried to put everything that was important to you into those 30 hours. In fact, 30 hours went by quickly… Or they would for someone who would spend most of them with loved ones, saying goodbye, giving out hugs and reminiscing about things that they might never talk about again.

Not for Quill though. She left her sister, still angry about the thoughtless things she had said before she left. It wasn’t how she wanted to remember her sister and she was confident in time she wouldn’t. But the words kept playing in her head on a loop and she just couldn’t shut them off.

She went through what she’d seen and overheard at the auction house with both Striker and Orion present. She gave them all the details and facts she could, hoping they could come up with an operation that might just free up the people who were being sold as slaves. When she finished she left on the pretence of having to sleep, but Orion followed.

He was worried about the scratches up and down her back and chest. He wanted her to go and see Doc about those and the limp in her left leg. She told him she was fine. The way she figured she was probably going to her death tonight anyway so she might as well go half-broken to help the job. Besides, Doc needed all the supplies they had for people who would actually be around to help their cause.

When she insisted she was fine and she was just going to go to bed Orion then insisted she come and sleep in his. He knew she had a shoddy couch and her sister was probably already curled on it.

“Listen, I’m all right okay? I don’t need you to take care of me. I never have. I don’t want this.” She pointed between them, “I don’t want a guy waiting on my every breath and worrying about whether I’m going to be alright because it’s not his job. I didn’t ask for this so stop trying to force it on me.”

He looked like she’d slapped him across the face before proceeding to knee him in the balls.

“It was fun.” She tapped his chest feeling like a jerk for such a cop-out type statement, “but that’s all it was supposed to be Orion: fun.”

“Fun.” He repeated back to her in a broken voice.

“I’m sorry; I’m not that girl.” She didn’t wait for his answer as she turned and walked away, tucking her hands into the pocket of her jacket as she made her way through the command center and back outside. He and Striker thought she was going back to the compound, but she was going around the wall. She was going to find this house of his she was supposed to go to in 25 more hours and surprise him. She wanted to see before he had the chance to pretty it up, what she was getting herself into.

She regretted her decision as soon as she got started walking away from the camp. She was exhausted and her body ached in ways that felt unnatural. Stubborn resolve was the only thing that forced her onwards, staying low under the cover of the trees and bushes that lined the outside of the city walls. In the time since the blood baths the wilderness, cut off from the bustle of the city, had grown so wild and overrun that it appeared just as uncivilised as the Pures preached it was.

A bush snagged her jeans and she tripped slightly, sending another throb of pain up through her knee. She should’ve had Doc look at it at the very least.

Rounding another corner, still fighting with the bushes, Quill stepped out into a clearing that had been deliberately pruned. Everything looked like it had been placed there on purpose and nothing was overgrown or wild. Her heart hammered slightly in her chest and she just knew this is where she was supposed to be.

How had he known?

Each step felt laden with lead, but she forced herself on, through the pain and the nerves. She didn’t know why but she needed to see the house. She barely knew this man, this beast, but here she was coming willingly to his house. She could’ve run again, far away from the compound and her sister where there would be no one to “get in his way”.

She even felt a weird sense of relief that he lived outside the city, as if living outside of it continued to keep her free from the rules that guided it. Surely that’s why he kept a home here outside of it - because he wanted to live outside the law.

Through another grove of trees, a manor house that looked stately and surprisingly not out of place rose from the scenery. Most places like this - outside of the city - had become just as rundown as some of the forgotten buildings within the walls. But this one looked immaculate like someone spent a great deal of time taking care of it to ensure it remained pristine to impress someone.

A few more steps closer to the building and suddenly three guards swooped down on her, none of them bearing weapons though. She took a moment to size them all up before finally inclining her head with a small smile.

“Evening gentleman.”

“This is private property, you’re trespassing.” She looked around in surprise as if she was taking in her surroundings for the first time.

“Huh, I thought I’d been invited.” They glanced at each other for a moment, uncertain now if she was telling the truth or not.

“Business ends before morning, you have no reason to be here.”

Now, this interested her, “business ends before morning?” She set her hands on her hips expectantly, staring at them waiting for an answer. They didn’t seem to be willing to give her one as each guard puckered his lips.

“Well, if none of you is going to speak, I want to talk to the head of the house.”

“He’s preoccupied.”

“I’ll see for myself. Let me through.” She started to go through them, deciding that she could take them. Maybe not all together, but one by one she could take them out. She was confident of that. It was just a shame they didn’t have a weapon she could take back and leverage against them.

“Can’t.” One of them stepped right in front of her like a brick wall and she nearly stumbled right into him.

“Seriously, if you think you’re doing your boss a favour or something you’re wrong. Go and get him, he’s expecting me.”

This time they considered her a little more seriously before the one standing in front of her turn to look at his companion, “Go and find Clovis.” It wasn’t a suggestion but a command. Quill noted this as she sized up the man who had taken charge out of the three of them. She could definitely take him if necessary.

“Who is Clovis?”

“Clovis is in charge of the main household, ensuring everything runs… smoothly…” He eyed her up, “he’ll know if we’re expecting anyone.”

Clovis, this could be the man who had accosted her. But then again he didn’t strike her as someone who wasn’t in complete and utter control in his own house. She crossed her arms over her chest, defensive at first until she softened, “I’m freezing. Can we go inside?”

They looked at each other once more before there was a short nod, barely perceptible and the man at his left moved to her, grabbing her arm before they started walking quickly to the house. She fought the small smile on her lips as she moved to keep up with them.

The man she assumed was Clovis met them at the door by the time they got there. As they got closer, she felt goosebumps rise on her flesh as she recognized the man from the auction. How had the guard gotten to him so fast?

“Release her.” The guard took his hand off her and she stepped forward, levelling her gaze toward Clovis. She felt distrustful and uncertain about him. A man who could stand there and placidly sell human beings to others surely had a bent moral compass. She had no doubt he wouldn’t be against doing some unsavory things to her should they be deemed necessary.

“Hi.” She kept her arms firmly against her chest, this time looking far more defensive.

“I wasn’t expecting you for at least another 20 hours.”

“Your boss underestimated how much business I’d have to settle.” Clovis pursed his lips before nodding again, yet another imperceptible motion and yet both guards saw it and reacted. Within seconds, they seemed to have disappeared, leaving Quill flustered and looking around her in a daze.

“Please come inside.” Clovis bowed and swept his arm toward the door, launching Quill’s eyebrow up toward her hairline. She stepped past him and looked around the foyer of the manor, taking in everything from the exquisite paintings to the pristine condition of the antique furniture. As soon as she entered the house the door slammed behind her and she jumped slightly, her nerves of steel wavering for a moment.

“Please wait here.” She held back the snort that bubbled up the back of her throat before nodded to appease him. Clovis disappeared further into the house and once Quill was confident she was on her own she started wandering around the manor. It didn’t tell her anything that she was looking for. She hoped that the walls would talk and warn her of the things she was getting herself involved in.

There was nothing. No hints. It seemed perfectly normal which only made her more concerned about what was going to happen after tonight.

She crossed through a sitting room toward another massive set of oak doors. She grabbed the handle and jostled it, starting to push the door open when a hand appeared at the side of her head and held the door with just his fingertips. She could push it open if she wanted to, but the gesture was one of dominance, telling her to stop.

She didn’t know why she did.

“You’re early.”

“You didn’t say I couldn’t come ahead of time.”

“I guess I didn’t.”

She turned around to face him, “what’s in there?”

“Nothing you need to worry about.” She quirked an eyebrow again, almost challenging him to tell her, but something about his face made the words die on her lips as she stared up at him feeling utterly helpless to his gaze.

“Why did you come early?”

“Goodbyes are awful,” she admitted. “I didn’t want to say them because then I would have to confess that I care about someone other than myself.”

“And that’s such a bad thing?”

“Caring for someone leaves you open to being hurt. When they leave, when you leave, if they’re hurt or worse…” Quill quieted for a moment as she considered the inevitable fate of everyone she knew: “when they die.”

He smiled down at her in a way she presumed he thought was comforting, but it looked more chiding like she was a naive child who didn’t fully grasp the ways of the world.

“Nothing wrong with death,” he said softly, his fingers tracing the hard curving edge of her jaw. A shiver of pleasure coursed through her as he did, pooling down in her belly. She hated how much of the sensation was laced with desire.

“Except that it’s permanent.” Her throat felt thick as she spoke like she hadn’t properly used it in a while. She didn’t feel right, her body felt beyond her. But then he grinned at her and stepped back, leaving her suddenly feeling cold and shocked.

“Some things are permanent. Death is not one of them.”

She cast him a doubtful look, “I’m not sure what kind of death you’ve been around…”

He smiled mysteriously at her before taking her hand and lacing their fingers together, “come along then.” This time when he touched her she jerked away in disgust. Remembering earlier that night when he had pinned her to the car, his body pressed tightly to hers like he possessed it.

“No. Where are you taking me?”

“To your room. You didn’t give me a lot of time to prepare it. You’ll have to forgive me for the people who are milling around it right now, but I assure you you’ll have privacy once they’re finished.”

“And what happens once I have a room? Do you lock me in it?”

He laughed and shook his head, turning to look at her again, “do you think that is what happens?”

“I have no idea what’s going to happen to me now. I have no idea who you are. You’ve told me nothing except the fact that you have taken women against their will before and would be willing to do so with me.”

“Lord Nero-” They both turned to face Clovis, who stood at attention in the doorway. Nero. Something about his name struck her, not because it was antique and unusual but that it felt familiar.

“Not now Clovis.” The servant, because surely now this was what he was to “Nero”, bowed his head and backed out closing the doors on them. She was now locked in this room with a man who wanted her, was intrigued by her and more than happy to take what he wanted whether she wanted him to take it or not.

“Nero.” She practiced his name, watching him turn to look at her. She dared to describe what played on his face as a smile, one eyebrow arched in question. They stared at each other for a few minutes, Quill’s stomach in a tight knot. Her instincts were fired up but why, she had no idea.

Something about this mysterious man scared her, intrigued her, worried her and turned her on. But each conflicting emotion made it harder than ever to carry on her tough-as-nails act. He seemed to read her like a see-through book.

“Yes?” Nero broke the silence, amusement hinting on his tone at her distraction.

“What is this place?” She shook herself free from the reverie by forcing herself to walking away from him, letting her eyes roam on the objects decorating the room instead of on his face. It was a diversionary question, something that made her feel like she was back in control. There was other things she wanted to know from him, more important issues than discerning the truth of this place that was as much on the fringes as the compound was.

“My home, for now,” he said, making her roll her eyes.

“You know that’s not what I meant. These people, the guards, the servants… the fact that you live outside of the city walls without consequence.”

He followed her with his eyes, watching how she gingerly touched a vase from the 18th century in the Rococo style. He’d taken it from Versailles during a raid.

“They’re not my servants,” he said, “they’re family.”

“You boss family around?”

“They are family owing me a debt I should say. They work for me to pay it off, but I take care of them so it’s a fair exchange.”

“You take care of them, how?”

“Food, house, clothe. The essentials.”

“And they’re completely incapable of doing that without you?” She finally turned, knocking the vase over with her movement. With lightning fast speed, Nero was beside her, hand catching the vase before it could hit the floor and smash. That was all Quill needed.