© Maeryn Lamonte 2025

Twenty years have gone by since then and so much has changed; I suppose a story in its own right, but I only set out to write about how Alice and I emerged into the world, and that much has more or less been covered. The rest is bullet points. No, not real bullets silly! There was only one of those and Peter its unfortunate recipient.

© Maeryn Lamonte 2025

It took me a moment to adjust to the mid-morning sunlight. We’d emerged in front of an abandoned factory building on an abandoned factory site. It was actually a pretty good place to have kept me. Difficult to isolate the building I was in from the others. Easy to spot when the authorities turned up. Maybe even with an escape route somewhere, though knowing Peter, that’s where he’d likely have stopped thinking.

© Maeryn Lamonte 2025

No erotic dreams this time. Maybe down to the delay in taking my evening pills, maybe down to my body adapting to the changes, maybe down to the worries I was carrying. What I did dream about was juggling Fabergé Eggs while keeping balance on a unicycle on a tight wire over such a deep drop that all I could seems below me was cloud. On the plus side, I didn’t drop anything. On the minus, I woke up in a sweat without the benefit of the night’s rest.

Janet was a tea person and had a pot on the go when I emerged.

© Maeryn Lamonte 2025

© Maeryn Lamonte 2025

I was still in my nightdress when the doorbell rang the next morning. Fortunately, I’ve never quite lost the paranoia accompanying the possibility of being found out, so I always have a dressing gown nearby. This one was long enough to cover the depths of white lace currently cascading off my shoulders, so all I needed to do was pull it on and cinch the tie tight.

Queen's Gambit - Chapter 7

© Copyright 2025 Maeryn Lamonte

“Situation resolved, Peter,” Mr Cavendish said. “Perhaps you’d make sure Gwen is looked after. She has no homework for a couple of days at least.

“Thank you, headmaster. Gwen, you’re welcome to come home with us today, and bring Lance with you if you wish. We’ll manage somehow.”

Queen's Gambit - Chapter 5

© Copyright 2025 Maeryn Lamonte

'I do not mind the dresses. In all truth I derive a great deal of pleasure from the sensation of smooth silk against soft skin, and my appearance in the glass, once I have taken the time to make myself presentable, is as much a source of pleasure for me as for anyone else who might see me.

Queen's Gambit - Chapter 3

© Copyright 2025 Maeryn Lamonte

Dinner consisted of – on my plate at least – a veritable mountain of bangers and mash with rivers of gravy flowing down the slopes like lava. Of course there were veg in there as well, I mean we are omnivores after all.

Queen's Gambit - Chapter 1

© Copyright 2025 Maeryn Lamonte

What is a story?

Epilogue

“Hello Alison.”

What was it with plump women and oversized glasses? She looked even more like a baby owl than ever, albeit a very large one.

“Do I know you?” she asked.

“Carrie Leach.”

“Oh fuck!”

“Relax. I’m only here to talk.”

“Yeah, that’s all you did last time and see where that got us.”

“I guess.”

“How come you don’t look like, you know, her?”

Chapter 2 of 3 – Release

And it gets worse in this chapter. Honestly, be cautious.

Chapter 17 – Epilogue

I didn’t recognise the place. I mean they’d had a chance to clean up, sure, but what they’d achieved was close to miraculous.

Someone had carried me to a bed after Stuart had delivered us back to the barracks. Someone had done the same for all of slayer squad and Laurel, and we’d all slept through the next twenty-four hours.

Which meant when we woke it was to a very different world.

Chapter 15

With all the equipment through for out camp, we made a habit of keeping the main portal closed, but with the smaller one generated by the dagger open so we could maintain communications with home. I called for the main portal to be opened so I could evacuate non-combatants, only to discover it wouldn’t let us through.

Chapter 14

There was a car outside and waiting for me at seven the next morning. Mum had come into my room and pulled my duvet off at six thirty, so I was up and breakfasted and about to reach for my phone when the doorbell rang.

I recognised him from the demonstration David and I had given – pang of hurt at the thought of David – but I didn’t remember a name or even if one had been offered.

“No Finn?” I asked more breezily than I felt.

“Er, commissioned officers don’t tend to pull driver duty, er, ma’am, er, miss. Sorry.”

This one's not for the faint of heart. Over the course of the story there will be death, suicide attempts, a fair amount of physical and mental abuse, some egregious torture and a hefty dollop of foul language, but hopefully a happy ending. Actually, the last bit's a given since it's me doing the writing, but between here and the end is a rocky road, so please if any of the above is likely to be triggering for you, please, please think twice about reading.

This one's not for the faint of heart. Over the course of the story there will be death, suicide attempts, a fair amount of physical and mental abuse, some egregious torture and a hefty dollop of foul language, but hopefully a happy ending. Actually, the last bit's a given since it's me doing the writing, but between here and the end is a rocky road, so please if any of the above is likely to be triggering for you, please, please think twice about reading.

This one's not for the faint of heart. Over the course of the story there will be death, suicide attempts, a fair amount of physical and mental abuse, some egregious torture and a hefty dollop of foul language, but hopefully a happy ending. Actually, the last bit's a given since it's me doing the writing, but between here and the end is a rocky road, so please if any of the above is likely to be triggering for you, please, please think twice about reading.

Chapter 12

Jen and I went for a walk before dinner. No surprise, we had a couple of soldiers following us, rifles in hand. They remained at a discrete distance but did a good job of showing themselves to us.

“You could probably get away if you tried,” Jen said, keeping her voice low.

“Let’s reserve that for if and when it becomes necessary,” I muttered back. “If I get away once, they’ll increase the number of guards, and probably arm them with tranquiliser guns.”

“Don’t you think that’s what those are?”

Chapter 11

Mum appeared in my room about ten o’clock with the perfect cup of tea, which almost made up for only seven hours sleep.

“Your father’s been telling me what an amazing daughter we have. I’ll be honest, dear, I didn’t understand half of what he said, and the other half scared me out of my wits, but I couldn’t be prouder.”

I wasn’t so sure. Those didn’t look like tears of pride. I put the tea down and put my arms around her.

“Oh my,” she said after a very long moment. “Thank you for that, dear. I rather needed that.