A smile pulled at the corners of my lips. I wanted to dive bomb her into a hug, but she rose quickly from the bed and
headed towards the balcony doors of my room.
“Looks like a storm,” I said.
“That’s not a storm.”
It was all she said before she quickly left my bedroom without a single word. Confused, I just continued to watch the storm
as the wind wiped against the trees and the sky changed to a purple grey, with flashes of light littering the sky.
I wasn’t sure of the time when a maid came to fetch me for dinner. By that time the storm had suddenly vanished like it was
never there. I had been sitting on my bed reading the book Morgana had flicked through.
A knot remained in my stomach from hearing my friends being tortured. As I walked down the corridor towards the dining
hall, I stopped. The maid and guard escorting me both continued walking, as if they had no idea I was no longer behind them.
This wasn’t right. I couldn’t sit down and have dinner with the Fae I heard only days ago making my friends scream in
agony. It wasn’t going to happen. Deal or no deal. Until we were wed, I had the freedom to do as I pleased and right now—that
involved me running.
I turned and ran. Back down the corridor far away from the dining hall, I ran. Away from the echoes I imagined I could still
hear of my friends screams. Away from Nicholas.
I didn’t know where I was going, but I continued running.
I’d never been in this part of the castle as I ran down a flight of stairs then turned a corner and down another set.
Descending into the castle’s belly. Only the fading light of some fire touches lit my way, and even then it was still a little darker
than I expected.
I tried pushing open a heavy wooden door that creaked and groaned as I used all my strength. I managed to open it just
enough and slipped in through the crack, walking into an open space.
As I stepped through, torches of light came to life, illuminating the room, giving me quite the surprise as the fires burst to
life. They revealed an empty room surrounded by pillars of black stone.Obsidian stone.At the end of the room was a large
archway, almost as tall as the room itself.
My eyes widened as I took steps forward, wonder and what sounded like humming called towards me, bringing me closer
until I stopped and looked up at the stoned arch. At its peak etched in the stone were symbols of the moon cycle, the crescent
moon, half-moon, and full moon.
The mark on my wrist began to itch and burn as I reached out to touch the stone. Feeling its coldness against my skin, it
began to vibrate as if it were awaking from its sleep.
Power oozed from it, and I couldn’t help but press my hand further onto it. I ran my palm down it until a sharp pain struck