“My father’s death,” I whispered, shattered by the truth behind those words.
“Why do you think that?”
Stop!
I opened my mouth to spill all my secrets. Every damnable one. I was going to tell her about the visions. All because I couldn’t handle the agony anymore. It felt like my head was going to implode.
A timer rang, and the pressure receded.
“Well, unfortunately for us, that is all the time we have today. I will see you again sometime next week. You’ll be summoned to this same room. It was a pleasure meeting you.”
I stood shakily from the floor, feeling every muscle in my body trembling in protest. I closed my eyes tightly, attempting to clear the dizziness trying to take over. Each step toward the door was like trudging through thick mud, heavy and unsteady.
I reached out to brace myself against the wall, fingers gripping the cold, unyielding surface as the room tilted and swayed around me. I fought to take a deep breath, but even breathing felt difficult, like the air had turned syrupy.
As I stepped out into the hallway, the change in the lighting intensified the ache in my head, deepening the shadows creeping along the edges of my vision. I trembled, warm sweat coating me like grease.
I couldn’t keep my breath under control. Was this what they called a panic attack?
It felt like a heart attack.
I barely registered the figure standing before me until familiar, concerned light brown eyes pierced through the encroaching haze. Rowan’s expression shiftedrapidly from mild curiosity to alarm as he took in my pallid complexion and trembling form.
“Mavis?” he called, his voice sounding muffled and distant.
I opened my mouth to respond, but no sound emerged. Darkness pooled at the corners of my sight, blotting out Rowan’s worried face piece by piece. My knees suddenly gave way beneath me, my strength evaporating completely as gravity pulled me downward.
Strong, warm arms swiftly encircled me, halting my fall just inches before I hit the floor. The scent of sandalwood enveloped me, comfortable and soothing. It cut through the overwhelming sensations. My head rested heavily against Rowan’s chest, feeling his steady pulse beneath me.
Finally safe, I sank into the welcoming darkness.
Chapter 27
“A child is considered a part of its mother’s body, not its own entity, until birth.
When a sentry takes their oath, they promise their body to service.
Therefore, any child present in the womb when a sentry’s vow is taken is held to that same oath.”
- Addendum to Article 2, Section 1, of the Veiled Compendium
Icame to while still in Rowan’s embrace, which was surprisingly comforting, as he held my limp body.
“I’ll take it from here, Karina. You’re dismissed.”
“Yes, commander.” Karina bowed her head and departed.
“Can you stand?” Rowan asked me with a softer voice than the one he had used to address Karina.
“I think so.”
I wobbled to my feet, with Rowan holding my arm to balance my weight.
Once standing, I turned to him, and the memories of my truth session came flooding back. Tears welled up in my eyes, and I didn’t have the energy to keep them at bay any longer. They started flowing freely down my cheeks in streams. I heard a choked sob, and to my abject horror, I realized it had come from me.
Rowan gently but firmly grabbed my arm and led me down the corridor. I didn’t care where we were going—just that my tears would stay quiet.
We approached a door without a handle, unlike most of the doors I had seen in the facility. Next to the door was another device with numbers on it. Rowan let go of my arm and pressed a sequence of four numbers on the device, ones he didn’t think to shield from me, and the metal door slid open. Rowan gestured forme to enter the room, and in my distraught state, I didn’t even think to question the request.
