The Rebel (#Wattys2016)

57. The Tiger Bench

Regina was lying on the dungeons' floor. Beside her sat Lady Sosie, the arrogant brat who'd only wanted Skander for his crown and his wallet. For once in her life, she was quiet, staring at the wall. They were all in the cage, the eight Selected who had remained at the time Adeen and her rebels had attacked. Adeen. Regina wondered where she was, how she was. Probably not good, she decided, probably dead. She sighed and turned to look to her left, where Lady Stephanie was crying. She was holding onto a slice of a red cloth with golden embroidery along their edges.

"Stephanie?" Regina dared to ask. "Are you alright?"

Lady Stephanie's eyes didn't leave the cloth as she gave way to a longer, deeper sob. She shook her head.

"We're going to get out of here." Regina said, but her voice was weak and dry inside the big metal cage. "Skander, Jasper, June, they'll get us out."

"How do you know they're not dead?" Sosie asked. "I overheard a guard this morning. They say they blew them sky high. Said they're all gone and we'll be left here to rot."

"I know they're alive because," Regina stared at the wall and imagined Adeen standing there, "Adeen got them out, even though she'll be executed for that. And Skander is not going to let that happen. Even if they do kill her before they come, Skander will not let her sacrifice be in vain."

"Still holding onto your dead prince?" A guy's voice teased behind them. Regina didn't need to turn to know it was Zed, who had apparently been Adeen's boyfriend and who delighted in every opportunity to inflict pain on others. "I think you're just trying to cope."

"He's not dead." Regina said.

A hand grabbed a handful of hair from Regina's head between the bars and pulled her face up. Zed was looking down at her, his face contorted in a mix of annoyance and fury.

"Is that so?" He asked, then smirked. "Why isn't he here then?" He let go of her hair and laughed.

Regina turned around to observe him through the bars, not trusting him enough to give him her back. He spun in circles, still laughing.

"Hey, Schreave!" He screamed at the walls. "Come at me!" Zed laughed. "I just fucked Adeen and I am ready for a fight!" He waited a few seconds, then turned back to Regina and shrugged. "See? He's dead."

"You're disgusting." Said Regina.

"You're coming for a trip." Was Zed's response as he walked to the cage's door. "Come on, sweetheart! Don't make me come for you!"

Regina could feel the eyes of every girl as she made her way to the door. She gave Zed her back although every nerve in her body resisted it, and felt two handcuffs being put around her wrists. She turned around to a grinning Zed. He opened the door and mockingly bowed to her.

"After you, Lady."

Regina stared him down, trying to determine how much she'd be punished if she were to spit into his hair. But she decided against it and instead held her chin high as she walked to the dungeon's exit. Zed chuckled and soon grabbed her arm, guiding her up the stairs into the palace. The stairs were always the worst part. It was the long time between the shock of being taken out of the cage and the realization that you were about to have a bad, bad time. It was an exhausting climb, there were one hundred and thirty two steps, one hundred and thirty two little fights that later adjoined to a bigger battle. Regina knew she shouldn't have complained. She still hadn't been tortured, like the rest of the Ladies. Apparently, the rebels believed Adeen had never liked any of them, so therefore she hadn't said anything about her plan to them. And so Regina and Sosie and the rest of the Selected had been left alone —quite literally, as guards only visited them once a day to give them their daily bread- in the dungeons. She was weak and malnourished and sleep deprived, and every step ached her feet all the way to her brain and every time she closed her eyes she saw Adeen's black eyes as she had accepted Zed's punches and her arrest, as she'd given up on her life and let them all carry her down, down below to where she'd be questioned and killed.