by G. Bailey
Gold nods, standing up and picking me up with him. He holds me in his arms as he jogs us away from Coen’s body and through the city.
“Have you seen Scott?” I ask Gold, and he shakes his head once.
“The current was too fast. I managed to get out near the city but I saw no one,” he explains to me.
“Shit,” I mutter. “I hope he’s okay.”
“We need to find him. You need a healer,” Gold growls. The blood coming from my wing and leg is dripping onto the ground, mixing with the water with every step he takes.
“Scott is more than just a healer to me, Gold,” I warn him and he chuckles.
“Quite the collection you have going on, Iz. A governor, guard, teacher slash healer, and whatever the fuck Axel is.”
The perfect collection, if you ask me.
“You’d like them if you tried to get to know them,” I tell him and he mutters something I don’t quite manage to pick up on.
We walk for what seems like ages, but most likely is only half an hour, before we stop, hearing a strange noise nearby. Gold gently puts me down on a broken cart which is almost floating in the shallow water. Shit, the water is rising fast and I can’t fly. Neither can Gold nor Scott.
We are sitting, well floating, ducks compared to the other prisoners. Gold peeks around the corner, just as a prisoner goes flying across the water in front of us, passed out.
“Thought you said he couldn’t fight?” Gold asks me as Scott steps out of the alleyway and halts, blood dripping down his hands.
He grins at Gold for a moment. “I don’t fight, but that doesn’t mean I won’t defend myself and those I love,” Scott answers, wiping blood from his knuckles. “I believe there are better ways to handle things than violence.”
“Not in a blood trial,” Gold sourly replies as Scott walks over to me.
“What happened to you two?” he asks and I sigh.
“Why don’t we find high ground and I’ll explain as you heal us,” I ask and he nods, picking me up, pressing a kiss to the side of my head as Gold finds us somewhere safe.
Well, as safe as we can get in a sinking city made of magic.
“The water is rising quicker than it should,” Gold points out, looking out the broken window down at the city. We are in one of the three biggest highrises and we have hidden in here for a good five hours. My leg and wing are still hurting, but Scott has done a good job of healing me up. I can fight now, which is all that matters. I move to his side, Scott following and look down. I almost wish I didn’t when I see the water has smothered all the small buildings and is halfway up the tower. Now only five towers are left above water and soon they won’t be.
“What is the aim of this trial?” I mutter.
“An orb. It’s always an orb to get you out,” he explains. “And I think I know how this trial plays out. I heard Eva and Ronan laughing about how the orb will only reveal itself underwater and there is a five in one chance.”
“Five towers?” Scott points out. “We should split up, each of us going to a new tower.”
“It’s too late and far too dangerous for that,” Gold points out and I agree. “See the old telephone cables connecting all the towers?”
I follow his gaze, seeing that some wires have wood panels fixed under them. You could walk across them…possibly. “When the water comes up, if we are in the wrong tower, we should be able to see the right one. The orb will be bright, I’m sure of it,” Gold adds.
“I’m a shit swimmer, guys,” I admit and they both look at me. Like they just remember I’m a shadowborn, I see the pity in their eyes. “But I will be fine. I’ve survived worse than this.”
“We won’t let you drown,” Scott counters, and I look down as my feet feel wet. Glancing out the window, I see the water has risen even faster. “We should climb, water is filling this room already. We have less than an hour, I bet.”
“Let’s move,” Gold agrees. I’m glad we had this time to heal and clean up after Coen. I smile, so thankful that the bastard is dead. One more asshole off my list. Dozens to go. We climb up the broken staircase, using the ivy to climb higher until we get to the roof. The water chases us and by the time we have looked around, the water is covering our feet. Gold and Scott stay by my side as we float in the water, watching the roof, but nothing happens. Suddenly the water sucks us down, throwing us on the roof and shooting higher than we could swim. Oh, my Selena.
Gold grabs my hand, pointing it at another rooftop where some prisoners are swimming into the glowing gold orb, which is big enough to get one person at a time in. Not wasting any time, we all swim to the edge of the building, rolling the telephone cable across to the other building. I grab it a few times as the current threatens to push me away, but I manage to stay on track. My arms burn with every movement after a while. Gold and Scott are ahead of me, swimming better than I am. My lungs start to burn with the effort to not breathe and I instantly remember the last time it felt like this.
When I died.
When I became a shadowborn.
I panic, gasping in water and swaying my arms around. I’m going to die. I’m so going to die. Hands grab mine and lips press against mine, pushing air into my lungs. I open my eyes to see Scott kissing me and he lets go, and Gold kisses me next, pushing more air into my mouth. They both hold me, calming me down and I have to admit it’s ridiculously sexy. They take one of my hands each, pulling me through the water, and I use my legs to kick as fast as I can. They push me through the orb first and I slide across the wet floor, my back hitting the lockers as Gold and Scott fall through next. I cough out water, breathing in sweet air as more prisoners come through the orb.
I hate the blood trials.
But I love that I have the best fae in the Enchanted Forest to save me.
When I’m thrown back into solitary confinement, Princess Crazy Bitch is standing waiting for me. Her lips peel back into a smirk as she gives me a slow once over. I glare right back at her. I practically sway on the spot from exhaustion, but I cross my arms and lift my chin, refusing to back down. Whatever Eva’s about to do can’t be good, and I need to stay on guard around her. Gods, I want to punch that smug look off her face. Her eyes narrow on me as if hearing my thoughts.
“Come with me, Izora.”
She clicks her fingers and leaves the room without a backward glance. The tension in her shoulders doesn’t escape my notice as I follow her out. She’s usually always skipping around the place like a damn child. Maybe she’s pissed about me still being alive and how well we performed in the Blood Trials. I don’t think she planned on Gold joining in on the fun.
It’s strange because he seems to hold some authority over her. Well, not authority, but Eva could’ve easily prevented him from fighting with me. There’s obviously a part to Gold that I haven’t got to know yet, and it’s that part that has made him the king of this prison and the one who’s secretly looking out for us all.
It doesn’t take me long to realise where Eva is taking me. My heart clenches at the sight of the laboratory doors and my wings ache with the memory of what happened the last two times I was here. Guards flank the entrance and they open it as soon as Eva appears. With everything that’s gone on lately, I don’t think I can stomach more of my mother’s brainwashed nonsense and I inwardly hope she isn’t in there.
Once I follow Eva inside, I scan the room for her, relieved to see only Doctor Frank and another guard leaning against a medical cart. The doctor bows at Eva and continues typing away on his computer, the fan behind him billowing his white coat. That’s when I realise my mother isn’t the only one missing.
“Where’s Gold?”
Eva slides me a veiled glance over her shoulder. “Resting. He had an exerting day.”
“Yes, he did perform rather wonderfully,” I smirk at the scowl that drops over her face as she leads me toward the lab room. “Gotta hand it to the dragon, he can kick ass when he wants to.”
“Doctor Frank,” Eva calls over her sh
oulder, once more snapping her fingers. “I would like to get this over with promptly.”
The doctor hurries into the room after us. The air seems to get trapped in my lungs when my gaze lands on Sage. She’s no longer floating in the glass tank and hooked up to all those horrible tubes. Now she’s strapped down to a chair and the fear on her face profusely mirrors my own. Her pink eyes widen when she sees me and a trickle of sweat runs down her forehead. My instincts say kick everyone’s ass and get her the hell out of this room, but I know I can’t. I’m powerless.
Even if I did manage to overpower Eva and the doctor, I’d never get past all the guards. And with Gold not being here, the fear kicks in and I struggle to breathe over the tightening in my chest.
“Izy…” My friend barely gets my name out. Her throat sounds dry and my pulse spikes at the thought of them hurting her.
Eva signals the doctor again, her eyes pressed on me. “You may say hello to your friend once I extracted more of your blood.”
In two swift movements, I’m pushed into a chair beside Sage and my wrists are strapped down. For once, I’m not even looking at Eva. All I can focus on is my friend, almost like I’m trying to convey a silent message to her: I’m going to get you out of here. But when I try to say the words, even just whisper them, they don’t come out. And I’m terrified it’s because a part of me knows I might not be able to.
“Leave her alone,” Sage spits when the doctor approaches me with a syringe. She thrashes and screams in her chair, and my heart breaks for her. “You psychopaths better leave her alone!”
“I’m okay,” I whisper, giving her a wobbly smile. “Sage, don’t worry about me. Please?”
She stops thrashing, her cheeks stained with tears. “But they’re torturing us, Izy. We need to get out of here.”
A lump swells into my throat after seeing her cry. I’ve never, in all the months I’ve known Sage, witnessed her shed a single tear, let alone cry like this. I’ve seen her try to tear our teacher’s head off on the first day of school, but never cry. Sage just didn’t seem like the kind to get all emotional, so it kills me to see her like this. I try to muster every bit of strength I possess to come across as brave.
“Hey, you know me,” I say, smiling at Sage, “there’s no way I’m letting these crazy motherfuckers have their way with us for long.”
“Such a touching reunion,” Eva scoffs and motions the doctor to hurry. “Don’t mind me. After this final blood sample, my work here will be done and I can return to my kingdom. I’m growing bored with this little playground of mine. I think it’s time for a change of scenery.”
“Well, don’t let the door hit you on the way out,” Sage growls at her.
A smirk tugs at my lips as I snap my head to Eva. “You’ve already turned us into light fae. What more could you possibly want?”
All the wicked amusement normally found on Eva’s face vanishes.”I already told you what I want. Your kind”—she points at the two of us—”to be cleansed from the Enchanted Forest once and for all. It is really that simple.”
Sage laughs. She just laughs at Eva like this is all a sick joke. Unfortunately, I know it isn’t. There have been times when I wish I could just close my eyes and then open them again to find this has been a nightmare. But I can’t and it isn’t.
The doctor moves behind me and reaches for my wing. With Sage’s pained laugh echoing through my head and Eva’s cold, dead eyes latched on me, it’s like I’ve slipped into shock. I feel the needle piercing my wing, but I don’t register any pain. A cold chill sweeps over me instead, turning the blood in my veins to ice.
None too gently, Doctor Frank yanks the needle out and marches out of the room. The guards enter, one of them holding a silver dagger. Eva takes it and prowls toward me, the look on her face like that of a predator about to pounce on its prey. I’ve never been the prey, always the predator. This bitch will regret ever ruining my life and hurting those I care about.
She twirls the dagger in her hand and tilts her head at me, almost like she’s wondering what to cut off first. And then she hops to the side and leans over Sage, grabbing her cheek until her sharp fingernails cut into her skin.
“Don’t touch her!”
Eva smiles at one of the guards and then flicks her chin toward me. Not a second later, a gloved hand sinks into my shoulder. The other turns my head so that I’m forced to look at my friend. Eva drags the tip of the blade down her cheek, pressing until a droplet of blood surfaces from under her caramel skin. The sharp copper tang permeates the air, but it’s black, not red.
What the fuck has Eva done to my friend?
Unlike me, Sage feels the pain and screams out. The blood oozes down and Eva catches the droplets in a crystal vial. She grins at me when she places the lid back on.
“We are done here,” she says, waving a hand at me in dismissal. “Guards, take her away. I think another week in solitary confinement will do Izora the world of good.”
By the time I get back to my room, almost everything has been cleared out. Now all I’ve got is a mattress on the floor and a plastic bucket in the corner, which I’m too horrified to look at. A nervous feeling of dread cuts through my stomach like hot knives at the sight of them. Still, I blow out a whistle as if impressed by the transformation.
“Whoa. Nobody told me they were redecorating,” I say, glancing over my shoulder at the guard.
Without uttering a word, he shoves me into the room and then slams the door. I flinch at the sound of the latch clanging against the metal. I’ve hated every inch of this prison since I was brought here. As I look around my windowless room, the dread twisting my stomach turns into fear. It’s like I’m just now realising how fucked up this situation is. My mother has betrayed me, Sage is being tortured, my guys are fighting to the death just to protect me, and there’s nothing I can do to help any of them.
There’s nothing I can do to help myself.
I slide onto the floor and wrap my arms around my legs, pressing my forehead to my knees. The cold tiles caress my back and tears well into my eyes. I let them fall, reminding myself that it’s not weak to cry. I’ve gone through so much shit recently it’s a wonder I haven’t cried before now. I’m not just crying for myself, but for my guys and friends and all the other fae locked up in here.
My tears race down my cheeks until I’m all dried up, and there is no more left to shed. For once, I don’t feel ashamed about crying or letting myself be vulnerable like this. I need to let it all out, because once I get out of here, I’m going to kill the Princess of Helios. Eva will regret the day she ever imprisoned me.
“Eat,” a guard snarls, waking me up with a nudge of his steel-capped boot.
I wipe my eyes with the balls of my palms and straighten on the mattress. The guard glares down his nose at me, a plastic tray clenched in his hands. It’s the same one he’s brought me every day for a week. Or maybe it’s just been a few days. Time has no meaning in this place and I’m beginning to lose my mind, but I keep hanging on. Eva wants me to break, wants to see me suffering, and I refuse to give her the satisfaction.
The guard sets the tray down beside me, grabs my bucket, and then leaves, his keys clanging with every step. I know I should be hungry, but when I look down at the burnt chicken breast slapped over a pile of claggy rice, I can’t find it in myself to eat anything. But the last time I refused, she didn’t feed me anything the next day, and I felt like I was going stir crazy with hunger.
If I’m to get out of here, I need to keep my strength. It’s for this reason alone that I force the disgusting food into my mouth, as I do right now. I swallow until everything’s gone and then finish it off with the glass of foggy tap water.
With nothing else to do, I lay back on the mattress and try to sleep again. I haven’t any more tears to shed, and I don’t plan on crying again, anyway; Eva has had enough of my tears. I need to find a way out of here because as much as a small part of me hoped otherwise, my guys aren’t coming to save me. They ca
n’t. It’s me who needs to get myself out and return to them.
I’m not playing Eva’s games anymore. There’s got to be some way we can get out of this prison. We might be in the Light Fae kingdom, but if we can get out of this building, I’m sure we’ll be able to find a portal back to the academy.
A ray of sunlight bleeds through the hole in the corner of the wall. It’s the only gap I have to the outside world. I stand on the mattress, push onto my tiptoes, and peer through the tiny hole. All I can see is the back of the prison where they keep all the carriages and the chain-link fence that surrounds it. There’re trees on the other side, bathed in the auburn light of the setting sun, and I so badly wish I could be out there among them. It feels like a lifetime ago I felt the sun against my skin and the wind blowing through my hair.
“Izora?”
I jump at the sound of my mother’s whispered voice. I haven’t seen or heard from anyone since the guard brought me here, and my mother was the last visitor I expected to see. I spin around, my eyes locking on the door, and instead of feeling relieved at hearing my mother, I tense up.
“You will open this door immediately, Warden,” my mother snaps.
The clanging of metal keys carries to my ears, followed by the latch lifting up. My mother steps into the room with a box in her arms. Her complexion is worryingly pale and dark heavy bags underscore her eyes. She looks gaunt and tired, nothing like the proud High Warden who raised me.
As soon as the door slams behind her, her features soften a little and a smile tilts the edge of her lips.
“Darling, how are you?” she asks quietly.
“I’ve been locked in here for goddess knows how long and you’re asking how I am?” I cross my arms and glare at her. “I suppose I’ve been better, Mother, all things considered. Thanks for asking.”
The smile fades as quickly as it appeared. “I do not have long, darling, but I thought you could do with some company.” She holds out the box and the muffled sounds inside catch my interest. “I’m afraid Her Highness has insisted on keeping you in here for another two weeks and my hands are tied.” Tears threaten her eyes, but I don’t feel any sympathy or love for her, only anger and betrayal. “I hope this will help to pass some of your time.”