Chapter 52
Ash fills my mouth. A throb beats in my head, loud and relentless.
I groan and force my eyes open, pushing to a seat on the stone floor. My vision swims, and I prod the tender spot at my temple. I wince, and bile rises up my throat. Pulling my legs to my chest, I hang my head between my knees and breathe away the nausea.
A breeze brushes over me, carrying a fine mist on tendrils of air. It teases my cheeks, weaves through my hair, and settles at the nape of my neck, grounding me.
No, burning me.
My head jerks up, and I take in my surroundings. The last rays of sunlight cast a glow over three walls of solid black granite. To my right, a metal door interrupts the wall. A small, latched window sits at the top, only large enough for a pair of eyes to peer in.
And to my left.
I scramble back, feet sliding against the damp floor.
Where a fourth wall should be, there’s nothing but open air. I steady my heart and lower to my stomach, sliding to the edge. Digging my nails into the black stone, I peer over.
A breath catches in my throat. Far, far below, the ocean roils, and waves crash against the side of the cliff face. Jagged rock formations jut from the surf like teeth, waiting to spear whoever falls over the edge.
This dungeon must be embedded in the mountains along the castle—a part I’ve never explored.
Sliding my hand over the edge of the cell, my fingers meet nothing but rock worn smooth from the unforgiving sea winds. Risking the drop, I reach further, but there are no breaks in the stone for handholds. I won’t be climbing, then.
I crane my neck out of the cell. The mountain curves, and a few feet away, there’s another opening. Wind batters sideways and whips my hair around my head as I scoot to the corner.
I cup my mouth. “Hello?”
Silence.
“Is anyone there?”
The wind carries away my voice.
“Thea? Elias? Are you there?”
My breathing stops, as if it could will them into existence. But I wait a full minute, and no one responds. I push back and lean against the side wall. My fists clench into my thin tunic, wringing the fabric.
A bang comes from the door, and I shoot to my feet as the small window slides open.
Blue eyes peer through. “You’re awake.”
I stride to the door and slam my hands against it. “Let me out, Caelus.”
“You know, it was very convenient that Isolde turned you in as the thief, and we found the evidence directly on you. I had planned to lock you away in here anyway, but you gave me the perfect excuse.”
My blood freezes over, and my palms dampen. “What are you talking about?”
The corners of his eyes crinkle. “If you would have bound yourself to me when I asked, you wouldn’t be in this cell. But instead, you’ll be doing it against your will.”
I wrap my hands around the ledge of the small window and grit my teeth. “I will never bind to you.”
A low laugh. “Briar, you have no choice. This cell has been constructed with power meant to break even the strongest minds. It’s very effective. But don’t worry, the pain of binding will pale compared to what you’ll endure in these confines. You’ll be begging for it before long.”
My jaw clenches, and my fingernails drag over the door, metal screeching. “Where is Thea? Is she in this dungeon?”
He shrugs. “If she was, it wouldn’t matter. Maybe you’ll see her, or perhaps you’ll only hear her scream.”
Fire blazes through my veins. “I’ll kill you.”
He backs away from the door, into the dark hall, and looks at me down the bridge of his nose. “No, Briar. You will bow at my feet. And when I free my power from Terra’s shackles, you will worship me. I’ll keep your life hanging by a thread, just so you can bear witness to my power.”
The window slams, echoing through the cell. I smack my palms against the door. I throw my body into it and scream until my lungs ache and my voice grows hoarse, but it’s no use. The door doesn’t so much as shift in its frame.
Pressing my forehead to the damp metal, I close my eyes.
“Briar?”
I freeze at the voice, and the hair on the back of my neck stands on edge. My throat seizes up, and a thick sensation burns at the back of my throat.
“Briar, honey?”
I turn, and the air rushes out of my lungs. The wind ceases, and my knees give out from under me. “Mother?”
She smiles, piercing my heart and shattering it into a million pieces. Her hair floats around her head as if she’s underwater. But her voice is as clear as the sun in the sky, as crisp as the sea mist. And her ruby eyes—like swimming through coral reefs.
She holds out a hand. “I’ve missed you so much, Briar.”
A sob wracks my body, and I stand, stumbling to her. I fall into her arms, and her embrace envelopes me—warms through my chest and eases the years that separated us. I cry into her shoulder as she combs her fingers through my hair, like she did when I was young.
“I’m sorry,” I stammer. “I’m sorry for everything.”
A choked sound comes from her, and her fingers halt. I lean back and tip my head. “Mother?”
But her eyes aren’t focused on me. Her mouth widens into a silent scream, and her hands clutch her heart where blood pools beneath her white tunic. She stumbles back and slips, falling off the edge of the cell.
I throw myself forward and reach out an arm, but it’s too late. Her body tumbles down and disappears into the waves. Gripping the edge, I will her to reappear—to swim safely through the waters we’ve called home forever. But she doesn’t resurface.
My tears stream between the cracks in the stone, and I press my forehead to the floor as a scream rips from my throat.
“Briar?”
I stiffen, and a sour taste fills my mouth.
“Briar, honey.”
My mother stands in the center of the cell, a hand outstretched. It isn’t until now that I spot the haunting, blank look in her eyes—seeing but unseeing. Here, but not really. I don’t move, and blood spreads down her tunic. She staggers backward and plummets to the sea.
I scramble away from the edge, digging my fingers into the stone as hot tears stream down my cheeks.
A tap comes from the metal door, and the window slides open. Unfamiliar eyes stare into my cell—not Caelus’s, but equally as sharp. He turns, as if speaking to someone else. “I give it a day, tops.”
The window shuts.
“Briar, honey.”
Stomach acid burns my throat, and I crawl to the cobwebbed corner of the cell. I lean my head against the wall and cover my ears, but nothing stops my mother’s pleading voice from seeping through. Her scream as she falls.
Twilight takes over evening, and the cell silences. Splashes from my mother’s lifeless body halt. My muscles relax at the reprieve, and I open my eyes, dropping my palms from my ears.
A palm rests on my shoulder.
“Captain?”
My stomach plummets. I bury my face into the crook of my elbow and choke back a sob. She kneels beside me, her braids swishing around her waist, and I risk a glance.
Her face twists into a sneer, her nostrils flaring. “It’s all your fault.”
I bite a bloody hole into my cheek and sob, my throat tight.
“You took Celia away from me. And my power. My life is gone—all gone, because of you.”
“Thea,” I whisper, my voice grating.
But she doesn’t answer. A high pitched, soul cleaving scream cuts through the air. I wrap my arms around my legs and press myself further into the corner as her shrieks echo through the chamber.
Their faces flash through my mind. Thea hanging from the mast with Celia at her side.
Odette standing at the bow, wide eyed and fearless.
Elayne, Collin, and Ivy—raising and lowering sails like extensions of their own arms. Katrina in the crow’s nest. Astrid and Leigh at the stern.
And Inez, eyes peeled over the water, searching for danger.
The Twelfth Night—the ship who never led me astray. A member in her own right. Without her, we’re nothing.
Without them, I’m nothing.
Thea’s wails shake the walls and etch into my mind. A reminder that I tore us all apart. I fall to my side and curl into a ball, staring ahead as stars twinkle into the night sky.
Her shrieks stop, and Thea disappears as quickly as my mother.
And somehow, the silence is worse than the pain of her company.
The ocean blends into the horizon, indistinguishable under the starry sky. Only the whitecaps reflect the moonlight.
A huff escapes my dry, cracked lips.
I’m a queen, gazing at my court. Yet touching it would mean death.
I close my eyes and burrow into my chest, searching for a shred of my power to cling to. A sign that I’m still me. But all that’s left are monochromatic tendrils of what was once unlimited ribbons of power. I’m nothing but a husk.
A hand brushes through my hair, and a finger tucks a strand behind my ear. I shut my eyes, but even behind my eyelids, I know who it is. I’d know her touch anywhere.
“My love.”
The fingers—her fingers—trail over my face and trace the curve of my jaw, the swell of my trembling lip. A stone settles in the back of my throat, and I’d do anything, give anything, to stop this torment.
Lips hover over my ear. “Even before I tasted your power, I knew we were bonded. When I looked into your eyes for the first time, I saw a future—fated to be yours. I’ve loved you from the moment I saw you.”
A fresh wave of tears burns my cheeks, but I keep my eyes shut and whisper, “I’m sorry.”
Her arms, so strong and so real, gather me to her chest. I cling to her and nestle my face into her shirt, giving myself a moment to pretend this is real. Fresh rain and white oak fill my nose. Her heartbeat thrums beneath my ear, and I let it envelop me, as if it generates my own.
“There’s nothing you could do—in any lifetime—that I wouldn’t forgive you for. I’m eternally yours, Briar.”
I risk opening my eyes and tilt my head up.
A smile spreads over her face, her eyes shimmering in the starlight, and my heart rattles against my ribs. The light in my chest flares to life and bathes her in emerald. It’s her. It’s really her.
She’s not dying, not falling over the edge. Not disappearing.
Real.
“Kressa,” I breathe.
“I’m getting you out of here.” She presses a kiss to the top of my head. “Then we’re going to find Thea and go far, far away.”
I sink into her, and the tension leaves my body like a wave retreating from shore. “How did you get—”
My shoulder slams into the stone, and I press to my palms, frantically scanning the cell. But it’s empty of everything but me and my heaving sobs. My throat constricts.
“No,” I rasp.
She’s gone.
A fresh wave of nausea sweeps over me, and I crawl to the edge of the cell, retching over the side.
When the bile eases, I rest my chin on the jagged stone and stare into the abyss below.
It beckons me—promises a swift death. I’d smash into the piercing rock formations, or plunge into the water. Either would be instant.
Far less painful than the endless torture of this chamber.
“My love.”
My stomach tightens, but there’s nothing left to be emptied. Teardrops fall like rain. Footsteps pad to me, and the ghost of her fingers caress my face.
I shake my head and push back from the edge. I can’t allow myself to break—not tonight, at least. Tucking my knees into my chest, I curl into a ball. Kressa’s warmth envelops me, and I don’t fight her off. Better to let myself imagine the comfort is real.
She whispers tender words into my ear, and sleep overcomes me, interrupted every few minutes by a soft caress from the ghost of her.
My only tether to reality.