Chapter 3:
Makenna’s POV
“Prince Bryan? Bryan Reeves?” The name alone was enough to spike a couple of goosebumps. He was the eldest and also the cruelest of the king’s sons. His reputation for brutality preceded him, and now he was storming into the hall like an angry tornado. My heart pounded in my chest. What did he want? Why was he here?
Cold sweat trickled down my back, my body reacting on instinct. I held my breath, praying he wouldn’t notice me, though every fiber of my being felt like it was on the verge of screaming.
“Out of my way!” he growled.
A pained groan followed as Hayley was sent sprawling across the floor from a vicious kick.
I caught the scene out of the corner of my eye, but I dared not move, dared not breathe, as his cold, ruthless gaze fell upon the rest of us.
He stopped in front of us, his eyes scanning the group with a look that could freeze blood. His voice was as icy as his stare. “My father demands I find a bed warmer. I’d rather kill the lot of you than lower myself to this.”
The room filled with stifled sobs, each one a desperate attempt to remain invisible. My hands trembled uncontrollably, and I prayed fervently that he would pass me by.
But prayers were useless in this place. A pair of polished black leather shoes stopped directly in front of me. My blood turned to ice. Before I could process what was happening, a hand gripped my chin with bruising force, yanking my head upward.
The scream lodged in my throat as I was forced to meet his gaze—those deep, predatory blue eyes, full of dark amusement.
He let out a chilling laugh and then moved his hand down to grab my left nipple. “Nice and curvy; not bad,” he mused, looking at me like I was fresh prey. “She’ll do.”
I gasped, pain shooting through my chest as his hand dug into my flesh. I tried to twist away, but he gave me no chance to escape. In one swift motion, he hoisted me over his shoulder as if I were nothing more than a sack of potatoes.
Unforgettable stories on gⱯlnσν𝓮𝓁s․ço𝗺
“Argh!” A scream tore from my throat as the fear overwhelmed me. “Let go of me! Please, stop! What do you want?” I struggled, my fists pounding against his back, but it was like hitting a wall.
My pleas were met with a hard spank.
“One more scream, and it’ll be your last.”
I choked back my cries, but the tears still flowed freely. In a trembling whisper, I pleaded, “Please, Your Highness… show mercy.”
The fear clawed at me; I knew that if he took me out of this place, I wouldn’t make it back alive.
“Just accept your fate,” Bryan sneered, walking slowly toward the door. “Blame yourself for being in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
Terror seized me. My eyes darted around the room, silently begging someone to save me.
“Please, someone help me!”
Then suddenly, Hayley rushed in with a pale face and tried to block Bryan’s path. “Your Highness, wait! Please, let her go. If you don’t, the king will be furious.”
His lip curled in disdain as he tightened his grip on me. “Why should I care? I’m doing exactly what he wants—sleeping with these lowly women. Why would he be mad?”
He roughly grabbed my ass and spanked me again. I felt disgusted. The man was cruel, cold, venomous even. “My father forces us to lay with these lowly women. I’m just following orders. Whether they survive or not… that’s not my problem.”
A shiver of dread raced through me, tightening around my heart.
The icy realization hit me: I might not survive the night.
Desperate, I bit down on my lip to keep from making a sound, terrified that even the slightest noise would make the man even angrier.
