The freezing, soundproof underground room was completely swallowed by the heavy, pitch-black darkness.
There were no windows to show the moon, and no clocks to tick away the seconds. Down in that damp concrete box, ti simply stopped. The only sound left in the entire world was the ragged, wet breathing of the broken man chained to the heavy tal chair.
The jagged piece of sharp tal felt heavy in his shaking hand.
His fingers were bleeding where the rough edges cut into his skin, but he didn’t even care. The terrible, burning pain from what Roxy had done to him was completely overwhelming, but it was still nothing compared to the crushing weight inside his chest.
For the very first ti in his miserable life, he could not bla soone else for his problems. He couldn’t bla the police, he couldn’t bla the world, and he definitely couldn’t bla Roxy. The sweet, innocent girl he had tortured all those years ago had grown into a fierce, untouchable Queen. She had outsmarted him, trapped him, and finally given him exactly what he deserved.
He was a monster. He knew it now. The terrible guilt ate away at his brain like a hungry wolf.
He didn’t want to sit in this freezing chair forever. He didn’t want to live with the ugly truth of what he had done. He was completely exhausted, completely mutilated, and totally consud by his own deep regret.
"I am sorry... Roxy," he groaned out one last ti into the dark, empty room.
He gripped the jagged piece of tal tightly. He didn’t scream, and he didn’t cry for help. Using the last tiny bit of strength he had left, he used the sharp edge to end his own terrible nightmare. A sudden, sharp sting was followed by a strange, numb warmth. His heavy chin fell completely to his chest. His breathing slowed down, becoming quieter and quieter, until finally, it stopped altogether.
The heavy steel chains stopped rattling. The terrible monster who had ruined so many years of Roxy’s life finally closed his eyes, and the dark cell swallowed him whole.
Miles away, high above the busy city streets, the sun slowly began to rise.
Bright, beautiful, golden morning light poured right through the giant floor-to-ceiling windows of the massive penthouse. The heavy, dark energy from yesterday was completely gone. The air in the giant ho felt incredibly light, fresh, and totally clean.
The kitchen was filled with the happy, comforting slls of a massive breakfast.
Ren was standing by the giant marble stove, wearing a clean white apron over his dark shirt. The silver-haired healer was happily flipping a huge stack of fluffy, golden-brown pancakes. Caspian was helping him, carefully carrying giant bowls of fresh red strawberries, sweet blueberries, and sliced bananas over to the large dining table.
Torian and Kaelen were sitting at the table, playfully arguing over who got the last piece of crispy bacon. The giant White Tiger tried to steal it, but the Wolf King was faster, snatching the bacon right off the plate with a totally victorious smirk.
Roxy walked out of the master bedroom and into the warm sunlight.
She was wearing a soft, thick silk robe that Zarek had bought for her. Her bare feet padded softly against the clean hardwood floor. She took a deep breath, filling her lungs with the sweet sll of pancakes and warm coffee. She smiled, a real, bright, beautiful smile that made her green eyes shine.
For the first ti in years, she had slept through the entire night without a single bad dream. The shadows in the corners of the room didn’t look scary anymore. She knew exactly who was standing in those shadows, and she knew they loved her more than the stars in the sky.
She walked over to the table and sat down in her comfortable chair.
"Good morning, my beautiful Queen," Caspian smiled brightly, setting a huge, warm mug of sweet coffee right in front of her.
"Good morning," Roxy bead, wrapping her hands around the warm mug.
Zarek and Syris walked into the kitchen a mont later. The Dragon King walked straight over to Roxy, leaning down to press a soft, warm kiss right to the top of her dark curls before taking his seat next to her.
Syris sat down across from Roxy. The elegant Swamp King was wearing a crisp, dark green dress shirt, looking absolutely perfect as usual. He set his sleek, black cell phone flat on the glass table right next to his plate.
For a few minutes, the family just ate and laughed together. Torian complained that Ren didn’t make enough pancakes, even though there were at least forty of them on the table. Kaelen kept sneaking strawberries off Caspian’s plate. It was so incredibly normal. It was so perfectly safe.
Suddenly, the screen of Syris’s black cell phone lit up.
A quiet, short ding echoed from the device.
It was a special notification. Syris had set up a hidden, completely silent cara inside the underground room. It was programd to alert his phone if the heart rate monitor they hid inside the tal chair completely flatlined.
Syris slowly reached out and picked up the phone. His face didn’t change at all. He didn’t gasp, and he didn’t look surprised. He tapped the screen once, looking at the silent, dark video feed from the underground cell.
He saw the completely still, lifeless body of the ex-husband slumped in the chains.
Syris calmly locked the phone screen and set it face down on the glass table. He picked up his white coffee cup, taking a slow, elegant sip.
He turned his bright green eyes to Roxy over the breakfast table. He gave her a soft, totally calm look.
"The trash took itself out," Syris said simply.
The busy noises in the kitchen completely stopped. Torian froze with a pancake halfway to his mouth. Ren turned around from the stove, holding his spatula. Zarek slowly lowered his coffee cup.
They all knew exactly what Syris ant.
Roxy just sat there, staring at Syris’s calm face. She blinked once.
She didn’t feel sad. She didn’t feel guilty. Instead, she felt an amazing, incredible sensation rush right through her body. It felt like a massive, heavy, iron backpack that she had been forced to carry on her shoulders for ten years was finally unbuckled and dropped onto the floor.
The heavy weight completely, permanently lifted off her chest.
She took a massive, deep breath, pulling the sweet morning air all the way down into her lungs. The terrible fear was totally gone. The bad mories lost their sharp teeth. The man who had haunted her nightmares was nothing but a pile of dust in a dark basent now. He could never yell at her again. He could never hurt another woman again.
The absolute last ghost of her dark human past was dead and gone.
Roxy slowly stood up from the breakfast table. She didn’t say a word to the Kings. She didn’t need to. They watched her with completely proud, adoring eyes as she walked away from the table, moving smoothly across the massive living room.
She walked straight toward the giant glass doors that led outside.
She pushed the doors open and stepped out onto the massive penthouse balcony. The cool, crisp morning wind imdiately whipped around her, blowing her dark curls wildly around her face.
She walked right up to the thick glass railing and looked out.
Far below her, the giant, bustling human city of New York stretched out for miles and miles. The tall glass skyscrapers sparkled in the golden morning sun. Millions of humans were driving in tiny cars, rushing to their normal jobs, completely unaware that a fierce Queen was looking down at them from the clouds.
She had conquered the wild, magical Beastworld. She had stripped powerful monsters of their titles, built a family, and taken her absolute power back. She was not a weak human girl anymore. She was a Matriarch.
Heavy, familiar footsteps stepped out onto the balcony behind her.
Roxy didn’t turn around. She smiled as a massive, warm chest pressed right up against her back, completely blocking the cold morning wind.
Zarek’s giant, strong arms wrapped securely around her waist, pulling her tightly against him. The Dragon King rested his chin gently on her shoulder, his bright golden eyes looking out over the giant, endless city below them.
He could feel the total, peaceful calm rolling off her body. He knew she was finally, completely free.
Zarek leaned his face down, his hot breath brushing gently against the sensitive skin of her neck.
"Your past is dead, my Queen," Zarek whispered, pressing a soft, burning kiss right below her ear. "Now... let’s build our very own empire in your world."
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