Page 35 of The Chains You Defy

Safe to say, a full tub like the one before me was something I’d never experienced before, just as I’d had no clue that automatic warm water was a reality.

Warning my companion not to peek—yes, I’d addressed the tendril again—I slipped out of my nightgown, and when the basin was filled to the brim, I climbed inside. Suppressing a groan, I enjoyed the feel of hot liquid against my skin, and for a while, the only movement rippling the surface of my bath was the purring and splashing of the onyx strand, who enjoyed the experience as much as I did.

How my life had changed within just a few months was insane. I felt like it had been only yesterday since that fateful dinner at my parents’ house, where I’d been introduced to the Feroys, which started the entire unfortunate chain of events.

Who could have known back then that within a couple of moons, I’d not only discover the many lies our royalty constantly told us or that another world existed, but also that I’d travel with inhabitants of said other world—who belonged to a different species—almost die more than once, and bind myself forever to another soul.

And now, I was soaking in a bathtub in the royal castle in Ivreiana—at the invitation of my Queen, I should add—that stood in a room I was sharing with a villainous prince who wasn’t even human or from my world, and the soul I’d tied mine to.

What would my parents say if they saw me now?

When I counted how often I’d almost perished, a chuckle fell from my lips, and even though the sentiment was macabre, I began to categorize those experiences and sort them from most to least severe. I might even have asked my companion for its opinion,but as the tendril pulsed and bristled, I understood it didn’t appreciate my black humor. What a spoilsport, just like its master.

My skin resembled a dried prune when I was satisfied with my level of cleanliness. My magical friend unfurled as I left the tub, ensuring I wouldn’t slip and fall, then hovered over to a rack, fetching the softest towel I’d ever had the pleasure to touch. The giant piece of cloth felt almost indecent, and I’d never spent more time drying myself.

I only stopped when my impatient companion held out a fresh white nightgown to me, and if I didn’t know better, I’d say it looked reproachful at my dawdling. As soon as the garment was in place, the tendril circled my waist like a belt, and I petted its inky expanse once more, which rewarded me with another purr.

Avoiding the large mirror adorning one corner of the bathing chamber was easy; luckily, the surface was steamed over. Although the knowledge that I’d escaped my jailer and his torture had settled in by now, that didn’t mean I was ready to face the damage Perran and his men had done to my body.

Yes, my condition was obviously improving, but my cuts and bruises still hurt, and the pain in my upper body, though less severe, told me my ribs would still take some time to heal completely.

Exhausted from taking a bath, I forewent disentangling my locks after towel-drying my hair. But when I moved back into the splendid bedroom and crawled on the comfortable mattress, wrapping the soft blanket around my body, a sensation had me almost melting.

Smiling, I realized my magical pet wasn’t too happy with my knotted mane, and it meticulously separated lock after lock. Somehow, this was something Dionwould’ve done as well, and I wondered again how much sentience his power constructs possessed.

Whatever the answer was, the attention was heavenly and relaxing, so it didn’t take long before I fell into a dreamless sleep.

The next time I woke up, I felt even better and more energetic than I had in over a fortnight. Dion was still nowhere to be seen, much to my relief—no, there wasn’t the faintest drop of disappointment pricking my heart. Not at all.

After I’d disentangled myself from the sheets and had dealt with the reproachful squeeze of my still-present shadow friend, I stretched my limbs, making sure to move slowly. When the pain stayed manageable, I dragged my legs over the edge of the bed, and once my feet were securely planted on the ground, I lifted myself up. The inky tendril returned to its belt position, assuming a state of alarmed tension, and only when it noticedthat my condition was stable did it settle down and purr once more.

After a brief visit to the bathing chamber to relieve myself, I conducted a quick search and found my garments in a massive, ornate wooden wardrobe, which was adorned with intricate carvings. Lingering on the scene—a coronation—I traced my fingers over the cool, dark wood.

How must being surrounded by all this luxury day in and day out feel? How could royalty not lose their connection to the common people when their standards were so unlike those of their subjects? Maybe it was no wonder that many laws could be perceived as unreasonable from the perspective of someone like me—and how the nobles couldn’t tell what the issue with them was. We were living in different worlds—and I wasn’t talking about the one our royalty wanted everyone else to forget.

My musings were interrupted when my heart fondly clenched. In the wardrobe, I not only found my simple travel dresses—clean and smelling like fresh flowers—but also the few historic fae garments I’d recovered and altered in Amalach.

For a moment, I allowed myself to mourn the loss of the purple ceremonial gown I’d worn for the Rite of Binding, which was forever lost in Feroy’s dungeon.

In the end, the finery had only resembled flimsy rags barely covering me, and I was sure the remnants had been thrown out once I’d been rescued. So I did what I always preferred when dealing with complicated thoughts and quickly sorted them away into their neat little boxes deep in the recesses of my mind.

With a smile, I reached for the turquoise dress I’d fallen in love with the second I’d spotted the masterpiece, back in the abandoned bedroom in the Lost City of Air.

Finally properly dressed—of course, with a vibrating black belt as an addition to my gown—and sufficiently rested, I was human enough again to start a thorough investigation of the space I temporarily inhabited. The grand sleeping chamber, with its massive four-poster bed, I had examined more than enough during the past few days, but I was drawn to the closed curtains, fabricated from heavily draped red velvet, and with some effort, I was able to open them a fraction.

Nothing could have prepared me for the view in front of me. If I’d harbored any doubt that Dion wasn’t lying to me about where we were staying, the vast, neatly manicured gardens would have dissolved any confusion.

The bedroom was located higher up in the castle, maybe on the second or third floor, and my heartbeat accelerated as I inspected the impressive scenery before me. A friend of my mother’s, who had been to Ivreiana once to accompany her husband on a business trip, had spent an entire afternoon after her return describing the castle and especially the royal gardens vividly and in painstaking detail. But seeing an abundance of colorful flowers arranged in artful patterns, bushes cut into shapes of all kinds of animals, and well-dressed nobles promenading on the curated pathways with my own eyes, well, that was something else entirely.

A knock on my door startled me and interrupted my gawking. Quickly, I closed the drapes and spun around just in time as the door opened.

“I’m awa—wha—you?”

“You’re up.”

Before I could embarrass myself with more stuttering, a whirlwind raced to me and pulled me in. There was a flash of pain shooting through my ribs—and did my inky belt hiss?—but I was too confused to dwell on those sensations as I hugged the force of nature clinging to me back. “Rewi. How—what are you doing here?”

“Oh Naya, it’s so good to see you up and about.”