The pounding of my head was what awoke me. I wasn’t sure how long I’d been out, but I didn’t think it had been overly long. However, how long I’d been unconscious was the least of my worries. What I was more concerned about was where I was and who had knocked me out. I hesitantly opened my eyes, fearing what I would see before me.

I was lying on the floor of a dimly lit room, covered in dust, but I was fairly certain I was still in the Golden Palace. If I had to hazard a guess, I thought I might still be in the old wing of the Palace where the beastmen were staying. Judging by the lack of windows, I was probably on one of the basement levels that even the Palace servants neglected.

My head hurt so badly that I didn’t notice that my arms were bound behind me until I tried to lift a hand to inspect the damage. When I tried to move, I suddenly became aware of the painfully tight bindings.

“Well, look who’s finally awake.”

The sound of his voice sent a chill down my spine. Looking for the source of the voice, I found Albrecht sitting in a chair in the corner, watching me.

“What? Aren’t you glad to see me?” he asked with a malicious grin, “I’ve missed you ever so much. But don’t worry, we’ve got all the time in the world to get reacquainted.”

Fear flooded my system and I struggled violently against my bindings. Albrecht stood up and I instinctively tried to move, but there was nowhere for me to escape to. I struggled in vain and used my legs to push myself away from his looming figure, only to have my back meet with the unyielding wall behind me.

Albrecht's grin widened and he said, “Trying to get away from me so soon? You’re wasting your energy. You won’t get away from me this time. You have no idea how long I've been waiting for this.”

He came closer, trapping me between him and the wall. I felt sick. I could only hope that this was a nightmare that I would soon wake up from.

“You were supposed to be mine,” he complained, “I knew your father would give up on you someday. You were gonna be my prize for all those years of service. But you just had to go off and let that animal fuck you in my place. Did you like it? Letting that beast rut you and make you his bitch? Well? Did you? You fucking whore!”

He backhanded me so hard that my head snapped back and hit the wall. Pain exploded, clouding my vision and leaving me dizzied. The pounding in my head was so overwhelming that I barely felt the blow to my face.

“Don’t worry, little Julien, you’re all mine now. We’re going to have so much fun together. Now that you got rid of your father, there’s no one to stop me from doing all the things I’ve dreamed about. Remember all the fun we had with your mother? Weren’t her screams the most beautiful thing you’d ever heard? I bet your screams will sound even better. I was so excited when I heard you can talk again. It’s been ten years since I heard that pretty little voice of yours begging me for mercy. Nooooo! Moooommy! Don’t hurt her!”

Albrecht laughed as he mocked me, falling into a fit of terrifying giggles. Then suddenly the laughter stopped and he looked at me with rage in his eyes.

“Why the fuck aren’t you laughing?!” he shouted before his foot collided with my ribcage, knocking me to the floor. “Fuck! It’s funny! Laugh, you dumb shit!”

I cowered on the floor as he kicked me again. His kicks hurt, hurt in a way that assured me he had broken a rib. He grabbed me by the hair and pulled me to my knees, then slammed my head into the wall again. Blackness threatened to engulf me, but it retreated when I heard him fumbling with his pants. Panic welled up inside me and I fought against my bindings to no avail.

“Fine. If you don’t wanna let me hear that sweet voice of yours, we can still put that mouth to good use,” he said as he stroked himself to excitement, “Open up for me, Julien. Be a good boy and this first time won't hurt as much.”

I closed my eyes and turned away, fighting the urge to throw up at the sight of his engorged member being aimed at me.

“I said,” he grunted before slapping me with all his strength, “open your fucking mouth!”

I clenched my teeth and closed my eyes as tight as I could. I would rather be beaten. I refused to submit to him.

“Too bad you won’t be able to clench your ass shut too,” Albrecht laughed as backhanded me, “I can hardly wait to hear you screaming like the little bitch you are.”

He grabbed me by the hair and rubbed his length all over my face as he continued stroking himself.

“Come on, Julien. Scream for me, baby,” he taunted, “No one will hear you but me. You know you want to. Let me see you cry.”

I clenched my jaw even tighter, fighting against the tears that threatened to spill out. I wouldn’t give him the satisfaction.

He slapped me again and laughed, then grabbed my hair so hard I thought he might rip it out. His breathing became ragged as he alternated between hitting me and rubbing himself against my tightly clenched jaw. With each blow, the pounding in my head grew worse. Waves of nausea alternated with explosions of pain.

The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

Albrecht’s movements became more erratic and brutal as he approached his release. With a final groan, he exploded all over my face. He released spurt after spurt, grunting and giggling, rubbing the foul substance all over my skin. He tightened his grip on my hair and pulled my head back to admire his handiwork. He smirked, then spat in my face and threw me to the floor.

After a few solid kicks to my stomach, he spat on me again and muttered, “Fuck, that was good. You’re such a good little whore.”

I balled myself up, feeling dirty and sick, shaking from the effort of holding back my sobs. I refused to let him see me cry, even though I knew he eventually would. This was only the beginning. It would get worse. Much worse. I wouldn’t be able to hold out forever.

My only hope was that someone had already noticed I was missing. I had no idea how long I’d been unconscious. It was possible that Andrian was still with his dad, thinking I was asleep in our room. Did he know I was gone? Albrecht didn’t seem worried about people hearing us either, which made me wonder how deep underground the Golden Palace went.

No, my only hope was to help myself. Even if I was going to be found, it could be days before that happened. The things Albrecht would do to me while I waited for help that might never come… No, I couldn’t wait.

I tried to calm my frantic mind and think. It felt hopeless. I was completely at his mercy; bound, injured, unarmed, and afraid.

Albrecht had returned to the chair, relaxed and sipping from a bottle of alcohol, completely unconcerned with me. For the moment, I was nothing more than a discarded toy. I needed to figure something out before he was ready to play with me again.

I shifted uncomfortably and felt something hard dig into my ankle.

I felt a surge of hope. Albrecht hadn’t thought to check me for weapons, and I still had the Marquis’ wedding gift hidden in my boot. I almost gasped out loud at the realization, but quickly calmed my excitement.

Looking in his direction, Albrecht didn’t seem to have noticed anything. I had a chance now, but first I had to get my hands on the knife and cut my bindings without being caught.

I unfurled my body and tried to move my foot back to my hands. The pain in my ribs was almost unbearable as I reached for the top of my boot, but I managed to bend enough that my fingers caught hold of the sheath. Just a little more and I’d have my hands on the hilt.

Stifling a whimper, I managed to get a solid grip on the knife and pulled it out of its sheath. I glanced cautiously at Albrecht, but he wasn’t looking in my direction. I didn’t know how much time I had, so I hurriedly adjusted the blade and began to cut the rope that bound my hands.

The angle was awkward and I sliced my skin as much as the rope, but I ignored the sting of the shallow cuts. They hurt, but they wouldn’t kill me. Albrecht would.

The blade was razor sharp and cut through my bindings quickly, though it felt like it took an eternity. With my arms free, I remained in position on the ground, waiting for the numbness to fade.

I glanced at Albrecht again, his presence a constant reminder of everything I’d ever feared. Could I really do this?

I remembered that morning in the desert, the morning of my first battle. Back then, I’d wondered if I could face Albrecht with the same calm as I’d faced the Devourers with, and I knew now that the answer was no. To be at Albrecht’s mercy was far more horrific of a fate than the needle-like teeth of those monsters.

But I could still think, couldn’t I? It was alright if I was afraid. I just had to think and move at the right time. The best thing I could do was catch him off guard. I was too injured to even consider fighting him head on. I had to wait until he was ready for more and surprise him.

Careful to remain silent, I shifted into a sitting position with my hands and the severed rope hidden behind my back. The stabbing pain in my ribs helped keep me awake despite the head injury that threatened my consciousness.

As I waited, I promised myself that if I couldn’t stop him, I would find a way to kill myself before he could lay his hands on me. I didn't want to resort to that, but it was better than the alternative.

An unknown amount of time passed while Albrecht sipped from his bottle, an aura of contentment about him. Soon, he began looking in my direction again. I remained motionless against the wall, my eyes almost closed, discreetly watching his movements.

“I know you’re awake, Julien,” he finally said, getting up from the chair.

He staggered enough for me to know that the alcohol had done its job. I silently praised the Gods that he was under its effects. Hopefully he’d drunk enough to dull his senses.

He walked towards me with a sick smile on his face, “You can pretend to be asleep all you want, but it won’t change anything. I wonder how long it’ll take before you start begging. Will you cry while I’m fucking you or will you wait til I start cutting you up?”

My body trembled and I fought the urge to lose myself in my fear. Could I really do this?

He crouched in front of me, “Maybe I should fuck you with a knife first. Get you nice and ready for me. I bet you’ll cry for me then.”

I opened my eyes and looked directly at the monster in front of me. My limbs were frozen and my heart felt like it might explode out of my chest. The Devourers had nothing on this sick son of a bitch.

Swallowing back the urge to panic, I told him, “I’ll never cry for you.”

A gleeful smile crossed his lips at the sound of my voice, right before I plunged the short blade of the boot knife into his neck.

He fell back howling, clutching his neck, “You little shit! I’m gonna make you regret that! You’re gonna wish I killed you!”

I unsteadily climbed to my feet, my bloodied knife still at the ready.

“No, you won’t,” I informed him, my voice shaking, “You’ll never touch me again.”

Despite the blood that poured from his neck, he still laughed as he said, “Oh, I’m going to enjoy this so much. Your mother got off light compared to what I’m going to do to you.”

Faster than I expected, he attacked, knocking the knife from my grip. He tackled me to the floor and pinned me beneath him. I could smell his foul breath as his face hovered above mine, his eyes bright with excitement.

“Did you really think that little knife would be enough? You’re dumber than I thought.”