Page 30 of Urban Gladiator

“Now that this part of the night is done, I’d like to go to sleep.” I dismissed him, decimating any chance we might have had to forge a deeper bond. Because he would truly hate me before the night was done.

Rowan rose from my bed. He shoved his pants on, glaring at me with narrowed eyes. But he didn’t say a thing as he exited the room in a huff. He slammed the door. The force of his anger made the door vibrate and sound as if it was going to fall off its hinges.

The sound of the deadbolt sliding home was the icing on the shitty cake. He could be angry all he wanted. Before the night was over, he would hate me for real.

11

Hours passed while I lay in bed and waited. I needed to ensure the castle was asleep before I made my move. Two hours passed before I rose from bed and donned a fresh dress while wishing for pants. But at least I had thick, heavy boots. And even though it was spring, the temperature was cold at night, so I added a cloak.

I made the mistake of touching the wall. I staggered at the vision. He’d been behind it all along. Oh god, all those witches!

Resolute and furious, I grabbed the candle Bixby had left behind. I lit the flame with a blink. And then, standing before the door of my prison, I coaxed the flame onto the door and the bolts holding it in place. This should be a workaround to negate the dark magic used on the door to keep me inside. Magic was a flow of energy and learning how to direct it.

The flame listened, growing hotter and hotter on the hinges, turning bright orange, illuminating the darkness. Whoever cast the spell must not have been too bright. Or they had performed the spell in a hurry and forgotten to ensure the entire door was spelled and not just the handle and lock.

It was an amateur’s mistake.

The hinges melted into a puddle on the floor. I thanked the flame before releasing it back into the ether. And then as quietly as possible, I exited the room. Slipping a veil of protection around me to shield my movements, I trod toward the kitchen.

Bixby didn’t know it, but he gave me the best tour ever. Because when I asked about the kitchen and what things were, he and Mistress Lara had told me the door let out into an herb garden. It was the perfect place for me to make good my escape.

I reached the door to the kitchen and entered, only to be brought up short. It took my mind a moment to understand what it was seeing and the sounds I heard.

I blushed but couldn’t look away.

Because Bixby had Mistress Lara bent over a nearby table and was fucking her raw.

“Oh yes, that’s it. Give me more.”

“Yeah, you like my cock in you. Don’t you, baby? I told you I would make you feel good.”

“More, Bixby. I need it all.”

Bixby grunted as he thrust like a jackhammer. “Such a good little slut. This pussy was made to take me.”

He leaned over her back and circled her throat with his hand. “And your cunt isn’t the only place my cock will go. I’m going to take that sweet ass of yours too.”

At that, I scurried past as swiftly as my feet would carry me, with Lara’s impassioned cries filling my ears. Checking over my shoulder, I slipped outside and glanced up at the starry night. I had to reach a vantage point out of the city. And then I would rain down my vengeance upon them.

If I felt any trepidation because it would make Rowan look like a fool to the people of this city, well then, so be it. I was done being someone’s prisoner. I was over witches being sacrificed so that the rest of Avalon could feel justified in their treatment of us. It had been two hundred years since the war. Get over it already. Like they didn’t do their fair share of killing back in the day.

Making my way through the city, I dodged soldiers and hid any time I heard footsteps. I wasn’t being followed, which was a good sign. But that could change at any moment.

The city wall was up ahead. That would do. I just needed a line of sight with the arena to cast the spell. I found a set of stairs and ascended them up to the top. Even with magic shielding me, there were plenty in Avalon with the ability to see past it, so I had to be fast.

I scouted the area up top to ensure I was alone. And then I searched the city until I located the hated arena. For two hundred years, witches had been forced to pay with their lives in that wretched place.

No more.

Gathering my power, I called to the elements. “Earth, air, fire, water, and spirit, aide me this night. Let me make it right. Help me rain down witch fire and cleanse it from my sight. As I will it, so mote it be.”

I raised my arms up. Air swirled around me. Clouds gathered. The earth rumbled. And my soul took flight until it hovered high above. I shot bolts of fire into the arena. The altar was first. The flames built and built. I cast bolt after thunderous bolt until the entire arena was on fire. And only when it was engulfed in witch flames that I ensured were hotter and harder to extinguish did I let my arms drop.

“Thank you, Maiden, Mother, Crone, for aiding me this night. Now I need your help to escape my plight. Grant me wings to fly this night. As I will it, so mote it be.”

Massive white wings unfurled and extended from my back. The wings were temporary and would only get me so far. But it gave me a way to escape without having to go through the front gate of the city, and it would cloak my scent for miles, giving me a head start. Because I knew that Rowan believed I was his mate. He would hunt for me. And I needed every advantage I could muster.

Before I leapt off the wall, I took a last look at the palace. I swore I could feel him looking my way.

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