Chapter 26
Elora
Elora’s eyes fluttered open, unfocused at first. Shapes and colors swam before her: blurry outlines of potted plants, something hanging overhead, leaves?
No... herbs. The faint aroma of them, earthy and sharp, was the first thing that grounded her.
She just stared, brain sluggish, as though she wasn’t fully in her body.
Where... am I?
Her eyes wandered, catching the gleam of a simmering potion. The soft hiss filled the silence, oddly distant, as if she were underwater listening to the world above. In another life, that sound—the familiar ritual of brewing—might’ve comforted her. Now, it felt... disconnected.
She moved. Regretted it. Pain flared, a dull, deep ache spreading from her abdomen, radiating throughout her body. She winced, sucking in air with a grimace. Why does everything hurt?
Her fingers wrapped around the blanket. Fabric. Real. This is real.
The faint hiss of the potion grew louder as her hearing sharpened, drawing her attention toward the source. Someone moved in the far end of the room, a shape shifting into focus.
A woman. Stirring something over a miniature stove. Steam curled upward, carrying the smell of mint and something sharper beneath. The figure turned slightly, the bottom of her robe swishing against the floor.
Familiar. The recognition came slowly, foggy. Her lips parted, but her voice caught on dry air. Professor Sadia.
Relief didn’t come. Just... confusion. Why Sadia? Where’s… The remainder of the thought crumbled away.
Sadia glanced back, her face softening. “You’re awake,” she whispered, setting the ladle aside. She approached with measured steps, her hands empty, palms slightly upward. Non-threatening.
Elora flinched anyway. Her body didn’t trust what her thoughts were still sorting out. Why am I here? Her gaze swept the room again, pulse quickening, though the panic felt... distant. Like her body wanted to react faster than her mind allowed.
“Hey,” Sadia’s voice cut through the haze, calm, and grounding. “You’re safe now.”
Safe. The word hung there, hollow. Nothing’s safe. Elora’s fingers clenched the blanket, nails biting into the fabric.
“How...” Elora’s voice was hoarse, her throat dry and scratchy. She licked her lips, swallowing past the lump that sat like a stone in her gullet. Her gaze drifted from the wool clenched in her hands to Sadia’s face. “How did I get here?”
Sadia exhaled, shoulders softening as she sat at the edge of the bed. “I was in the woods,” she began carefully, her tone cautious, as if speaking too loudly might shatter Elora entirely. “I saw you and Gerard.”
Elora’s stomach twisted. She saw. Her breath caught, shame burning hot beneath her skin. Gods, no. She wanted to shrink into the mattress, disappear into the fabric. Her eyes darted away, staring at the worn floorboards, but that did nothing to stop the heat creeping up her neck.
Sadia continued, her voice gentler. “I couldn’t intervene, not without putting us both in danger. I waited until he left... and you—” She hesitated, lips pressing into a thin line. “You were in the garden. Just... standing there.”
Elora’s brows knit together. Standing? She struggled to connect the dots. She remembered fingers digging into her skin. A rocking motion. The cool earth against her cheek.
She clamped her eyes closed, forcing her mind back into the dark.
“You weren’t responding,” Sadia said softly. “You just... picked up your tools and started working.”
No. Her hands shook. That’s not—But flashes came anyway: dirt beneath her nails, the weight of a watering can in her hand, moving from one plant to the next. Like nothing had happened.
What’s wrong with me? How could I—Where was Tehvan? The thought hit with the force of a slap. He should have known I was in trouble.
Sadia’s hand reached out, hovering near Elora’s arm but not touching. “I waited until the coast was clear and brought you here. You said nothing, just followed me.”
Like a puppet. Elora’s fingers curled into the blanket, pulling it up to her neck. She wanted to feel something other than this gnawing emptiness. Anger. Fear. Anything. But all that remained was a hollow void, echoing with fragments she didn’t want to remember.
Feeling like she was being torn open. A hand pushing her head down. Disjointed words that made no sense.
A shaky breath escaped her, tears burning at the corners of her eyes. She blinked them back, biting her lip to keep it from quivering. Don’t cry. Don’t.
Sadia shifted, pulling a small glass vial from the table.
The liquid inside glowed faintly, a warm amber hue.
“This will help with the pain.” Her voice was soothing, just like when she used to help Elora with her potions.
Calm. Patient. “It won’t fix everything, but it’ll make things easier, for now. ”
Elora stared at it. Her fingers itched to reach for it but some instinct in her resisted. Why should she feel better? She didn’t deserve that.
But then her body reminded her of the ache, the deep, consuming hurt that radiated from her core, twisting through her limbs. Just breathing was like dragging herself through mud.
Slowly, with trembling fingers, she took the vial.
Warmth. Perhaps warmth might help. She uncorked it, the scent of honey and herbs filling her nose, and downed it in two gulps.
Bitterness lingered on her tongue, but almost immediately, a soothing heat spread through her chest, dulling the intensity of her pain.
It didn’t reach her heart, though. That ache stayed sharp.
The comfort from the potion had just dulled the most severe pain when the door burst open.
Elora flinched, shoulders jerking as her gaze snapped toward the entrance. Tehvan strode into the room. “Sadia, are you—” His eyes landed on her.
He froze.
“Elora?” Disbelief, confusion, and something else tangled in that single word. His gaze flicked between her and Sadia, eyebrows drawing together. “What… Why are you…” He looked down at the ring on his finger, twisting it anxiously.
Sadia stood quickly, bridging the gap between them. She placed a hand on his arm, leaning in to whisper.
His face changed instantly. Anger, white-hot and immediate, flashed across his features. His shoulders tensed, jaw clenching so tight a vein stood out along his neck. “Gerard.” His voice dropped to a growl. “I’ll kill him.”
She partly wanted that fury directed outward, wanted someone to be angry for her. But when he stepped forward, reaching for her—to comfort her, to hold her, like he always had—her body recoiled.
“I’ll make him pay—”
She pulled away, flinching into the headboard. “What good does that do me now?” Elora snapped impulsively. “That won’t undo any of this.” His hand hung in the air between them, his expression crumpling at the rejection.
Her anger flared, sharp and sudden, cutting through the fog of fear and shame. Her eyes locked on his finger, the damn ring still glinting on it. Mocking her.
“You’re still wearing it,” she snapped. “How could you not know?”
He glanced at the ring like it betrayed him, too. “I… I felt your heartbeat, but it wasn’t—” He shook his head. “It wasn’t panicked. Just… exertion. I thought—”
“You thought I was fine? Gods, Tehvan—” Her chest heaved with each word. “You promised you’d protect me. You said you’d know if I was in danger.”
Tehvan rubbed the back of his neck, guilt thick in the air. Sadia spoke up. “Sometimes... when people go through trauma, their bodies don’t react in the manner you’d expect. Her heart rate might’ve stayed level because she shut down.”
Shut down. That’s what she’d done. Walked through the gardens like a ghost, like nothing had happened.
Tehvan’s gaze softened, regret flashing in his eyes. “Elora… I would have stopped it if I’d known.”
But you didn’t. The realization stabbed at her. You’re supposed to know me better than anyone. You said you’d protect me. It burned in her chest, acid and ash. You promised.
“You said you’d get me out of here.” Tears pricked the corners of her eyes, but she forced them down, nails digging into the blanket. Hold it together. “When?” She stared at him, searching for something, anything, that wasn’t another lie. “How much of me do I have to lose first?”
His face paled. “Elora… I… I’m trying—”
Trying. That word wasn’t enough. Not now. Not after…
Sadia cleared her throat gently. “Maybe you should sit,” she suggested to Tehvan. “Pacing around won’t help.”
Tehvan hesitated, gaze flicking to Elora’s hunched form before he reluctantly lowered himself into a chair across from her. He ran a hand across his face. Elora was unable to look at him anymore. Her eyes fixed on a knot in the wood floor, breath uneven.
“There’s a cargo ship,” he said finally. “A week from now. It’ll head north along the coast before crossing to Al’tera. We’ll slip aboard under cover of night.”
A week.
The words struck Elora like a slap. She glared at him, disbelief warring with anger. “That’s the plan? Survive another week?”
Tehvan nodded. “I know it’s… Elora, I know. But it’s the best shot we have.”
Seven days. Seven more days of pretending nothing’s wrong. Of seeing Gerard. Of being Thorn’s experiment. Her stomach clenched. Was she able to bear that? Her skin crawled at the thought.
But something in his words stuck. We’ll slip aboard.
We.
Her gaze sharpened. “Wait, when you say ‘we’…”
“I’m coming with you.” There was no hesitation, no room for rebuttal.
Elora blinked, her mind tripping over the words.
He’s... coming with me? She recoiled, suffocated by everything she’d lost, by how much of herself had been carved away piece by piece.
Tehvan, being there, felt like another weight pressing down, another reminder of all the things he’d failed to stop.
But alone? Could she really do this alone?
Her throat worked around a lump that refused to budge. “Why?” It came out differently than intended, less accusation, more confusion.