Page 44 of Carnival

James

T he sound of chains clattering together causes me to halt.

I repeat the motion, going as slowly as possible, determined to make less noise.

I don’t know when Vivian will return, and although her visits have been less frequent due to the charming change in her facial structure, I can’t be too sure when she’d drop by.

The only way for me to pull my wrist out of the chains is if I break it, and I’ve been trying to do that for the past hour. It hurts liek a bitch merely trying, and I know it’ll be hell once it’s actually broken, but pain is temporary. It’ll heal eventually.

The wounds all over my body aren’t healing because of the lack of care. Apparently, ruining Vivian’s precious face meant getting worse treatment. Oh, well, can’t say I didn’t deserve it. Then again, so did she.

Her words are constantly replaying in my head, and it’s the reason I’m continuing forward with this plan. I’m not giving her more time to go through with her ludicrous idea of getting Rose with that man.

I grit my teeth, clench my jaw, and close my eyes. I’ve positioned my hand at an angle, fingers tangled with the chains. One quick motion downward and it’ll break. I take a deep breath, and before I release it, I pull all the weight of my arm down — and the bone breaking fills the room.

A low hiss comes from my throat, the pain shooting through my entire body. Black dots form in my vision, and it takes me a few moments until the pain subsides. With a shaky breath, I pull the hand out of the chains, creating a gap wide enough to pull the healthy wrist through.

I slump to the floor, my body trembling. I’ve been in that godforsaken position for at least two weeks, and the bastards wouldn’t even let me piss in peace. They’d bring a fucking bucket for me to use, like I’m an animal.

I’m on my knees, trying to regain control over my body. It’s filled with stab wounds, blisters, whipping marks, and blood that has long dried out. My vision blurs, the extent of my wounds finally catching up to me.

I don’t get enough time to figure out my next steps or to recover a little of my strength before I catch the sound of footsteps slowly approaching. The sound of heels clicking causes me to try and stand up, but my movements are clumsy, my body swaying a little.

The keypad beeps, and the door swings open. I’m prepared to attack, although I know it’d probably be fucking useless to fight in this state. Nonetheless, my eyes flick to the door, expecting to see Vivian or one of her men.

Instead, my heart skips a beat.

Rose stands there, in a light blue, floor-length dress. It’s a princess style, with her hair filled with silly ribbons, gloves on her hands, and makeup that doesn’t suit her face. But even then, she’s beautiful.

Her eyes swell with tears when she sees me, her expression filled with worry. She rushes toward me, hugging me tightly. I’m too weak to return the hug properly and simply flop my face in the crook of her neck.

Her divine scent gives me the strength I’m lacking. Her soft hair falls in my face, tickling me. I inhale deeply, feeling her arms tighten her grip around my body. Her own starts shaking, a few tears falling from her eyes, dripping onto my back.

“I’m here, hellion,’’ I croak out. “I’m right here.’’

“I’m so sorry,’’ she sobs, tightening her grip on me. Her hands are trembling as she lifts her head up to meet my eyes, her own filled with unshed tears. The sight makes my chest ache, and all I want to do is take her pain away.

“Don’t apologize, hellion. None of this is your fault, but right now, we have to leave.’’

She nods, wiping the tears away with the back of her palm.

My eyes dip down to her feet, muscles in my jaw tensing at the sight of her bandaged-up feet in those goddamn heels.

The bandages are bloodied, and it’s a recent thing.

But before I can question her on it, she puts my arm around her shoulder and starts leading me out, my foot limping.

“How did you find me?”

Rose’s shoulders tense for a brief moment, but she brushes it off. “I stole the keys from Maverick.’’

My brows narrow. “That doesn’t answer the question.’’

“Vivian lifted my room confinement, so I was exploring the manor. Came across these stairs, then got forbidden from approaching them ever again. Of course, I just waited until no one was paying attention to sneak back here.’’

“I highly doubt that no one’s paying attention, hellion.’’ I pause once we reach the top of the stairs. Rose peeks her head to the left, skimming the surroundings. She gives me a brief nod, and then we start walking down the hallway.

I’m painfully aware of the cameras. I’m painfully aware that Rose hasn’t thought this through in the slightest. Best-case scenario, we reach the outside of the manor before we’re ambushed. Worst-case scenario, we don’t make it past the door.

“Hellion,’’ I whisper. “I can walk now.’’

Reluctantly, she gently puts my arm down, and I ignore the ache of my broken wrist. My eyes find Rose’s face, and for a moment, everything else disappears. Something swells in my chest, and the feeling is inexplicable. She could’ve tried to run away on her own, yet she chose to come back for me.

My girl loves me, even if she’s not ready to admit it herself.

“We need to go,’’ she whispers, taking a step further down the dimly lit hallway. I follow closely behind her, my main focus on getting her out of this hellhole safely. I’m fucking worried about this whole ordeal. We have no weapons on us and no actual plan.

Vivian allowed this to happen for a reason, and I’m dreading finding out what the reason might be.

“From what I’ve seen, there should be a few cars parked outside,’’ she lowers her voice. “I don’t know if the keys are in them, though.’’

“Don’t worry about it,’’ I try to reassure her. “It wouldn’t be my first time starting a car without the key.’’

I take her hand in mine, giving it a tight squeeze. Her smaller, warm hand fits perfectly against mine. The closer she is to me, the more I can smell her. It’s soothing, in the most fucked-up way. There’s a high chance we’ll both die tonight.

And if I die by her side, I’ll die the happiest man.

In life and in death, I won’t be parted from her. Everything that Rosalie is, and everything she wants to be— it’s all mine. It all belongs to me. As my eyes lock with hers, I can tell she’s thinking it, too. We’re in this together, for better or for worse.

Not even death will do us part.

“Ready?” I ask.

The front door of the manor is a few feet away from us.

It appears to be locked, but Rose pulls out the few keys she managed to snatch from Maverick — who, I’m assuming, is the man that’s always with Vivian, and I bet at least one will match the keyhole.

Her eyes move to the door, and she takes in a deep breath, steeling herself, bracing for the risk we’re about to take.

“As ready as I’ll ever be.’’

I keep my hold on her hand firm, gripping it tightly, just to ensure she doesn’t slip from my grasp. My senses are keen and on alert for any possible dangerous situations. Rose’s hand trembles in mine, but the determination on her face doesn’t falter.

The keys make a slight noise, and she sucks in a deep breath, pausing to ensure no one’s heard. I know someone did. I know this will go wrong in about a few minutes, but there’s no going back from this.

She puts the key into the keyhole, then twists it. The door unlocks, and she doesn’t waste a single second before she pulls the door open, and both of us start running outside.

That’s when it fucking happens.

Vivian’s men jump out of the shadows, their weapons drawn. They’re all pointing at me, not at her, and for that, I’m beyond grateful.

“You will not take another step forward,’’ Maverick announces, his gun aiming right at my head. Rose freezes beside me, and he doesn’t pay any attention to her. “Miss, I highly suggest you come with me.’’

“No,’’ she responds, straightening up. The shock wears off, and she lets go of my hand. She steps forward, shielding me from Maverick’s aim. As admirable as that is, the bastards here are sick, and if they want me dead, they will hurt her in the process of having that happen.

“Move, hellion,’’ I whisper.

“No,’’ she grits out. “I’m not moving.’’

“You don’t have a choice,’’ Maverick responds, and before I can respond, he snaps his fingers. In an instant, a few of his men drop their weapons down, and two of them grab Rosalie by her elbows, dragging her away toward a car whose engine is already running.

Something in me snaps, and I completely forget that one of my hands isn’t working. I reach to grab one of the motherfuckers who dared to lay his hands on Rose, only to be tased in the chest by someone else.

Pain shoots through my entire body, but I don’t stop. My eyes flash with fury, my feet carrying me toward Rose, only for another round of tasering to hit my lower back.

“How the fuck is he still standing?” One of them asks, shocked. “It’s fifty thousand volts!’’

My vision blurs, the poorly stitched wounds on my body reopen, and blood slowly drips down my torso.

My breathing is labored, my feet barely functioning.

I’m too fucking slow. By the time I manage to regain my vision, at least a little bit, Rosalie’s being shoved in the back of a car by Maverick, with at least ten of his men surrounding me.

I take a deep breath, taking advantage of them not attacking. They think I’m too weak to handle them, and they’re probably right. But this isn’t something I’ll let slide, nor am I willing to be put down like a damned dog.

My mind goes back to all of the things I’ve done in the past. I regret none. The people I’ve killed, the things I’ve done — I have no regrets whatsoever. It could be karma trying to be a bitch and trying to catch up with me, but it’ll have to wait.

Because tonight, I have a lot to lose, and I don’t fucking lose.

I roll up my dirty shirt, grab the hem between my teeth, and rip it with my good hand. It takes me a minute, but I manage to wrap up the wound on my stomach, doing a tight knot to stop the bleeding and lessen the pain.

My back cracks as I straighten up, the bloodthirst slowly starting to surface.

I turn to face Vivian’s men, eyes drifting between each one, finding at least one weak spot.

They might be working for the same person, but they’re nothing but cowards.

All I need is to take down two or three of them, and the rest will either get scared and run away or get too sloppy. Either way, it works for me.

The clock is ticking, and I have no time to waste.

I lift my head up, looking directly into the camera that is on the house. A slow, lazy smirk tugs on my lips, and I know that wherever Vivian is, she is definitely watching.

“Once I’m done with them, I’m coming for you, Vivian. You’ll regret the day you were born, you cunt.’’