AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Her eyes travel to the untouched tray on the table, and she frowns. I’ve disappointed her. Again. But she can ask her question a million different times, a million different ways. I’m not interested in becoming complacent here while she and the God of Death hold my life in their hands.
Despite Kaia’s reassurance that I am, in fact, not a prisoner, I haven’t been allowed out of this tower since waking, and whenever I ask when I will be permitted to leave, she refuses to meet my eyes.
With each passing moment, it becomes easier to believe this is all some nightmarish delusion the God of Death has concocted to punish me for all eternity. My torturous penance for killing so many people over the last decade.
“I thought we might try something different today.”
I cock my head and arch a brow, but I don’t move, leaving the bed as a barrier between us.
“We’ve spent so much time discussing power and potions and things. Perhaps we could instead just talk about you.” She waits for me to speak, but I leave her to the silence. “You could tell me about your life before you arrived in Rhagana.”
She crosses to the table and pulls out a chair, lowering herself into it with an effortless grace. Her dress—a mesmerizing midnight blue—ripples and settles around her legs. Back straight as steel, she folds her hands gently in her lap and looks up at me with an encouraging smile.
“Please, sit.”
She glances at a chair, which pulls away from the table without a touch. The sight of it moving on its own makes me uneasy, and I take a step back, crossing my arms over my chest.
“My apologies.” Kaia sighs. "You’ll get used to it eventually.”
That’s just it. I don’t want to get used to any of this. I want to get out of here. But I’ve spent the better part of three days searching for a way past the power shimmering over the door or even looking for a way to pick the locks. There’s nothing.
They won’t even give me back the things I arrived with. My clothes are probably ruined, but my dagger is priceless to me. It was the first thing I purchased after my first kill. Ogeinian steel is the best in Acaria, and the blacksmiths in the God of Fire’s territory are unmatched in skill.
That dagger cost everything I had at the time. I didn’t eat anything but scraps for nearly a week after. But it reminds me every day that I am responsible for carving out my own fate. Literally, in many cases. And I want it back.
“Do you have any brothers or sisters?”
Kaia’s soft question pulls me out of my thoughts, and I blink. I’d almost forgotten she was there. But I have no desire to dredge up my past. I’d rather it stay buried where it belongs.
“What about your parents? Are they still in Dremen?”
The question makes me flinch, but I fix my face into a neutral mask before she can read my expression. Technically my parents are still in Dremen. But I want to leave their memories in the ground with them.
“You do realize what a complete waste of time this is, don’t you?”
With a huff, Kaia brushes an invisible piece of lint from her skirts and shifts in her seat. “It wouldn’t be a waste of time if you at least made an effort.”
“I’ve already told you. I have no answers to help solve your riddle.”
She pins me with an exasperated look. “How do you know if you don’t try?”
“I don’t know why I was able to cross the veil any more than you do.”
Kaia rubs her forehead. “Elora, you might know something helpful and not realize it. I don’t understand why you’re being so difficult.”
I force out a rough laugh. “Really? You don’t know why a mortal being held prisoner in the Shadow Realm wouldn’t want to help the gods keeping her locked in a tower? I knew you people were self-centered, but I didn’t think you were out of touch entirely.”
Eyes darkening and shoulders squaring, Kaia’s voice is stern when she speaks again. “I’m not holding you prisoner. I’m only—”
“Following orders. I know. That doesn’t make it better.”
“I’m only trying to help,” she finishes, tone softening. “Have you ever considered it might not be safe for you to leave again?”
“You’re saying I’m trapped here?”
An icy chill unfurls down my spine. The possibility I might not be able to leave, even if they were willing to let me go, is a heavy one. I’d be dead without actually dying.
“I’m saying I don’t know. We’ve never had a mortal wander into the realm before. I don’t want you to get hurt.”
