Ever so slowly, Ellie’s eyes traveled to the bowl between Arianna’s hands. Arianna promptly lifted the spoon. Ellie’s dried lips parted, and she allowed Arianna to pour the broth into her mouth. A tear rolled down Arianna’s face when her sister swallowed.
Zylah quickly poured fresh water into a glass. “Give her this, too.”
Arianna clumsily exchanged the bowl for the glass and offered it to her sister next. Ellie drank, her gaze still hollow and unmoving.
It was slow and painstaking, but Ellie cleared the entire bowl one small spoonful at a time. Arianna could only guess when the last time her sister had eaten a full meal. Once the bowl was empty, she set it aside, moved Ellie’s hair from her face, then helped position Ellie so she was lying down. She prayed her sister’s stomach wouldn’t reject the meager dinner
“It’ll be okay,” Arianna whispered, smoothing Ellie’s blankets. “Everything will be okay.” Ellie didn’t respond. That was fine. She’d eaten. If all she wanted to do was stare at the ceiling, then Arianna would let her do just that. It would take time for Ellie to heal and return to herself.
She remained at her sister’s side until Ellie’s eyes drifted closed. Arianna smiled down at her before slowly rising to her feet. She hadn’t realized how much strain her angled position had put on her back. Arianna cupped the area, helping her body straighten.
A violent twinge ripped through her and Arianna doubled over, gasping from the pain. She stepped back to catch her balance, then a warm hand wrapped around her waist, holding her steady. Callused fingers grazed her midsection, and Arianna gasped as lightning-like pain lit up every nerve. It burned her from the inside out, familiar and wrong all at once. She jerked forward, seeking escape, and slammed straight into Zylah.
Zylah’s hands closed over her shoulders and steadied her. Arianna turned back to see who had touched her only to find The Demon standing there with one hand still outstretched. He stared at her wide-eyed. Both their hearts were racing. No, hers was pounding so hard the headache had returned tenfold. Nausea rolled through her stomach.Gods, please don’t vomit again.
“I’ve got her,” Zylah assured. She hated the softness in the half-breed’s tone, as if this creature required reassurance about her well-being. Arianna clenched Zylah’s shirt, holding onto the female’s shoulders, still fighting her rolling stomach.
The Demon’s hand fell away slowly. His lips parted as he studied the pair. One hand rose toward his chest, but fell again, clenching at his side. He glanced toward Ellie, eyes softening, then abruptly left the room. Somehow, she felt like she’d seen him flee before.
Pain lanced through her body again. Zylah pushed her toward the chair. “Sit.” Arianna obeyed. Her head was swimming. She pressed one hand to her temple while the other balanced on the arm of the chair.Stop spinning, stop spinning, stop spinning.Her world tilted, then Zylah pressed a cool glass into her hands. “Drink.”
Arianna did, but her other hand traveled beneath her shirt to the small expanse of skin where The Demon’s fingertips had left a trail of fire. Fire that had quickly risen to an inferno, consuming her body from the inside out.
She clutched her head again, gasping from another shockwave of pain. Molten fire consumed Arianna until icy shadows sprang up to devour her with a different sort of fire. Like iron clasped over her magic all over again. She couldn’t breathe without the pain constricting her lungs.
Images formed in her mind’s eye, mixing with the nightmares she wanted to forget. Chains rattled, Fae screamed. Arianna covered her ears. She tried to draw in breath. It wouldn’t come. Her heart beat fast, fast, fast. She was dying. Gods above, she was dying.
“Arianna.” Hands rested on her shoulders. They were going to trap her again. Lock her away with those monstrous shadows. She tried to pull away, to reach for her magic, but it lashed out, rebelling against her commands.
“Arianna.” A female voice, firmer this time. It was the same female who’d followed Niall. Arianna should have killed her. If she had, then maybe she’d be free right now. Arianna opened her eyes, but the world had blurred together in a sea of unending colors, colors that burned and speared through her head just like the tendrils of smoke.
The hands on her shoulders shook her this time, but spots of darkness consumed the blended kaleidoscope surroundingher. They’d consume her next, take her back to a place she longed to escape.
The sharp crack of a whip sent her careening forward. Pain blossomed across her back. She knew the skin had split open even before blood trickled from the old wound. Another scar to add to her collection.
She blinked, trying to focus on the faces around her. Only their mouths were visible, all pulled up in a smirk. They’d always liked to watch the half-breed’s punishment. Such disgusting creatures.
Another crack of the whip split her back open again, and she cried out from the pain. Arianna saw their eyes when she managed to look up. The slavers had vanished, replaced by all those who’d seen her fail. They knew she wasn’t strong enough to rule an entire continent.
Arianna yanked at her restraints, the iron biting deep into her wrists. No. No, she wouldn’t go out like this. She wouldn’t be weak anymore. She was the queen of their country. She’d already proven—another crack sent her right back to her knees. Is this where she belonged? Arianna glanced down into the puddle around her knees. The water stilled enough for her to glimpse the shadow of her punisher. Wisps of darkness escaped his heavy cloak. He lifted the whip again, and the end smoked as if it were on fire.
Fear engulfed her heart. She tried to rise, but he dove into her mind, that slick oil tainting everything she’d ever known. Again. He tossed her like the ocean tosses a leaf in its depths. She was nothing. A nuisance. A tool to be crafted and played with before being discarded.
Arianna’s breath shuddered as she looked up again. Her body was cold. So, so cold. The pool rippled and the shadowy figure morphed. Changing. Evolving. The whip became tendrilsof earth. The dark face now had glowing green eyes. She clenched her fists.
He’d done this. That creature. He’d done—something.
“Arianna.” The image shattered at the sound of his deep voice. She sat in the present again. Zylah was before her, the female’s eyes consumed with fear as she knelt in front of Arianna, both hands still on her shoulders, gripping her as if she were the only thing tethering Arianna to the present.
Arianna’s head lifted to those eyes, no longer filled with rage, but with agonizing worry. He had one arm forward, as if he’d intended to touch her before she’d looked up. Arianna’s head swam, but she still took him in, really took him in, trying to discover why she might be so drawn to the flecks of gold that floated through those emerald irises. Another throb and his face was splattered with blood. A wicked smirk spread across his lips, his teeth coated with crimson.
Tears rolled down her cheeks and warm hands caught her, spearing her with pain as she toppled into the darkness.
THOSE HANDS. Arianna tried to squirm away from them. They sent a brush of pulsing fire sweeping through her that quickly turned into an unrelenting torment.
Her hands were stuck again, locked with another’s, their warmth sinking into her, shocking, scolding, burning. She tried to scream but couldn’t find her voice. She tried to move but couldn’t control her body. Her heart pounded, slamming against her rib cage.
Trapped, trapped, trapped.
