Princess of Everdale Ch. 12

Talia sat on the end of Zeedra's bed, her legs crossed beneath her as she read from the book in her lap. The crime lord had a surprisingly well stocked library, including novels that Talia had never come across even in the Royal Library. Zeedra had given her permission to read whatever she wanted and so, over the past three days of her incarceration, she had slowly devoured book after book in an attempt to escape the reality of her situation.

She still wasn't sure about Zeedra. The crime lord seemed nice enough and Talia had been kept well fed, comfortable and safe from the rest of the Red Hands, but something about her captor had her on edge. She felt like she was one wrong word away from all those pleasantries being stripped away and she had a feeling that Zeedra was not a woman to be crossed.

She she closed the book as she finished her latest chapter, tilting her neck to the side and rubbing the red patch that had formed on her skin where the iron collar that she wore had started to rub. The chain clanked behind her as she moved, the noise setting her teeth on edge. It was a crude thing, the chain just long enough to allow her to walk around Zeedra's bedroom, and nowhere near as comfortable to wear as the leather collar she wore for Alec. She sighed at the thought of her lover and wondered where he was. She knew he would be looking for him. From what snippets of information she had overheard, most of the city was looking for her.

The door to the Zeedra's chamber opened with a groan and she heard several sets of footsteps march into the room. She set the book aside and slipped off of the bed, cradling the chain of her collar in her hands to keep it from making too much noise. She crept up to the dividers that separated Zeedra's bed from the rest of the room and peered around the side. The Red Hands' base was located in an old storehouse complex beneath the streets that, she believed was linked to the city's old sewers. The rooms that she had been into were all the same sort of large storage halls with domed ceilings made of large yellowish bricks on the walls and floor and Zeedra's chamber was no different. A large, slightly moth-eaten rug covered most of the floor whilst the majority of light was provided by a fire pit that spat and crackled in the centre of the room. Worn leather chairs and a sofa were clustered around the pit whilst off to one side was an oversized mahogany desk with two chairs set in front of it. As Talia peered around the partition she could see Zeedra sitting behind the desk, her dark skin illuminated by the light of the firepit and the lantern on the desk. Two men were sitting in the chairs in front of her; a red headed dwarf and a human with dark skin and a shaven head.

"We are monitoring the patrols," the human said softly. "The royal guards are searching around the clock for any sign of the prisoner. It won't be long before they close in on us."

"We have survived this long," Zeedra said thoughtfully. "I'm not about to have that all undone."

"We could let her go?" the human offered. "If we pump her full of enough narcotics there's no chance she would remember any of this. We could even make it look like an overdose if you want to be sure."

Talia gasped, clasping her hand to her mouth as Zeedra looked up. Their eyes locked, Zeedra's almost-white grey eyes piercing her soul before she shook her head. "If she dies then there truly will be no place for us to hide. No, we need to distract them. Offer them a clue that leads them in the wrong direction."

"What about the Westhall warehouse?" the dwarf suggested gruffly. "It's on the other side of the city."

"We have a crew there," the human protested.

"Exactly," the dwarf grunted. "A crew that knows nothing about the prisoner."

"They were about to launch an operation!"

"Small price to pay if it means throwing off the royal hounds," the dwarf countered. "They get to play hero when they find the warehouse and the weapons and then they assume that the rest of us are that side of the city."

"Interesting," Zeedra muttered. "The crew that's there. Do you trust them not to talk?"

The dwarf shrugged. "I trust them not to let themselves be caught."

Zeedra nodded. "Fine," she said. "Go. Make the arrangements."

Talia shrank back as the two men stood and bowed awkwardly before walking out of the room. She sagged back on the bed, tears pricking the corner of her eyes as she realised Zeedra's plan would probably work and that she would have to wait even longer for rescue. Where was Alec? Why wasn't he here?

"Cheer up, Princess."

Talia looked up to see Zeedra leaning against the partition, arms folded over her chest. She was wearing black leather trousers and knee high boots, a cropped vest top exposing her midriff and arms, the right of which was covered in tattoos. Black lipstick covered her full lips and eyeshadow made her dazzling eyes seem even brighter than they were. Her black hair, shot through with strands of mint green tumbled over her right hand shoulder whilst the left side of her scalp was shaved close to her head.

"Your men want to kill me," Talia whispered, her voice trembling as she spoke the words.

"They are being practical," Zeedra said. "When Vargus brought you here, he left us with no good decisions about what to do with you. Fortunately for you, I prefer to keep you breathing."

Talia sighed, wiping her eyes as she looked away from the crime lord.

"What are you reading?"

She reached for her latest book absently, turning it over for Zeedra to see the cover. It was a story about a runaway girl who saved the princess of her land from a terrible dragon. The two became friends before love tore them apart.

Zeedra laughed softly as she picked up the book and dropped onto the bed beside Talia. "I haven't read this for years," she mused. "I used to want to be a writer, you know? When I was little... Funny how life turns out."

"You mean, funny that you became a crime lord?" Talia spat.

Zeedra frowned. "Come now, Princess," she said cooly. "We don't always have choice in where life takes us. I think you know that as well as I do."

Talia looked down, remembering all the times she had longed to be free of her titles and duties. She told herself that Zeedra was different, but deep down maybe they were more similar than she realised.

"I want to show you something," Zeedra said, standing up. She slipped a key out of her pocket and released the lock securing the collar around Talia's neck. "Come with me."

Talia hesitated before taking Zeedra's hand, following her out of her chamber into the corridor beyond.

"Put this on," Zeedra instructed before they left the room.

Talia nodded. taking the cloak that Zeedra had plucked from the stand beside the door. She fastened it around her shoulders, pulling it into place over the white dress that she wore and raising the hood over her golden hair. Zeedra had said that most people in the gang knew who she was but that there was no sense in advertising her presence regardless.

They stepped out into the corridor but instead of turning off towards the main hall, turned right and walked to the end of the corridor. At first Talia thought they had reached a dead end but then she saw a grate in the floor. Zeedra reached down, grunting with effort as she pulled the grate free before unhooking a torch from the wall.

"After you, Princess," she said.

Talia wrinkled her nose as she peered into the dark hole, the smell of stale air filling her nostrils. A ladder vanished into the dark, its surface hard and cold and she carefully stepped onto the first rung and began to descend, Zeedra following close behind. She eventually found the floor and as Zeedra's torch light followed her down she found herself in a circular tunnel that looked like it hadn't been used in centuries.

"What is this place?" Talia asked, looking around and the smooth walls.

"The old sewers aren't the only tunnels beneath the city," Zeedra said, stepping up beside her. "We think these used to carry water around the city before the Colleges of Magic created the aqua-sleuths."

"So this is how you've been moving around the city?" Talia asked.

"One of the ways," Zeedra said with a nod.

She took Talia's hand and led her down the tunnel. After a while Talia could start to hear the sound of rushing water and she could feel the slightest of breezes on her skin. As they rounded a corner she gasped, the tunnel opening up into a wide cylindrical chasm that fell away beneath them at the edge of the opening. Hundreds of other tunnels were dotted around the face of the cylinder and water gushed from about a quarter of them into the seemingly bottomless pit beneath them.

"Pretty special, right?" Zeedra asked, raising her voice slightly to be heard over the rushing water. "I like to come down here when I need some time to myself."

"What even is this?" she asked.

Zeedra shrugged, turning around. "A marvel of a bygone time," she said. "Something that we will never understand."

As Talia stared in wonder at the cascading waterfalls she felt Zeedra move closer to her. The crime lord was still holding her hand, her grip strong and oddly comforting in the vastness of the tunnels. She turned to Zeedra, her mouth dry as the crime lord cocked her head, her bright eyes dazzling in the light of the torch that she held in her other hand. She knew what Zeedra wanted. She had been trying to ignore it but maybe, just maybe, a part of her wanted it to. The crime lord leaned in, pushing Talia back against the walls of the tunnel and pressed her lips against hers. Talia sighed as Zeedra kissed her, the torch clattering to the floor as she seized the princess' wrists and pinned them over her head against the stonework.

"I'm going to make you mine, Princess," Zeedra whispered in her ear. "Just you wait. Soon you'll never want to leave this place ever again."

Talia whimpered as Zeedra pulled the cloak from her shoulders whilst continuing to kiss her. Her grip was firm and uncompromising and her tongue mercilessly probed her own mouth as she pressed her body against Talia's.

"On your knees," Zeedra at last instructed.

Talia sank to her knees, tears stinging the corners of her eyes. She felt like she was betraying Alec and yet, she couldn't help herself but obey. She watched as Zeedra reached up to the roof of the tunnel and only then noticed the manacles that hung from the roof at the two and ten o'clock positions. Zeedra pulled on the chains, securing the metal cuffs one at a time to Talia's wrists before pressing another button. Talia heard the chains clatter together as they were reeled in, her arms pulled up and two the side almost to the point of hurting before they fell mercifully still. She looked up as Zeedra smirked at her before ducking beneath the chains and walking round behind her. Talia shivered as she knelt behind her, gnawing at her neck as she ran her hands up from her waist onto her boobs.

"Has anyone ever touched you like this, Princess?" she whispered. "Has anyone every treated you like a little slut?"

Talia bit her lip. She wanted to say yes, to tell her that she had done more than anyone would ever believe with Alec and that he was the only one that she belonged to but she knew that she couldn't. She couldn't risk revealing her secrets and she definitely didn't want to piss Zeedra off at that moment so she simply shook her head and whimpered softly as the crime lord pinched her nipples through her dress.

"Poor little Princess," Zeedra hissed, her breath warm on Talia's neck. "Don't worry, we'll make a whore of you yet."

Talia gasped as Zeedra tore down the top of her dress, the buttons around her neck popping as the material fell away to expose her bare tits. Zeedra cackled softly as she grabbed Talia's boobs, digging her fingers into the soft flesh as she rolled her nipples between her thumbs and forefingers. Despite herself, Talia let out a soft moan and arched her back as the crime lord continued to grope her. She couldn't help it. Her nipples were on fire and Zeedra seemed to know exactly how she would respond.

"Good girl," Zeedra hissed in Talia's ear. "Now, tell me that you want me to touch your pussy."

Talia groaned. She did. But she didn't.

"Do it!" Zeedra growled, tugging Talia's head back sharply by her hair.

"Ow!" Talia yelped. "Alright! Please touch my pussy!"

Zeedra chuckled in satisfaction, moving her right hand from Talia's nipple, down her side and under the folds of her white dress. The Princess shuddered as Zeedra's fingers slid over her panties, pressing into the lips of her pussy.

"See, Princess?" she whispered, as she slid her panties aside and pressed her fingers into Talia's wet pussy. "I knew you were enjoying this."

Talia bit her tongue to keep from moaning as Zeedra slid her fingers into her clit. She arched her back, bracing herself against the cuffs as the crime lord began to pump her fingers in and out of her pussy. She was rougher than Alec. This was about the act of fucking her and nothing else. Talia tried to remember that as she felt warm rise within her, her left nipple stinging pleasantly as Zeedra continued to tug and pinch it. The strength of her orgasm took her by surprise and she bucked her head and cried out as waves of pleasure pulsed through her. Her shoulder shook and her vision blurred as she slumped forwards, held upright only by the manacles secured around her wrists.

Zeedra laughed softly, gathering Talia's hair from her face and pulling her head up gently. "You can't fake that, Princess," she whispered. "But now it's my turn. Open wide."

Talia was still shaking and barely noticed Zeedra press a metal ring into her mouth before fastening a set of straps behind her mouth. She wasn't sure where the ring gag had come from. Had Zeedra had it all along or had it been down here with the manacles? Talia wondered how many other prisoners she had brought down here to show the waterfalls to.

Zeedra stood and Talia heard her undress. When she ducked beneath the chains and walked around in front of her, Talia saw she had removed her trousers and her top but had kept her knee high boots on. She was undeniably beautiful. Her dark skin practically shone in the light and her eyes were transfixing. She stared down at Talia smirking at the confusion on the Princess' face as she teased her own clit.

"Let's see what you can do, Your Majesty," she sneered.

Talia grunted as she turned and bent at her hips reaching behind her to push Talia's face into her ass. Talia moaned as her lips were pressed against Zeedra's wet pussy and the soft skin of her ass. Zeedra squeezed her head and Talia reluctantly pushed her tongue through the ring gag and began to run it over her pussy.

"Oh fuck!" Zeedra groaned, laughing softly as she continued to finger herself. "Keep going!"

Talia screwed her eyes shut as she continued to lick Zeedra's clit. She was reminded of the day she had spent locked in the stockades at the Vale and all those strangers who had used her and fucked her. She had enjoyed that day, so was this any different? She shuddered as she heard Zeedra squeal. Yes, she realised, it was. Alec had been there at the Vale. It had been a fantasy that they had enjoyed together. This was different. This scared her.

Zeedra stiffened, shoving Talia's face deeper into her ass as she tossed her head and screamed as she came. She staggered away from the Princess, slumping against the wall and laughing as she pushed her black and green hair from her face.

"Not bad," she gasped. "Not bad at all."

Talia glowered at her, her own shoulders rising and falling as she caught her breath.

"Don't look at me like that," Zeedra snapped. "You enjoyed it."

"Et ee oh!" Talia demanded through the gag.

Zeedra rolled her eyes, dropping her arms to her legs with a growl of annoyance. "I thought we were past this," she growled. "I can't let you go. I won't. You're going to stay here with me. You're mine now. You're not a Princess, your my slave. Do you understand me?"

Talia glared at her defiantly, her expression a stark contrast to the tears that rolled down her cheek.

Zeedra sighed, standing up and shaking her head. "I thought we were friends," she said sadly. "I can see that's not the case. So be it. Maybe some time down here to think will do you some good."

Talia craned her neck as Zeedra ducked behind her and gathered up her clothes. She was leaving, taking the torch with her and leaving the Princess in the cold and dark of the tunnels. Talia almost broke. She almost called back to Zeedra to beg her not to leave her down there all by herself but she stopped herself at the last second. She would be brave for herself. She would be brave for Alec. She would be brave because she was the Princess.