Trigger warning: There's some significant non-consensual activity in this chapter.
*
The whole world was hidden in the black void. She was vaguely aware of herself, but everything else eluded her sight and senses.
She knew she was in danger and struggled to drag herself out of the dark. She could occasionally see glimmers of the world around her, first it was a few hedges, some random ivy, then it was the familiar flagstone of the courtyards and the smooth stone tiles of the halls. Each time she glanced something that pierced through the veil she scrambled towards it, but a strong hand kept her in place.
She couldn't see who it was, but she knew it must be Darren.
"Where is he taking me?!"
Heidi panicked. She couldn't struggle away from him and clearly he was up to something.
A small part of her hoped, seriously hoped, that she was simply misinterpreting the situation.
"Maybe I'm not seeing the big picture, maybe someone else is doing this to me?"
As much as Heidi wanted to lie to herself she had to face reality, her predicament was entirely the fault of Darren and his scheming uncle Vishal.
She couldn't believe the betrayal,
"I thought I could trust Darren, I thought I could trust Vishal! He knew my father and helped rule my kingdom in his stead!"
She shook her head as she saw his past action
s
in a new light.
"How could I have been so stupid!"
she was angry at herself for not seeing it coming. She'd played directly into whatever scheme they'd planned, and practically served up the Kingdom to her advisor,
"What if Vishal never intended to give up his stewardship. That would explain the years of failed suitors!"
Heidi was fuming,
"That rotten dirty snake!"
For years she'd been ruined by the thought that no one would ever love her. She'd internalized the rejection and the failure as a slight against herself, and it drove her to desperate measures.
"That fucking potion. That must've been him who organized that little 'gift' from the witch."
The seething rage was helping to keep her mind focused. The more she concentrated on her anger, the clearer she could see through the dark mist.
She recognized some of the artwork as it glimmered through the darkness. She knew this part of the palace was in the west wing. She gulped in preparation, she knew exactly where they were headed, as a shadowy figure welcomed her into the advisor's chambers.
In the center of the room was the figure. It was a tall shadow and utterly dark. She couldn't see who it was, but she could feel its presence and could hear murmurs piercing the void, it sounded like voices.
The black shadow moved rapidly towards her, grabbing her by the cheeks and tilting her face up towards a featureless face, "...and you're sure she can't hear us?"
A second voice, directly beside her ear whispered a reply, "She's completely out of it. If it's anything like last time, we should have a couple hours before she'll come to."
The words were barely audible but she understood them fully. She was beginning to resist whatever control Darren had over her. The clearer her mind became and more the black fog receded in kind.
She struggled to escape Darren's handhold, but he still held her tightly in place.
"Bastards," Heidi managed a futile rebute. Her captors heard her and jolted away. Though her one word was only barely audible she spoke it aloud. She tried to play it off, acting as mellow as she could, but the shadow pulled in close.
The shadow was definitely her traitorous advisor. It sounded like Vishal and Heidi was finally able to start recognizing features on his partially foggy face. He carefully inspected her eyes, before pulling away.
"Clearly she's
not
out fully. Take her away and make sure she's properly compliant this time," the shadow barked.
Darren nodded before dragging Heidi out of the chamber. She resisted as best she could while still pretending to be under the effects of the control. She knew that even with her full strength, Darren was likely strong enough to overpower her.
She scanned the halls for someone that could assist her, anyone that might hear her if she tried to scream.
Darren quietly talked to her as they moved down the halls, "This was supposed to be a quick fix. I was assured you'd be completely under my control after the first dosage," he grumbled. His demeanor shifted as he roughly pulled her along, "At least that's what happened with your little servant." He smirked cruelly as he taunted her.
"Sophie?"
she thought to herself,
"He must be referring to Sophie. I knew something bad must've happened to her, Darren must have her locked up somewhere!"
Heidi was fuming now,
"What did I do to deserve this fate?"
she pitied herself and her dire situation, "But, what did Sophie do to deserve any of this?" This usurper had taken her friend captive and now was working with her treasonous Advisor to steal her throne. Heidi plodded methodically, as she tried to plan her next steps, "I have to do something to save her, and get my Kingdom back. But first, I'll need to get away from Darren."
Right as Darren and Heidi crested a corner she spotted a person at the far end of the hall. They had their back turned to them, but luckily they weren't a great distance away.
Heidi focused as hard as she could, managing to muster a cry for help, "Som-someone... help me," she whimpered softly.
