King Henry

Clarke and I duck below an exposed window on the cabin upon arriving. He wants to go right in but I think it is smarter to wait outside and see just what we are up against.

"Does your brother know where we are?" A man's voice asks.

"I don't know. Why don't you go ask him yourself?" Victoria speaks, her tone is sharp. I am glad she is still at least somewhat herself. She is taunting this man and she knows it.

I lift my head slowly to see inside. He holds his monstrous hand under Victoria's chin. Her hands are bound behind her back with rope. She is tied to a giant pole in the center of the room. She doesn't have a chance to fight back. "I'm going to kill you." He growls.

"I know." She replies to the man's threats simply. I do not sense any fear nor sadness in her voice.

"We need to get in there!" Clarke grinds his teeth, pulling me down.

"Not yet. I still don't know what we are up against."

"He just said he is going to kill her! I won't let that happen." He tries to stand. I pull him back down.

"Neither will I. As long long as he thinks she is of use to him, he won't kill her. She still has plenty of time." I explain. "As royals, we were taught methods to avoid capture. In the event of our kidnapping, we were walked though scenarios to avoid giving too much information away. Victoria is holding her own in there still. As much as I hate it, I need to leave her in there until I know exactly what to do." Clarke rolls his eyes at me.

"How much does your friend know about the Queen?" Her captor asks her. He must be referring to Serena. His question leads me to believe she is still alive as well.

"Nothing." She replies. I shake my head. This is not going to be good for Serena. If he thinks she is useless, he is going to kill her.

He clicks his tongue. "Are you lying to me?" He laughs.

"She is important to the king. You can use her as leverage." Victoria's tone is different now. She has gained some power back in her voice. She demands attention.

"Why do you think I took her in the first place?" He laughs at her. "If she knows nothing, I don't need her."

"You do need her. When Henry comes for us, which he will, you can get double for us." I stand up and look inside again. He nods as she speaks. "And you can let her go but still have me as a hostage, giving you even more leverage against him." She continues, giving him reason to keep Serena alive until help can come.

Good job Victoria.

"Give me information about the Queen and I will consider your plan." He holds the whip up to her cheek. "Real information or else I'm going to use this on her." He motions to Serena on the floor.

"My mom went missing shortly after Henry's fifteenth birthday. She took her horse out to my dad's grave and then she spent the night at a cabin in the woods she called home for a short while when the castle was taken over by people who wished to kill her. After that, she was never seen again." She explains everything She knows. "She was declared dead two years later and Henry was crowned king in another."

"Let's go. I think it's just him. You ready?" I ask, pulling Clarke towards the front door.

Clarke nods.

"Are you aware your mother was seen just weeks ago?" The man inside speaks.

I hold my hand on Clarke's chest, forcing him to wait.

Did he just say my mother is alive?

"Oh, you didn't know." He pouts. "I guess you weren't lying when you said you had no information." He circles her like a shark. "You can try to outsmart me, princess. But I am smarter than you. I will always win. When I return, I will kill you. You are no longer of any use to me."

He turns to leave. "Let's wait until she is alone. That way we know he won't hurt her." I look through the window and wait for him to leave her. He stands at the door for a moment before turning around.

"Actually, I decided I don't want to wait. I'll just do it now."

Victoria screams as the tail of the whip slashes across her body.

"I'm not waiting anymore." Clarke speaks at full volume and bursts into the cabin.

"Me either." I follow him inside.

Four men stand in our way in what I assume is their kitchen. Clarke takes his blade and immediately cuts off the hands of the closest man. He drops to his knees. Clarke then takes his sword and drives it through his neck, effectively killing him. He drops fully, blood spewing from his wound. "Alright boys, come on." Clarke taunts the rest of them.

I duck under a punch and come up behind the man, taking his head in my hands and snapping it swiftly, letting him drop to the floor like an unwanted doll.

Another comes charging at me. Clarke lifts his blade and drives it through his chest before he is even able to lay a finger on me. "Thanks." I say, out of breath.

"Yeah." He nods, turning his focus to the last man in our way.

Clarke shrugs and takes a hot frying pan of eggs off the stove, slamming it into the man's face. He falls to the floor, clutching his burnt face in his hands. Clarke lifts his boot and smashes it down over and over until the man is no longer a threat.

"So much for it only being the one guy." Clarke cocks his gun and kicks the door down to get to Victoria.

The man stands there with his blade drawn and pressed against Victoria's neck. "No sudden movements or I'll slice her pretty little neck."

Clarke lifts his hands slowly and backs up to stand next to me. "I've come to offer you the king." He says, confusing me. "All I ask is to be part of your crew. The Queen killed my parents. I want in on whatever your plan is."

"What?!" I shout as Clarke takes me in his arms, holding his gun up to my head. "Clarke?!" I fight against him. "You are a traitor?! I trusted you!"

The man drops his defensive stance, dropping his weapon holding hand to his side. Clarke acts quickly, shoving me to the side and tackling the man in one swift movement.

"Get Victoria!" He shouts, beating the man with his bare hands.

I shuffle to my feet, still trying to process what just happened. I untie my sister. She drops to the floor, weeping.

I lay beside her. "Can you stand? Victoria can you stand?"

She shakes her head, her face pressed against the floor.

I try to lift her myself but she screams and swats at me, pushing me away.

Victoria can barely open her eyes. They are swollen from him beating her. Even with it being dark in here, I can see her face is cut up and her eyes are as black as space.

Clarke slides over to us on his knees. "Victoria baby, it's me. I'm here. I'm here." She cries upon hearing his voice. "Serena?" He asks me.

I jump up and find her on the other side of the room. "She is unconscious but breaking!" I update him.

"Let's get out of here." Clarke suggests. He lifts Victoria and carries her over his shoulder despite her desperate cries to be left here for dead. "I'm not sure if it matters to you, but I would never turn on you like that. Even if it meant getting Victoria back. It was just to get him to drop his guard for long enough-"

I stop him, not wanting to hear any more explanation. "You got me my sister and my girlfriend back. I'm just glad no one had to die in the process. Thank you."

*

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