Chapter Thirty-Six
Avari
The sudden upheaval from the fragile stability and trust I had given River ripped open a void inside me, and I wasn’t sure I could ever recover.
I spent weeks getting to know a figment of my imagination, my version of him, instead of the man himself. The king I trusted, looked up to, and even began to cherish in ways that now felt foolish never existed.
All of it was a lie.
Like my mother had once tried, he’d passed me to the highest bidder. I was nothing more than a possession, a resource in the hands of a man who only cared about gaining the upper hand.
The raging chasm threatening to split my chest open only deepened as I took in the new threat standing cloaked in darkness.
An onslaught of nausea hit me the second we landed in this unknown place, though it was initially masked by my emotional turmoil. My stomach lurched, bile rising before I could stop it, and I lost its contents all over the man’s shoes.
‘Oh, what the fuck?’ he groaned in disgust, jumping back and wiping the sick off on the grass. ‘They’re new as well. You owe me!’
‘What am I doing here?!’ I shouted. Torrents of fire erupted from me on instinct, spiralling around my arms and down my back like a living cloak. Unable to see what was happening behind me, my flames, like sentient beings, would have to warn me of danger.
‘Aren’t you a ray of sunshine?’ the man drawled, entirely unimpressed.
The sun. It had been nearly dawn when I arrived back at the castle, yet this land was still blanketed in moonlight.
How far had he taken me?
Hyperventilating, but desperate for answers, I screamed, ‘Who are you?!’
‘Alec.’ Shooting me a mock salute, he turned and began walking leisurely toward a large wooden estate ahead. ‘The house is there. You’re cordially invited, but not as a human torch.’
I stood dumbfounded, watching him stroll away. At last, I rushed to catch up, not knowing where I was or why, too hesitant to stay alone.
‘Release me!’ I demanded, gaining on him, venom burning in my voice. ‘Now!’
‘Pardon me, but I don’t see any shackles. Unless you mean it metaphorically, in the inconceivable expectations the universe forces upon us? Then I can’t help with that either.’ the man chuckled, joyful and unbothered, taking in the dishevelled mess that was me.
‘Is this a joke to you? You just kidnapped me!’
‘Such strong words. I merely brought you home,’ he said without breaking stride.
‘Well, thank you for the invitation, but I’d like to go back. Where am I even?’
‘Isles of Shadow, of course.’ His dark eyes gleamed with mock perplexity. ‘Would you rather return to a man who sees your worth as equivalent to cattle he can trade as he pleases?’
The need to defend River bloomed in my chest before I could crush it. ‘His brother’s cursed.’
The kidnapper reeled back, grimacing. ‘So you’re worth a measly cleanse?’
Anger surged through me. Who did this man think he was, talking to me like that?
‘The value of something depends on its availability,’ I shot back, raising an eyebrow. ‘Why did you bring me here? To criticise my personal life?’
‘Perhaps you need a reality check,’ he said lazily. ‘My job was to bring you here for the Lord of Isles, and I don’t dabble in therapy, which, I might add, you clearly need.’
What a complete arse.
Men were a constant hassle, a plague of thorns I was forever stepping on. And this one would pay for it.
‘Why. The. Fuck. Am. I. Here?’ Maybe speaking to him as if he were mentally challenged could get me a straight answer, since he clearly lacked basic comprehension skills. It took two to dialogue, and the bastard had a tenacity for monologues.
Following him, I couldn’t help but notice how different this place felt. Gone was the liveliness of Fogoya; here, the land pulsed with something strange and inquisitive, like it couldn’t decide if it welcomed me or not. The air itself felt heavier, as if shadows had weight.
Clusters of speckled, bioluminescent flowers, snowdrops in deep blue, glimmered across long stretches of dark grass.
Black grass.
My witch senses hummed uneasily. My green power itched to explore it, but dread outweighed curiosity. How had I managed to get myself kidnapped for the second time?
We neared an elaborate carved door lit by bright lanterns on either side. My abductor shoved it open with his still-soiled boot and announced, ‘She’s your problem now.’
What an insufferable prick. He’d dared to snatch me from my… River’s kingdom and still acted like I was the intruder.
I followed closely, deciding that the idiot might actually be the lesser evil compared to whoever this lord was. Without another word, he dissolved into a clump of dark mist, leaving me alone in the foyer.
I stood frozen, torn between staying put, exploring the ground floor in search of answers, or bolting out the door and trying to find my way home.
Home. For a short while, in my clueless bliss, I had begun to think of Fogoya that way. But I had none.
My home was my dragon.
No.
I tugged on the bond harder this time.
Nothing.
Again, harder.
Nothing.
They had done something to me. The man must’ve used his shadow magic. Never since bonding with Anya had I felt this silence. I should have noticed the second we landed. Her presence had always been the quiet rhythm beneath my thoughts, our communication instinctive.
Now, there was nothing but the noise of my fears.
I tugged again.
Once, twice, harder.
Nothing. Not even an echo.
Silence. Absence. The man I'd trusted had torn my heart from my chest, and the soul tethered to mine was gone. It was enough to make the world tilt beneath my feet.
Self-preservation finally kicked in. I needed a plan. But plans meant nothing when there was nowhere to run. Despair spread through me like wildfire, burning away every hope I carried from Fogoya.
Did I even want to keep fighting?
Deep down, I felt hollow. Everything I cherished now felt dull and unreachable, as if nothing mattered anymore. As if I didn’t matter anymore.
In a world where everyone just wanted to take, I had offered myself freely. Trusted him against my better judgement. It was stupid. My mother was right to curse me.
And maybe I wished she succeeded.
It would hurt less.