Page 123 of The Awakening of Essensia

A man dropped from the carriage, striding towards her with a hand outstretched. His gaze caught on the shackles at her wrists, and he let his hand fall. “We’ll need to do something about those,” he muttered.

Vaelira glanced down. The cold metal mocked her, reminding her she wasn’t truly free. Her essensia was bound, and so was she.

Axel stepped towards them, his voice urgent. “Reese.”

Reese gave him a curt nod in agreement. “You’re right, best we don’t linger.”

He led them across the courtyard towards the looming grey stone of a large building. It rose three stories, the upper windows glowing faintly with lamplight.

“Where are we?” Vaelira asked quietly.

“The Academy,” Jurah answered.

She glanced at Reese, his midnight skin and hair, the edge of a tattoo peeking from beneath his collar. This must be Reese Valrow, head of the Academy, and Ressa’s father.

He guided them through a side gate and up a narrow staircase clinging to the building’s outer wall. At the top, he unlocked a door and ducked inside.

Warmth rushed to meet them, carrying the scent of hot stew and woodsmoke. Cloaks hung from hooks by the door and boots lay discarded beneath. A stack of letters sprawled across a narrow table against the wall. A carpet ran down the wide corridor, dark-stained doors lining either side.

Her eyes stung. This was a home, something she’d never expected to see again.

One of the doors burst open. Ressa barrelled towards her, nearly knocking her over as they collided. She drew back, frowning at the shackles. Fang appeared next, striding down the hall and clapping her hard on the shoulder. “You’re alive,” he said with a crooked grin. The sight of her friends almost overwhelmed her.

“How do we get these off?” Ressa demanded, gripping the shackles and examining the lock.

Axel approached, holding a large iron ring of keys.

“They’re not small enough,” Vaelira said, chest tightening. She’d spent hours in that filthy cell memorising every inch of the unyielding metal.

“We’ll have to get rid of the keys,” Reese said. “If anyone finds them, we’ll all need rescuing.”

Axel handed them over. Reese disappeared through a door and returned with a hammer. Nodding towards the end of the hall, he led them into a large kitchen. The scent of stew grew stronger, making Vaelira’s mouth water. A woman stood at the stove, dark curls tied atop her head with a colourful scarf. She glanced over, offered a tight smile, and returned to stirring.

“Don’t mind her,” Ressa murmured.

“Your mother?”

Ressa nodded, taking a seat beside her father. Vaelira lowered herself into a chair. Reese’s gaze fell to the shackles and she placed her bound hands on the table, pulling them apart until the chain went taut. Her arms cramped, but she held steady.

Reese inhaled deeply and brought the hammer down. Pain jolted up her arms, but the chain held. He struck again, harder, but still the metal resisted. The table wasn’t so lucky. Ressa and Reese exchanged a look, their gazes darting towards the stove.

“I can try to pick the lock,” Willem offered.

Ressa glared. “You couldn’t have mentioned that before we ruined the table?”

He shrugged, pulling a thin wire from a strip of leather around his wrist. Leaning in, he worked at the lock, muttering under his breath. “Almost there—” A hiss. He jerked back, dropping the wire as smoke curled from his fingertips. “That’s never happened before,” he said, staring at the blackened skin.

Vaelira eyed the shackles. “I know who can help.”

A few hours later, Vaelira dozed in a leather armchair in the Valrow’s living room. Ressa had helped her wash and had let her borrow some clothes. They’d had to improvise with the shirt, ripping the sleeves lengthways and tying them at her shoulders to compensate for the shackles.

Afternoon light spilled through the windows, glinting off the wall of weapons opposite. There were blades of every kind, familiar and foreign. Above them hung a double-headed spear, its curved blades gleaming like ice. She tried to picture how it might be wielded, but her eyes grew heavy.

The chains clinked as her hands slipped from her lap and she jerked fully awake. Across from her, Axel shifted in his chair. “He’s quite the collector.”

She nodded faintly. Willem sprawled on the sofa, watching her.

“How’d you know to come?” she asked, her voice rough with exhaustion.