Page 56 of Voices in the Stars (The Lost Witch #1)

“You bitch!” Atlas roared at me, his eyes snapping back to black.

It was enough to jolt me from the trance he had me in.

I bolted out of his room. My legs ached with every step I took.

My chest heaved as I stumbled down the stairs.

Everything started spinning as I reached the bottom.

No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t catch my breath.

A yell left me as fingers wrapped around my hair, snapping me back into a hard body.

“I’ve done what I can to help you, and this is how you thank me?” His voice was a deep growl as he pushed me toward the front door. “You want to fight this battle alone? Then go ahead.”

The hand holding the dagger swiped out at him.

He easily dodged it, grabbing both of my hands with one of his, releasing his hold on my hair.

Even I could feel that my movements were sluggish now.

My previous efforts took all the energy I had left.

I gritted my teeth at the pain his hold caused.

It took what little I had left to stay upright as he walked me down the front steps; I didn’t stand a chance at fighting back now.

He turned before we hit the road, walking along the grassy front of the house.

He didn’t stop until we reached the back of the house.

There was a set of small metal doors pressed against the base of the house.

I was released just long enough for him to move the giant metal bar that rested against them.

When he opened them, he just pointed toward the dark hole that was revealed. I just stared at him unwillingly .

“Please don’t do this,” I offered instead. “I saw you. The real you that would never do this. Just come back to me and we can fix this.”

“Shut up,” Atlas growled, shaking his head. “You wanted me to become the monster I worked so hard to fight against. Now, you’re stuck with him.”

I whimpered, stepping back as Atlas moved closer.

“You can either walk down there willingly,” Atlas continued, “or I’ll throw you down there. Choice is yours.”

I stayed looking at him for a moment longer, praying I would see his eyes change back.

That there would be any sign that I didn’t need to do this.

There was no way for me to know what was down there, but I was certain it wasn’t good.

Knowing this family, it was most likely some monster that would kill me on sight.

The faint shuffling sounds I could hear told me I wasn’t going to be alone.

I squared my shoulders, keeping my head held high as I turned toward the pit, trying to hide any sign of my discomfort.

I knew he could hear my racing heartbeat, but it made me feel temporarily better as I walked down the stone steps.

The doors slamming shut behind me caused me to jump, racing back up the stairs.

“Atlas!” I screamed before beating on the doors. A loud scream tore through me as my hands throbbed, shooting pains radiated up my arms. It turned to a burning ache as I rested my hands against the cool metal. “Please,” I offered.

It took several moments for me to hear Atlas’ footsteps retreating.

With them, I crumbled on the top step. My knees pulled up to my chest as my body racked with sobs.

I was truly alone here. Atlas was most likely gone to me forever, and now I would die here.

Even if his friends beat Eris, they would have no idea where to find me.

My body slumped against the cool stones as my crying slowed to just steadily streaming tears.

I could already feel the ache settling in from how I was sitting, but exhaustion weighed me down, making just the thought of moving impossible.

I let my eyes slide shut, giving up for the moment.

I regretted my choice when I finally woke up. My body ached from the way it twisted on the steps. At some point, I slid down, using a different step as an awful pillow. My legs were shaky as I stood. It was time I found out what nightmare I was stuck down here with.

At the bottom of the steps was a corridor lit by hanging lanterns.

Someone must have been down here recently; the candles resting in the cages looked to be new.

My hand steadied myself as I walked, worried the burning feeling in my knees would send me back to the ground.

The dagger I still had scraped against the stones with each move I made.

A chill ran down my spine as doors started appearing.

They were made of metal just like the doors that led to this place.

There was a window just high enough I had to go on my tiptoes to see into.

The room was dark. A single candle in the corner provided the smallest amount of light.

It was just enough for me to make out two Fera huddled together, one much smaller than the other.

“Hello?” I called out to them, wincing at the way my voice loudly echoed in the quiet.

The smallest one whimpered, pushing closer to the other as they held each other tighter.

“I’m not going to hurt you,” I tried again, only to be met with the same response.

I dropped down from the window, giving up.

An uneasy feeling settled in the pit of my stomach as I looked through each of the doors I passed.

Many of them held Feras. There were some that held other species that I had seen traveling here with Atlas.

People with wings, others with horns and hooves.

All of them refused to look at me or answer when I called out.

Something terrible was happening down here.

I had almost reached the end of the hall now. There were only a few doors left out of the dozens I had to have walked by. When I looked through the next window, a gasp left me at the familiar face.

“Sal?” I practically yelled.

Their head snapped up from where they was sitting on the ground. Blue eyes shining in the candlelight.

“Cece?” they called back, standing up and moving toward the door.

“What’s going on here?” I asked as they approached the window.

“Stand back,” they commented instead .

I listened, dropping flat on my feet once again, and moved away. There was a loud creak as the door swung open. Whispers started up around us until it turned into everyone down here yelling at us.

“Close it!” someone screamed from one of the other cells.

“Do you want us to die?” another questioned.

I wanted to slam the door shut myself, but a hand grabbed mine, quickly pulling me inside. The voices stopped once the door was shut once more.

“What the hell is happening?” I asked again. “Are all the doors just unlocked?”

“I’m not sure. I believe so,” they said, glancing over me. “I can’t believe you’re still alive.” Before I could answer, their hand snapped out, pulling the dagger from my grip. “You beautiful person. I’ve been hoping to find this again.”

“It’s been quite useful,” I offered, my mind still reeling.

“I’m sure she has.” Sal chuckled.

“Do you know what’s been going on? How long have you been down here? Has this always been down here?” The questions just wouldn’t stop coming. I had more that I was too scared to voice.

“Hope isn’t completely lost,” Sal muttered, quiet enough I wasn’t certain it was meant for me to hear. “It might not be what I came here to do, but this might be even better.”

“Sal?” I asked, reaching out to them. They jumped when my hand touched their shoulder, pulling their attention from the dagger back to me. “Are you okay?”

They nodded. “I’m fine. Everything will be fine.”

“Okay.” I nodded, keeping my eyes on them. “Can you answer my question?”

Sal sighed, glancing toward the door. “I’ve only been here a couple days, but this is exactly where I wanted to be. The others, not so much. Your boyfriend’s family has been bringing them down here for years. All in an attempt to find you.”

“To find me? Why?” I questioned. Nothing about me was special enough to bring about any of this.

“Why?” Sal’s brows furrowed as they looked back at me. “Do you not remember anything you were being taught as a child? ”

I shook my head before explaining the memory loss, being hidden in Donnaway, then only recently regaining some memories back.

Several of the details were still foggy.

Anything that could have led to this was still locked away.

I could remember sitting with the other kids for days on end, but none of what we were told.

“Brothers help me,” Sal muttered, running their hands down their face. “This is going to be harder than I thought. What do you remember?”

“Basic healing. My father talking to the people of Kilrest about the gods and their tales.” The explanation came without me having to think about it.

“He was able to do this because your coven specialized in communicating directly with the gods,” Sal explained slowly, like this was something I should have known.

Which it certainly was. That dull throb started up in the back of my head as I tried to remember. Nothing came back to me, but what he was saying made sense. It certainly explained the last several days I had.

“How do you know this?” I asked, brows furrowed as I tried to sort through my thoughts. Were they the voices I’d heard that helped unlock the memories they stored away?

Sal rubbed the back of their neck before speaking. “That’s a long story.”

“I’m certain we have plenty of time,” I commented.

They nodded at my words, glancing at the empty room behind.

Words came mumbling out of them faster than I could understand them.

My mind still felt cloudy; trying to understand things currently happening was taking all my focus.

I leaned against the door. The cold felt nice against my back, but I would do almost anything to feel true heat again.

Sal turned back to me, a grimace on their face as I was looked over. There was no shame to be found in me. I was certain I looked like I’d been dragged down these roads by a horse, but I couldn’t care. Being alive at this point was all that mattered, even if I was stuck down here.

“Might be easier to show you,” they mumbled.

I waved at them, certain there couldn’t possibly be more this world had to offer that could shock me. “Go ahead, then.”

Somehow, this world kept proving me wrong.

I was staring at Sal when their appearance rippled like a stone being thrown into a pond.

Then they were gone. Instead, I was staring at a man at least a head taller than me.

His darker skin glowed in the light from the candle.

What looked like curled, black hair was pulled into a bun at the top of his head.

The thing I couldn’t stop staring at, though, was his eyes.

They were always incredibly bright, but now they had a faint shine, like they were truly glowing on their own.

My back straightened in an attempt to get more distance from him. There was nowhere for me to go, though. The man held his hand out. I glanced down at it before looking back at him.

“That’s understandable,” he commented, dropping his hand down. “I’m Kier. Son of those gods you keep praying to.”

“That’s impossible.” That was all I could say, shaking my head.

“I promise you, it’s not. I wish I had a way to prove it, but I don’t have the impressive, fantastical powers my siblings possess.” His eyes looked embarrassed as he spoke, even as he wiggled his fingers in emphasis.

That still didn’t stop me from flinching, eyes closing as I waited for fire or something to happen. When that didn’t happen, I opened them again. Kier was still standing several steps away, looking at me as he waited.

“Who’s Sal, then?” My voice shook as I asked. I knew how Fera worked to a point. That didn’t mean he didn’t need to kill someone to take on their appearance.

“No one,” he said with a shrug. “They were the image of someone I thought would be easy to hide. Easy to trust.”

“Oh.” I deflated some with his words. “Why?”

He sucked in a breath between his teeth, a frown weighing down his lips.

“I was planning on killing you when we met.”