"And I got a right to speak my mind! And I'm gonna pay for this! They're gonna burn me at the stake! But I got a fire in my veins, I wasn't made to fall in line." Fall in Line by Christina Aguilera ft Demi Lovato, 2018
Running with the Boys
Chapter XXXV: The Line
His smile was what she saw. With his one shorter tooth and sharpened canines. She never thought she'd ever see him smile. He was so lonely in the bar, so broken. His hair was so blonde, years of sun from the Wasteland, kissed him with vigor.
Her eyes opened slowly, her second time waking up in this strange room. The first time Vidia was too spent to even move, she gave in to the siren of sleep without a fight. Now, she opened her eyes and looked around.
It was fit for a queen. Ceiling to floor windows, a storm in the distance rumbled. There's a writing desk with a tablet, the chair is overstuffed and dressed in royal blue. She pushed herself up, the gown Camille forced her into is gone. She sits up slowly, the blanket falls showing she's in her underwear. She grabs the blanket, gathering it at her chest as she looks around more. This room. While stripped of precious artifacts, it was hers years ago. Many of the elements had changed or replaced as if her mother was expecting her to return.
"Hello?" She called out, hoping to hear someone she knew.
But only silence meets her. She pulled the blanket closer, getting out of the bed and heading to the window. Kras City. Her home. The window was cold to the touch, she pulled her hand away quickly. How did Jace get into her house?
What a stupid question. A voice whispered to her. Of course, he would have access. She hurried to the door, the stained gold knob was missing. She brushed her fingers against the jagged hole it left behind. She looked to the closet, normally she'd leave it open to keep the monsters at bay. The door was closed. She took in a breath and marched over to it. Grabbing the gold knob, she yanks it open.
Inside was a dress. She slammed the close and stepped back from it.
"Put it on Vidia." A voice ordered.
She spun on her heels. The room was empty, she ran to the middle, looking around and finally spotting a camera mounted on the wall.
"Clever girl," The voice mocked.
"Jace?" She asked.
"Well, it's not that stupid boy, Riddler."
"Rider!" She shouted. "His name is Rider Mar!"
"Ugh, you fell for a Mar?"
"I don't care about his last name, and he doesn't care about mine."
"I do," He purred. "The Krew Family, lovely and bold." He chuckled. "Put the dress on Vidia."
"No!" She screamed, she grabbed the chair and threw it at the camera. It cracked, she stared it down. "I will never be your doll again!" Her Blue Eco sparked, igniting the room in a blue haze. "I am Vidia Krew. I am the Crime Mistress of Kras and you will bow to me, prisoner."
There's no answer.
She stepped back from the camera, her mouth twitched with a smile. She finally got him. She will never be his doll again.
There's a bang behind her, she turned to it as the door swung open. Jace marched over the threshold, Vidia stepped back as his Dark Eco zapped at her. She screamed when it hit her arm, she held it as he grabbed the chair she just threw.
"How dare you speak to me like that!" He shouted.
"I am not your doll!" She shouted back.
"What you think you belong to him now?" Jace asked, he grabbed her hair and dragged her to the bed. "You belong to me." He threw her on the bed. "And I'll remind you who you belong to!" He grabbed her ankle and pulled her down to him.
She kicked upwards, clipping his jaw. She scrambled away, getting on the other side of the bed. He bled from his nose and mouth, he wiped away the blood.
"You're going to pay for that, Vidia." He growled.
"No!" She screamed hitting the bed. Blue Eco exploded on the bed, it threw him back against the wall. The room was a storm, electrifying every surface around her. The bedspread caught on fire, burning blue in front of her as Jace stood. "I do not belong to anyone, not even Rider. Get the fuck out of my room!"
Jace smirked. "Put the dress on."
Something inside of her ignited. The embers sizzled inside her for so long, so shy to ignite. She'd felt them before, but she always beat them down, hiding her power from Jace, her mom, even Rider. She screamed, louder than before -it wasn't fueled by defiance but by the raw anger she felt.
She held her hand out to Jace, Blue Eco burned its way across the room, igniting everything in its path. Her lightning bolt hit home and it hit hard, he went through the wall crashing into the hallway. Another one fired up in her, the storm growing with her fury. She let it go, aiming straight for Jace's hollow heart. If she had Arch she'd send an arrow of pure Eco at him, making all the Eco work together to kill him.
A blur moved in front of him. The girl from the wedding, Rider's sister Laney. She glowed with the deadly beauty of Light and Dark Eco. She smiled at her, behind her Jace stood.
"I think you've made your point," Jace smirked. "You want some time to enjoy your new freedom." He looked to Laney. "Explore your feelings, explore that fire I've never seen." He stepped back into the room. "But you will put on the dress in the end. You will become my White Queen."
"When Hell freezes over." She snarled.
He bowed to her. "I can't offer you that, but what about a red carpet?"
TBC…