The young prince is given over to a familiar face

With no other choice, Marcus scampered after Lyra's retreating back. Part of him thought about running of course, trying to dodge away from her and slip out into the castle, but where would he go? Even if he managed to find Jack again like he really wanted, the handsome older man wouldn't protect him, not from her, and there was nowhere else he knew to turn. All his parent's courtiers and soldiers had been swept out of the castle by Lyra's thugs, no doubt imprisoned somewhere in these walls along with the King and Queen themselves, wherever they were. His only hope of getting through all this alive and unhurt was doing as this awful woman said. Just like Jack told him...he had to try and be brave, day by day. When it was all over and he could be with his handsome older lover again, it would all be worth it. Or so he tried to tell himself.

"Here." Lyra pulled to a halt just in front of a doorway that had once led into a guest bedroom, turning to glare back at him with her one good eye. She had a cold smile on her face that made the young prince very nervous. "She's been eager to have you for herself, but I thought I'd give my best man Jack a turn first. If I'd known he was this damned sentimental I wouldn't have been so generous. You don't deserve that kind of kindness, least of all from a man like him. He's worth a hundred times what you are, you sniveling shit." Marcus trembled anxiously, knowing this horrible woman's vicious anger was no good news for him. Be brave, he told himself, but it was so hard. He just wanted Jack to hold him tight in those big strong arms and tell him it was going to be okay, even if it wasn't. Lyra reached up a hand and knocked sharply three times. Moments later, the door swung open, and a face Marcus had wished he'd never see again appeared there. "Juliet." Lyra grinned, her eye lighting up with amusement. "I've brought you a little present."

The redhead turned, her green eyes flickering to Marcus. As she saw him, her thin lips curled into a cold smile. The young prince froze stiff in front of her, remembering just how scary she'd been on the night his life had fallen apart. And then the awful thing Lyra had told him too, that she'd lost her tongue because of his Father. That wasn't true, he was sure! The King would never do something so awful, but it seemed like she still blamed his family for it anyway, enough to join Lyra's gang of thugs and fight to overthrow the Kingdom.

He watched anxiously as Juliet slipped a sack of gold from her belt and handed it over to Lyra, who hefted it in her hand. Far smaller and lighter than the one Jack had given her. Marcus knew he could never hope things would be easy for him now, but it still made his heart sink to know he was only barely chipping away at the vast debt these horrible people held over him like an executioner's axe. There was no doubt in his mind Juliet was about to do something horrible to him, and it was just the start of what he'd have to suffer through over the next few weeks before he could finally be free of them.

"You remember the rules?" Lyra asked sharply. Juliet nodded, a little frown flickering across her face. "You can play rough with him if you like, I don't give a fuck, but if you damage him any way that won't be gone tomorrow I'm pretty sure Jack will come down here and break both your arms." Juliet made a questioning grunt, her eyebrow raised. "I know." Lyra tossed her hair. "Idiot can't help it, I suppose. He's always had a weakness for the whimpering helpless, no matter whether they deserve his charity. And now this little shit here is utterly smitten with him. You should have seen the big, doe eyes Jack was getting just now and the way the stupid boy looked so very miserable when I separated them. I think our former prince has got a taste for sucking thick peasant cock." The redhead made a rough, hissing noise, and it took Marcus a moment to realize she was laughing at him. He blushed hot, glancing miserably down at the floor. He hadn't realized his heartfelt feelings for Jack were so obvious, and it a lot hurt to hear these awful woman mock them like this. "Come here, you sniveling runt." Lyra snapped. The young prince shuffled forward, his heart cold with terror. "Now, Juliet can't speak because of people like you, but you're still going to do everything she wants. Figure it out somehow, and leave her nice and satisfied. Or else I'm going to take you down to the cells and make you watch while I hurt your precious Mama bad. Jack's not going to give a shit about the Queen who beggared our people so she could prance about in fancy dresses, I promise you. You got that, you worthless brat?"

"Yes!" Marcus nodded frantically. He was so afraid of her, he'd have done everything she wanted anyway, and now she was threatening his Mother too! How much more awful could she be?

"Good." Lyra sneered. Her hand was suddenly on his shoulder, and she shoved him viciously forward. With a squeal of panic, he stumbled past the awful Juliet into the bedroom beyond. In just a moment, the redhead slammed the door behind him, the loud click of a key turning in the lock making him wince. Now he was trapped in here with her, any chance of escaping this long since lost.

Trembling with terror, he turned to face her, his fearful gaze flickering over his newest tormentor. She was taller than he was by a head , her skin rough and weathered even though she couldn't have been much older than thirty or so. Underneath the light shirt and trousers she wore, she was muscled enough to easily overpower him, even if nowhere near as big as Jack. She had a few scars on her bare arms and wrists that Marcus knew meant she'd seen combat somewhere, no doubt fighting for Lyra against his Father's forces. It was her eyes that frightened him the most though, dark green and icy cold as they drifted up and down his body. The little robe he wore seemed like no protection at all from that piercing stare.

She moved suddenly, and it took all he had not to scream in terror and dive under the bed. Instead of grabbing him though, she just stalked round his trembling body like a prowling lioness, and he could feel her cold gaze moving down his back. When she stepped back round in front of him, she reached up to her shirt and made a motion like she meant to take it off. Then she pointed sharply at him, with a low grunt.

"You...want me to strip?" Marcus asked, his voice a strangled little whimper. She nodded once, stepping back to watch with her arms folded over her chest. The young prince knew he couldn't hesitate, not with Lyra's promise to hurt his Mother still so fresh in his mind. His trembling hands reached down to the hem of the robe Jack had so kindly given him. It was only thoughts of how tenderly the handsome older man had treated him last night that were giving him the strength to do this. With a sharp gasp, he pulled the robe up and yanked it quickly off his shoulders. Standing there naked with a bundle of cloth in his hand, Marcus trembled like a leaf in a storm. Despite his terror, his cheeks flushed red-hot as she stared hungrily at his naked body.

Juliet didn't show him any mercy, pointing sharply at the ground when he tried to awkwardly cover himself with the robe. He had to let it drop, and now she could see every part of him. Again, she stalked around him, taking far longer this time, like she was savoring every moment. Her leering gaze felt like trails of ice across his bare, shivering skin. She'd seen him naked before, on the day Lyra had ripped from his bed, but this time it seemed like she meant to carefully examine every inch. Her hungry eyes traced down his bare back, and he could feel her hot breaths on his naked shoulder as she stared at his butt and thighs. Marcus felt light-headed, his stomach twisting with a sickening mixture of fear and shame.

At long last, Juliet seemed satisfied, her thin lips curling into a small smile. His anxious gaze followed her as she strode over to the end of the bed and sat down there, gazing at him with a mixture of triumph and lust. When she raised a hand and beckoned to him, the young prince stumbled forward, utterly lost and heartsick. He had to be strong, he told himself once more. He just had to get through this and then he could see Jack again. No matter how much he adored the handsome older man, that wasn't much of a comfort right now, but it was all he had.