Page 22 of A Curvy Girl for the Prince

“What? The Colonies?” The Colonies refer to a far-flung wasteland located beyond the reaches of Siberia. Allegedly, women are brought to the Colonies for hard labor, and the conditions are atrocious. They sleep in the open without access to clean water, and the mortality rate is fifty percent within the first year.

Of course, we’ve worked with other countries in the EU to put an end to the Colonies, yet our efforts have been unsuccessful. Somehow, women are continually trafficked to the wasteland despite our best efforts, and they disappear with alarming frequency. The area is controlled by violent warlords, many of whom kneel to no man.

“Holy shit,” I whisper, the blood draining from my face. “Oh hells.”

“Yeah,” Nerilda says. “So I’d get there fast if I were you. But now, it’s my turn,” she says in a snippy voice. “Pants down, pretty boy.”

I wish I could say that I stalked off and showed her nothing. I wish I could say that I slapped the madame across the face for daring to talk to a royal that way. But I knew I needed more information, and it was likely that the madame had more up her sleeve. So I upheld my end of the bargain. I showed Nerilda the Lysenian double-dick, as she laughed and clapped, beaming with excitement. Then I did even more, in order to extract additional information. After all, I’m desperate to find Matilda no matter the price to be paid … and the Colonies were the key to it all.

9

Matilda

Ihack at the steaming dirt beneath my feet, trying not to breathe in the fumes. The earth beneath the pick cracks open, revealing luminescent shimmers of some strange, unearthly material. Clearly, it’s toxic because nothing natural looks like that. I raise my hand, and a droid floats over with a camera, which it aims at the bubbly liquid.

“Affirmative,” it says in a flat voice, clicking on the shutter. “Shovel, please.”

Another droid floats over with a shovel in its mechanical claw, which it hands to me.

“Collect and retrieve,” it commands. “Agent 2-6-1 reporting.”

I take the shovel and begin hacking away at the soil again. Meanwhile, women all around me toil in similar conditions. My back aches, my hair sticks to my forehead, and I’m dressed in dirty rags. I’ve been sent to the Colonies for no reason whatsoever. I don’t get it, and wonder what I did to deserve this.

After all, I was kidnapped during a date with Albert Ray, and I still don’t understand why. Everything seemed fine. I showed up at the bowling alley, and Albert was courteous. Friendly, even. But then, some crazy manager offered me new bowling shoes, and when I woke up, I was hog-tied in the back of a van, while Albert regarded me from a hard metal seat bolted to the vehicle wall.

“So you’re Haakon’s whore,” he said in a flat tone.

I blinked at him, stunned, but I couldn’t say a word because I was gagged. What the hell? How rude! Fortunately, he unfastened the handkerchief around my mouth, and I coughed a few times before throwing him an evil glare.

“I’m not anyone’s whore,” I spit. “Besides, who the hell are you? What the fuck are you doing? I’m going to tell my parents.”

Albert’s expression didn’t change, and it was eerie.

“You’ll do no such thing,” he said. “Because you’re headed to the Colonies.”

I gasped.

“What? Do your parents know you’re doing this? Is this some kind of joke?”

Albert merely shrugged and looked around with disinterest. It’s mind-boggling how someone so handsome can appear cold and cruel at the same time, his blue eyes lifeless.

“Actually, this was my dad’s idea. John’s got some plan to overthrow the monarchy and take over the country himself.”

I stare.

“Are you serious? Your dad wants to start a revolution? He’s going to make himself King?”

Albert shrugs, again with total disinterest.

“Yeah, I guess so. And after we figured out that you’re Haakon’s whore, we hatched a plan. Haakon’s going to come and save you from the Colonies, and that’s when my dad is going to strike. While the throne is unprotected, John’s going to move in and seize the crown. It’ll be acoup d’état.”

I goggled at him.

“Holy shit,” was my whisper. “I can’t believe it.”

My date merely shrugged again.

“Yeah, whatevs. My dad’s always up to something. World domination is his goal, so what did you expect?”