Release In The Dark (DARK erotic romance series) Read Online Free PDF

they turn and leave
the room, as I raise my hand to feel my gooey, sticky face. There is
no mirror, so I can't really see what they have done. Pam walks past
me and smiles. “May and Lilin are really good with make up.
They were traveling with a dance troupe, doing the dancers' make up
before...” She trails off.
    “ Before they were caught,”
I offer.
    Pam shakes her head. “They
were sold. The troupe needed money. The troupe master sold them to
the Red Lantern.”
    “ Sold,” I repeat
numbly.
    “ Yes. They hope to buy
themselves out of the Red Lantern. They just have to earn enough.
But enough is...” She doesn't finish. Instead she lets out a
brittle, bitter laugh.
    Enough is never enough.
    The girls can never buy
themselves out.
    “ Let's go,” she says
with a soft sigh. “There is a new Warden in this morning. If
you get into the Warden's bad books, she can make one week feel like
a century.”
    “ The Wardens are soldiers
from the Imperial Army, aren't they?” I say as we leave the
room.
    “ Yes. They usually send
the female soldiers. But don't be fooled. They may be female, but
they're soldiers of the Imperial Army all right. They are
well-armed, and they can call for back-up anytime. Last month, a few
girls tried to escape. The Warden pressed the alarm, and in a matter
of seconds, I swear, seconds! The entire castle was swarming with
Imperial soldiers! The girls didn't even make it to the edge of the
woods behind the castle,” she finishes quietly.
    “ Were they...”
    She nods. “Shot in the
back.”
    “ No wonder there are no
guards around,” I mumble.
    Pam snorts. “The soldiers
are better deployed elsewhere. Fighting, killing, invading, crushing
and capturing the rebels...”
    Her last few words send a stab
of cold fear and dread through my heart. Jaxon was a Commander of
the Imperial Army. Now, as a rebel leader, he would be hunted down
by the black-uniformed soldiers he had once led. He was a wanted
man, a traitor of the State. If he had been captured—
    “ Ana, Ana! You okay?”
    I gasp and jerk back from Pam.
She withdraws her hand from my shoulder in a hurry.
    “ Ah...I'm sorry, Pam.
I...I just...”
    “ That's okay. The first
day I was brought here, I was catatonic. The soldiers pulled me away
from my fiance and when he tried to stop them, they shot him. I saw
them shoot James in the leg. But I know that James is still alive.
But if I tried to escape, they'll kill James...”
    I reach out to hold her hand.
She squeezes my hand hard, and turns to me with round, dead eyes.
    I don't know what to say to her.
In all likelihood, her James is dead, killed not long after she was
taken. But I can't tell her that. She would never accept that.
    My grip on her hand tightens as
I suddenly realize that I might be stubbornly clinging on to the same
illusion. No, no! Jaxon is not dead! I will never accept that.
Never.
    Riko and Kylee push past us out
of the room. I release Pam's cold hand and stumble out into the
crowded corridor. There is a loud beep and the sliding door opens.
With nervous coughs and murmurs, the girls stream out of the door and
step into the plush interior of the Red Lantern.

CHAPTER
FIVE

    I suck in a steadying breath and
sweep out of the corridor with the rest of the girls.
    I feel the lush carpet under my
feet, and see the rich wood paneling of the walls, a stark contrast
to the world we inhabit behind the sliding door. I am going back the
same way I came last night. We walk across the grand foyer with the
beautiful, marble fountain. I glance at the glittering water and
frown at my reflection as I brush past the fountain.
    I look somehow changed, aged.
Much older than my eighteen years.
    At the side of the foyer is a
set of ornate double doors, which open to a majestic dining room.
The long table is set with porcelain plates and silverware. The
girls immediately take their places at the long table, sitting down
in silence. I find an empty seat and plonk myself down.