Aya peeled her tongue off the roof of her mouth and swallowed, the taste of ash coating her throat as she croaked, ‘Where am I?’
‘The Quarter,’ Galda answered. She tilted her head as she observed Aya’s tear-stained face. ‘I found you face down in the woods. You’re lucky you’re alive, girl.’
Alive.
Aya winced at the word, and Galda’s frown deepened.
‘What happened?’ Aya asked. The last thing Aya remembered was screaming her rage, and then … nothing.
Galda crouched down by the cot, bringing her face level with Aya’s. ‘You were overcome.’ Aya went to question her further, but Galda held up her hand. ‘You’re quite a powerful Persi – did you know that?’
Aya shuddered, tears building behind her eyes once more.
Yes, she knew it. It was a blessing from Saudra. And yet what would her patron goddess think of what she had done?
Galda ducked her head to meet Aya’s gaze. ‘But do you know what makes a Visya truly powerful?’
Aya frowned. ‘The depth of their well.’
Galda’s laugh was like gravel, her eyes bright as she shook her head. ‘No.’ She braced her arms on the bed, her lips lifting slightly as she considered Aya. ‘Control. The most powerful Visya learn to control their affinity and all that affects it. They channel their emotions and hone their power into something as sharp as any blade. They are rulers of their body, mind and spirit.’
Aya’s breath caught in her chest as the trainer stared down at her, as if she could read every thought circling inside her head.
‘You, girl … you could learn control. And you could be sure that the only thing that has power over you is yourself.’
Aya sat up, her voice a mere rasp as she said, ‘Teach me.’
Galda leaned back on her heels, her brows high. ‘I am not a gentle trainer. My methods are hardly fit for a child.’
Aya stood, her fists clenched in determination. ‘Teach me.’
The trainer stared up at her from her crouched position, considering every inch of her as if to see all there was to work with. Hardly anything, at merely eight years old.
But finally she stood, her gaze raking over Aya one final time.
‘We’ll start tomorrow.’
40
Aya stumbled through town, the noises around her a murmur against the roaring in her head. She’d barely made it through dinner at the palace, and afterward …
A night in her room left with nothing but her thoughts felt suffocating. So she found herself in the entertainment district, the streets lined with bars and upscale brothels. The citizens of Rinnia were preparing for a raucous night, and she hoped the steady hum of music and drunken revelry would be enough to drown out that voice inside her head – the one that hadn’t quieted since Natali confirmed everything Aya had ever feared.
She was dark. She was bitter. She was cold. And she would bring nothing but pain to those she loved, just as she always had.
The healer in her dreams had asked why her gods weren’t helping her. Perhaps Aya finally had her answer.
Perhaps she always had.
I never want to leave you.
Aya buried the memory of her mother as her gaze landed on a white building, its windows dark. She could hear the sensual music from the street, the steady rhythm of the drums almost hypnotic.
She wanted an escape. Wanted to be someone else –anyoneelse who hadn’t committed her sins.
The healer in her dream had asked why her gods weren’t helping her. Perhaps Aya finally had her answer.
Perhaps she always had.
