stuck here, I'll make it my mission to tell them all. How many of them will flock here for a chance to live forever? For the chance to look young again? To feel young again?"
The queen smacks her fist against the table bouncing the plates and silverware together. Her cheeks fume red but I keep talking.
"How long does it last? How often will they need to do it? Will they take it from you? Will it ruin your rule?"
"Enough," Anastasia growls. "I'll kill you before you ever have the chance to say a word."
The truth in her words rings out and strikes me hard in the chest. Lincoln drops a hand under the table, finds my grip and gives me a reassuring squeeze.
"You won't threaten my queen." Ziko's chest hits the table, the only thing keeping him from reaching the queen and ripping out her throat. He bares his teeth in a wide snarl, a dare for her to even make an attempt. There's a flare of wildfire in his eyes. That same chaos lives inside of me. Something snaps, feral and passionate for our claim on one another.
"I'll tell you nothing, and if you want to challenge me, in my own home." Her voice starts to rise. "I'll show you how I've kept my rule here. You'll bow to me like every other, and you'll keep the secret if you know what's good for you!"
Except she doesn't plan on letting us go. Lincoln and I both know that. We won't walk out of this castle knowing what we do.
Is this enough for you to enter her mind?
On it. Lincoln stands from his chair, gently letting go of my hand. Heat radiates off of his body. Chairs scrape against the floor as he pushes them away roughly, making his way toward Anastasia. She lifts her chin, unafraid.
I actually like this stubborn streak in her. The errant thought comes and goes as Lincoln grabs the back of her chair and spins her toward him.
"You don't scare me." She stands, refusing to back down.
The signature devilish smirk shows off Lincoln's dimple and I know that he's inside her mind. I lean back in my seat and cross my legs. This should be fun.
"Sit down." Ziko presses a single finger against her forehead.
Anger still riddles her features, but her knees buckle as she lowers into her seat. The queen's mouth falls open as she looks down at her body, betrayed by the very action.
"You're... you're in my..." she takes a deep breath ready to shout, "Gu---"
"Ah, ah, ah," Lincoln purrs and she clamps her own mouth shut, the scream caught inside.
Sometimes there is something about watching a man be dominating that is so... so sexy. That is to say there are exceptions, but this moment isn't one of them. Heat curls below my stomach. I clench my thighs a little tighter.
"How do we get home?" he presses.
Her eye twitches. The air is torrid with her hatred and fury.
"Lincoln and I can be very patient," I purr.
Ziko grips the back of her chair and leans down over her. His face tilts to the side, his eyes roaming over her reddening face. He straightens. "We don't have to. I know how to get home."
Anastasia's brown eyes grow wide. "No," she wheezes.
"Yes!" I jump from my seat.
A deep wrinkle forms between Lincoln's brows while he faces me. "We have to leave, now." There is an urgency in his voice that makes a tremble travel over my body. He lowers his gaze to Anastasia's. "You don't feel well. You need to rest, and you don't want to say a word to anyone. You grew tired of us, and sent us away. You'll be ready to go back to your normal routines in a couple of days. Isn't that right?"
She grinds her teeth together. "I don't feel very well. I think that I'll go rest. You two..." A vein pops out in her neck at the effort. "You two are boring me. I think your stay here has come to an end."
"Very good." Lincoln pats her head and she cuts her hand through the air to swat him away.
She opens her mouth to speak, but her lips quickly close again. She forces herself to stand. With white knuckles, she turns and punches the back of the chair watching it clatter to the floor.
"I'll be heading to my room now to rest." She smooths down her dress.
That it? I ask Lincoln.
He bows slightly at the waist, grinning at the