Page 53

I lay on the cold, damp ground, its chill seeping through me.

Where am I? I blinked, my vision blurry, and the room around me indistinct.

“Ah,” a voice drawled, “you’re beginning to wake.”

I stared up at the ceiling, the unfamiliarity gnawing at me.

I wasn't in a cell, at least not one I recognized. Slowly, I turned my head to the left, my gaze landing on a wall made of iridescent light.

I rubbed my head, trying to make sense of the throbbing. I didn’t think I had been hit, but my body felt like it had been tossed and turned. My mind scrambled to remember— I had wind walked.

I sat up too fast, my pulse racing, and saw him sitting in the corner of the room, legs crossed, wearing a black suit, his posture far too relaxed. “Glad to see you’ve rejoined the land of the living, Brida,” Marsh said casually, inspecting his nails as if speaking to me were beneath him.

“Where am I?” My throat was dry, my voice hoarse. Had I been screaming?

He glanced up, his tone incredulous, as if I should already know the answer. “I should think it would be obvious.”

I took a few unsteady steps toward him, but a gust of wind knocked me back. A shimmering light blocked my path.

The Court of Whispers.

Marsh’s smile widened. “I’m sorry it had to be this way, Brida,” he said, standing and slipping his hands into his pockets as though this was routine.

My heart raced, memories crashing over me like waves— the throne room, Lil, Dainan, Addie.

“You killed Addie,” I whispered, but my voice gained strength, twisting with rage. “You killed Addie!” I felt a tear slip down my cheek, but it did nothing to cool the fire burning inside me.

Marsh sighed. “Addie was an unfortunate bystander in a series of events that would have played out with or without her interference.” He took a step closer, his tone calm, almost soothing. “I am sorry. I grew to like Addie.”

The words stung like acid, and I felt something snap inside me. Rage surged, wild and uncontrollable. I slammed my fist into the light barrier in front of me, feeling the heat from the impact burn my skin. The barrier flickered, a hole burning where my fist struck it, but it sealed up in seconds.

“Interesting,” Marsh said, watching the burn mark fade with curious fascination. He stepped closer, ignoring the anger rolling off me. “You’ll be happy to know that your prince managed to escape. He even took Lil with him,” he said with a dark chuckle.

My heart twisted, the images of the throne room flashing before me.

I couldn’t comprehend the shift in him. The Marsh I knew, the one who had helped me, eased my burdens, was gone. This man standing before me was someone else entirely.

“Why?” The word barely escaped my lips, but it was all I could manage.

His eyes narrowed, and his voice dripped with a darkness that chilled my blood. “I knew from the moment I saw you.” He took another step forward. “You look just like her.”

Confusion and dread warred within me. “Who?” My voice trembled.

“Your mother,” he sneered. The venom in his words made my stomach lurch.

I stumbled back, reeling. “You knew my mother?”

He laughed, the sound cold and mocking. “Oh, yes."

My mother? The thought sent my mind spiraling, but I tried to hold on, tried to steady myself. “Why am I here, Marsh?” I demanded, my voice trembling with anger.

A low chuckle rumbled from Marsh as he took in the sight of me. “Something has been long lost to this world. And we need it back, Brida.” His eyes gleamed with twisted satisfaction. “You have already unleashed a chain of events that can no longer be stopped.”

He took a step towards me. “Everything in this world has its balance, Brida. And you offered us exactly what we needed.”

Offered? My blood ran cold as the memory of the ritual with Giaxia surged to the surface. The pool. My blood.

I took a step back, my heart pounding in my chest. “What did you need my blood for?” I growled through gritted teeth, barely able to contain the fury rising within me.

He clicked his tongue, amusement dancing in his eyes. He turned, taking slow, deliberate steps toward the door. “In time, you will come to trust me. And perhaps then, I’ll tell you what you wish to know.”

As he turned to leave, he gave one final, mocking nod towards the bed in the corner. “In the meantime, get some rest. It’s a new Dawn, Brida. It’s a new Dawn.”

The door clicked shut behind him, and the sound of his footsteps faded, leaving me alone in the cold, silent room.

A wave of anguish crashed over me, and I fell to my knees, a broken sob tearing from my throat. The sound of my wailing filled the room, raw and guttural, echoing off the iridescent walls. Every breath felt like it was being ripped from my chest.

I pounded the floor, my hands bloody and bruised, my cries of frustration and helplessness growing louder, more frantic. I hit the ground again and again, as if I could shatter this prison, as if somehow, I could escape.

But nothing changed.

And so, I screamed until exhaustion overtook me and sleep pulled me into its dark embrace.

***

The cold gnawed at me, creeping into my bones as I lay shivering beneath the thin blanket. It was the middle of the night, and the icy air felt like a cruel stranger, unwelcome after the balmy summer evenings of Azmeer. I missed the gentle breeze that swept through my balcony, brushing against my skin like a whispered promise of safety. Now, it seemed so far away, like another life altogether.

I wondered if the stars wept for the palace tonight. For Prince Alvar—the king he should have been but never would be. Would they mourn his loss, too, or had they become indifferent to the tragedies that unfolded beneath their eternal gaze?

A knot tightened in my chest as I thought of him, my friend. He had tried to guide me, protect me, even save me from myself. And now, he was gone. The mark of the king would have to choose a new victim. My thoughts spun between Dainan and Rai. Would it be Dainan? Could he even rule after fleeing his own kingdom?

I couldn’t stop wondering where he had gone. Somewhere far, I hoped, somewhere safe. At least he had managed to take Lil with him, sparing her from the murderous rage of her husband. But the look on Rai's face after he realized what he had done—it still haunted me. His eyes had shifted from shock to a hollow emptiness, and I couldn't forget the sinister whisper from Thalius right before it all fell apart.

My breath hitched, and I struggled to steady it. Stay calm, Brida. I needed to stay sharp. There was no room for fear now, no room for mistakes.

“Make sure you have the Wind by your side,” Ollo’s voice echoed in my memory. How naive I had been. The wind had been plotting against us all along, using me without my knowledge.

I clenched my fists, a wave of nausea rising within me. How could I have been such a fool? The weight of my actions sat heavy on my chest, making me sick to my stomach. I squeezed my eyes shut, hoping sleep would rescue me from this nightmare. Yearning for the darkness to take me, in the hopes I could mingle with shadows.

Just as I felt myself drifting, something brushed against my cheek—a soft, tender touch. I froze, my heart pounding in my ears. It felt so familiar, so intimate.

“I am with you, Ilia.”

My eyes snapped open, and I bolted upright, the voice lingering like an echo in the cold air. Ilia. The name Dainan had whispered so many times. My mind raced, piecing together what I had missed. Ollo’s words resurfaced: Make sure the wind is by your side. The wind— it had never meant Marsh .

Dainan.

Dainan is a wind whisperer. But how? He wielded shadows, not wind. No one alive had ever held the power of two courts. Yet, as the truth sparked within me, it carried something unexpected: hope. A hope that had been buried deep beneath my fears, finally kindling to life.

A pull surged within me—so strong it nearly knocked the breath from my lungs. My veins felt as though they were set ablaze, warmth spreading through me for the first time in what seemed like an eternity.

I am more than my fear. I am the story I choose to write.

The thought pulsed through me, and with it came a flood of strength. The fire in my blood, the force in my chest—I would harness it. The fear was gone. No longer a leash tethering me to its mercy. I would bow to no one.

Marsh thought he had me cornered, thought I was defeated, fragile. I’d let him believe that, let him think he’d won. I would play the part, be what he needed me to be—just long enough to unearth his plans, his secrets.

And when the time came, I would fight. With everything I had left.

And I would win.