The Cell

I rewound the tapes and watched them again and again, thinking about what Jenny had told me earlier, how hard would it be to delete just a couple of seconds of the tape showing me? That way, I’d appear onscreen sooner, and I’d still be queen. I knew the consequences if I didn’t do it, and yet, the thought of keeping the crown by illicit means still didn’t sit well with me.

Making sure that none of the nurses were nearby, I found my clothes and got myself dressed. The hospital wouldn’t like letting me leave, but I wasn’t going to give them any choice. I might not be the queen anymore, but they didn’t know that...yet.

I needed to speak to Luca. To see him one last time. I had to stop him from his madness. I had no idea what I was going to say to him, and I wasn’t sure if anything I said would make a difference, but I had to try.

“You can’t leave!” The head of the hospital herself, blocked the main exit, stopping me from going through it. “You need rest.”

“I’m going. I’ll be back later tonight.” I wasn’t even sure if that was true, but I pushed past her anyway. When the people outside saw me, a huge cheer went up. Dozens of cameras started clicking, flashing, and rolling. In my haste to leave, I’d forgotten about the press. Cynder was going to see this on TV and come straight down here. Actually, he’d go straight to the place where he knew I was planning to go myself. I had to be quick.

I forced a smile and waved as I rushed by the people. Thankfully, there were barriers separating the entrance and the crowd, but once I walked past them, I was going to be mobbed. Part of me wanted to turn around and go back to the comfort and safety of the hospital, but the queen in me knew that this was my only chance to persuade Luca to let everyone live.

I saw my opportunity in the shape of a tied up horse and took it. Being on horseback made it simple to cut through the crowd, and a minute later I was heading through town.

The police station looked as foreboding as ever as I pulled up. Tying the horse up at the front, I ran in and demanded to be let into the cells. A surprised guard at the reception desk let me through without questioning me. One of the perks of having a famous or maybe infamous face.

Jason Copper was seated at his desk. I tried to walk right past him, knowing he’d try and talk me out of speaking to Luca, but I was too slow. He jumped up and grabbed my arm.

“Cynder told me you’d be coming.”

“How did he... Ah, the talk stone.”

Copper shook his head, his brow furrowed. “You don’t want to speak to him. No good will come of it.”

“I need him to see reason. I can’t act as I’m above the law because if I do, I’m not fit to be queen.”

Copper lowered his voice. “If you don’t slightly bend the law, you won’t be the queen anymore, and that lunatic over there will kill us all. It won’t be just you. He’ll kill Cynder, he’ll kill me, he’ll kill your mother, Elise, Leo, and hundreds more. Charmaine, he’ll kill Grace. Do you really want that?”

“Hello, wife!” Luca, having just noticed me, shouted from his cell. His was the only one occupied right now, but I knew if he got out, he’d soon fill them all again.

I pulled my arm from Copper and walked towards Luca’s cell slowly.

His expression didn’t change as I stood before him.

“How nice of you to come visit,” he sneered.

“You are the king, Luca. I saw the footage. You beat me.”

His expression changed before my eyes. The anger had fled to be replaced with a look of superiority.

“I knew it. I knew I’d beat you.” He looked at me with such an expression of malice that I almost shivered under it.

“I have a proposal for you,” I said, trying my best to keep eye contact with him under the weight of his stare.

He raised an eyebrow questioningly. “Hmm. And what is it that you, a lowly commoner, could possibly have to offer me, the king?”

I took a deep breath. “In exchange for letting my family and my friends live, and letting them move to another kingdom far away from you where you’ll never see them again, you can have me. I am already your wife, and I will play my part well. I will tell Silverwood how wonderful you are.”

“Why would I want that?” he spat. “You have been nothing but a thorn in my side from day one.”

“Your reputation is ruined, Luca. The people hate you. I think they are planning some kind of revolution. They want to overthrow the monarchy after what you did to me on live TV.”

It was a lie. I had no idea if the people were planning to overthrow him, but it was the only thing I could think of to make my argument more compelling.

“They love me,” I continued. “There are thousands of people outside my hospital room right now just waiting for a glimpse of me. Do you know how many are standing outside the police station to see you? None. Not one.”

I moved closer to the bars now. “I can make you great again. I can make you the king you want to be.”

I waited, trying to read his expression. It looked like he was weighing it in his mind. A full minute passed without either of us speaking.

“I don’t think so,” he roared, his expression now clouding with thunder. Quick as a flash, he put his hand through the bars and grabbed my neck, pulling me towards him so that my face was crushed between them. With his other hand, he began to choke me.

I felt the life dripping from me as he squeezed harder and all the while he cackled.

As the light began to dim, I heard a crack and the pressure lifted. Luca’s body fell to the floor, a puddle of red appearing beneath his head.

He was dead. I turned to see Copper holding a smoking gun out in front of him.

“Are you ok?” he asked, running towards me. I pulled in a painful deep breath and bent double. I was going to need more time in the hospital; that was for sure.

“Charm!”

I looked up to see Cynder running towards me. He scooped me up in his arms. For the first time in what felt like forever, I felt safe. I rested my head on his shoulder and closed my eyes.

“What happened?” he asked Copper.

Copper replied. “It’s over. The king is dead. Long live the queen.”