CRASH!
The heavy oak door exploded inward under Elinore's boot. It slammed against the stone wall so hard dust rained down from the vaulted ceiling.
Inside the dim, dust-choked library, the obese, sweating form of Lord Corbin Vance had Josefina pinned flat against a long wooden reading table.
Josefina's ornate silk dress was ripped open at the shoulder, exposing her pale skin. Her face was drenched in tears. She was thrashing wildly, her hands pushing uselessly against the man's massive chest.
Corbin jumped at the explosive sound. He cursed and whipped his head around, his greasy face twisted in frustrated, lust-fueled rage.
"Which blind animal dares to interrupt-" Corbin's words caught in his throat.
Elinore stalked into the room. She moved like a lioness, radiating an aura of pure, unadulterated murder. The polished steel of her short sword caught the weak light filtering through the dirty windows.
Josefina saw her. She let out a gut-wrenching, desperate wail. "Elinore! Help me!"
Hearing her sister's cry burned away the last thread of Elinore's restraint. She lunged forward. Her left hand shot out, grabbing the thick velvet collar of Corbin's expensive doublet.
Tapping into the legendary, innate physical strength rumored to run deep in the Navian royal bloodline-a dormant power her father had possessed-Elinore ripped the heavy man completely off the table with a surge of force that utterly defied her slender frame. Corbin let out a high-pitched squeal of shock.
Elinore didn't pause. She drove her right knee upward, burying it deep into Corbin's soft, fleshy stomach.
"Guh-" Corbin gagged. Acid shot up his throat. His body folded in half like a cheap folding chair.
Elinore tossed him aside like a bag of garbage. Corbin's heavy body crashed into a towering bookshelf. The ancient wood splintered and collapsed, burying him under an avalanche of dust and heavy leather-bound tomes.
Elinore instantly spun around. She ripped off her military jacket and threw it over Josefina's torn dress, shielding her exposed skin. She stepped in front of the table, placing her body entirely between her sister and the threat.
Josefina scrambled off the table and hid behind Elinore's back. She gripped the fabric of the military jacket, her entire body shaking violently as she sobbed into Elinore's shoulder blades.
Corbin clawed his way out of the pile of books. He spat a glob of dust and saliva onto the floor. When he realized who had attacked him, the terror in his eyes morphed into arrogant, venomous fury.
"Elinore! You little bastard! You dare lay a hand on me? !" Corbin screamed, pointing a fat, shaking finger at her.
He slapped the dust off his velvet clothes and puffed out his chest, trying to use the weight of his political office to crush her.
"You think you're saving her? You idiot! She is mine!" Corbin sneered, a filthy, triumphant smile spreading across his face.
Elinore's eyes were dead. She tightened her grip on her sword and took a slow step forward. "Shut your dirty mouth, Corbin. Take one more step toward her, and I will end your life."
Corbin let out a grating, mocking laugh. "End my life? You? The little pretty-boy prince who looks more like a whore than a man?"
He reached into his inner pocket and pulled out a piece of rolled parchment. He shook it aggressively in Elinore's face. The heavy red wax seal of the King dangled from the bottom.
"Look closely! This is the deed!" Corbin spat. "Your dear uncle, King Orestus, lost a hand of cards to me last night!"
Elinore's eyes locked onto the red wax seal. A bucket of ice water crashed over her head. Her stomach dropped to the floor.
"He bet Josefina, and he lost! She is my legal property now! I can do whatever I want with her!" Corbin declared.
Josefina let out a hollow, broken whimper behind Elinore. Her knees gave out, and she slid down to the floor, clutching the jacket.
Elinore's body went rigid. She knew Orestus was a monster, but using his own niece as poker chips?
A wave of absolute disgust and hatred for the royal bloodline boiled in Elinore's chest. She looked at Corbin's smug, sweaty face. The urge to kill him spiked.
Corbin thought Elinore was paralyzed by the King's seal. He smirked and stepped forward, reaching his hand out to shove Elinore aside and grab Josefina.
"Move out of the way, you useless little shit. Let the men handle their business," Corbin sneered.
The second Corbin's fingers grazed Elinore's shirt, she moved. Her wrist flicked. The short sword became a blur of silver.
Before Corbin could even blink, the razor-sharp tip of Elinore's blade was pressed directly against the pulsing vein in his thick neck.
