Please, no dreams of an enraged father.
Adastrus remained silent, prompting me to glance back at him. His expression sent an unsettling shiver down my spine, one that had nothing to do with the cold.
“Till next time!” Nellie said with a wave.
She skipped through the courtyard, humming and laughing as she went. Frost glittered where her bare feet touched the stone, spreading in a delicate lacework of ice across the ground. As she disappeared over a low wall into the gardens, her tinkling laughter faded with her.
The bitter cold surged, and I cried out in agony, every muscle tense against the assault. My body collapsed like a sack of rocks as frosty tendrils gnawed at my exposed skin and cheeks. A heavy weight settled on my mind, dragging me back into the abyss of darkness.
Chapter 13
Ihurt.
Everywhere.
A profound, relentless ache gnawed at me, tearing me apart. I writhed as invisible hands pulled each bone from its joint, placing them aside in a neat, torturous pile.
An agonized wail pierced the air, echoing my silent torment.
But it wasn’t me. I didn’t have the energy to make a sound like that.
My eyes fluttered open, frost clinging to my lashes. My brother convulsed on the ground, encircled by priests. He clutched his wrist close to his chest.
The same hand Nellie, from my dreams, blasted with a cloud of icy magic.
He slammed his head against the frozen stone, arching his back in excruciating pain. When he rolled onto his side, his blackened bare feet flailed outside the line of ice. His skin was a terrible blue, smothered in bright angry blisters.
Priests surged forward, lifting his screaming form to carry him into the castle, out of my sight. I tried to shout for them to stop, to take me too, but only a moan escaped my lips. Tears threatened, but I held them back, fearing the icy trails they would leave on my cheeks.
Gentle hands gripped my shoulders, lifting me upright. “Nellium told me you would make it.”
Agony flooded my senses, and I choked on a breath, straining to crane my head to see the stranger who spoke. My frozen bones refused to twist, and a wheezing, airy scream slipped past my cracked, split lips. They placed me on a cot, but it felt like being thrown down a cliffside, and four Priests of Nellium carried me inside.
My head lulled to the side where I found Anderz following behind, conversing in hushed tones with a priest.
They brought me to my chambers, where Gilead waited. I couldn’t contain my screams as they tended to me. The room’s warmth intensified the dull ache into a searing, stabbing torment.
The ordeal that followed plunged me into a haze of consciousness and piercing screams of agony. Blades sliced through my limbs, the sensation like a thousand shards cutting through my nerves. Powerful hands pinned me down, and I struggled against their grip, each movement a battle against overwhelming force. Chants rose, prayers invoking Nellium’s name. I didn’t have the strength to tell them she went by ‘Nellie.’
When Gilead forced a scalding liquid down my throat, it seared a fiery path to my belly, leaving a burning taste in my mouth before I succumbed to sleep.
I awoke enveloped in a snug embrace, cocooned in warmth that seeped into my bones. Nestled against a sturdy chest, I inhaled the comforting scent of woodsmoke mingled with the faint aroma of pine. The crackling fire cast a gentle glow, its flickering dance painting warm hues on the walls. As I burrowed deeper into the plush furs, the crackle of flames whispered a lullaby, soothing my groggy senses as I slipped into consciousness.
“Easy.”
My body tensed, startled by Sainte’s hushed words. My heart stuttered, racing as blood throbbed in my ears. I clutched the heavy fur to my chest, fingers curling tight, while my other hand slid beneath, meeting the warmth of my skin.
My skin.
“Sainte!” I choked out, cursing myself as my lips split.
“Hmm?”
“Where are my clothes?”
In panic, I reached back, fumbling amid our closeness. A sigh of relief escaped when I found the fabric separating us. He chuckled, the sound followed by a subtle shift as he pulled his hips out of my reach.
“They were taken away.”
