Page 57 of Dreams of Ash and Smoke

“Ruelle and Verena are strong. They’re together, that makes them better off than most people. Verena carried this lug of a male for over two hours,” She slaps the back of Hadeon. “They will make it out of their imprisonment or they will die trying. But, hopefully we will get to them before they have to.”

“If Verena dies, Esmeray,” I pause, making sure she understands my sincerity, “You will have to take over as Queen. You will have to rule this country. I got over the last time someone I loved died…” My shadows settle around me, almost sad, “I won’t get over this one.”

Esmeray takes a deep breath, trying to not let her emotions get the best of her. Hadeon steps forward and places his hand on her shoulder in support.

“Ruelle and Verena are strong, Eryx. They’ll make it through this, we’ll find them.” Hadeon’s voice is steady and reassuring. It does little to assure me.

“Yes, we’ll find them,” Esmeray echoes him, sounding as if she’s trying to convince herself more than anyone else. I know we need to stay focused, so we exit the war room and continue our searchfor any sign of them. I try searching the Dark Woods, trying to feel the bond between us but it is faint and muddled. I know she is alive but is she injured? Is she being tortured or worse?

Chapter 29: Merciful

Verena

As the endless night drags on, Ruelle sleeps soundlessly while I fight tooth and nail against the unforgiving rocks. My fingers bleed and blister as I frantically rub the rough ropes against their sharp edges, determined to break free from our bindings. The pain was excruciating — far worse than carving out my wedding rune from Dryston’s chest — but I refuse to give up.

Finally, with a gut-wrenching snap, the ropes give way and I collapse to the ground, gasping for air and relief. My skin burns and stings from the raw wounds underneath, but I ignore it as I quickly untie my feet and stumble over to Ruelle.

My heart drops as I see the blood seeping from a deep stab wound in her leg. Ignoring my own injuries, I tear strips of fabric from my dress and tightly bound them around her leg, desperate to stop the bleeding. But as I tend to her, my head throbs and my vision blurs from the hits we took during our unconsciousness.

Gritting my teeth, I shake Ruelle’s shoulder and lightly tap her face, trying to wake her. She groans in response before slipping back into unconsciousness. With tears in my eyes and anger in my heart, I look up at the dark cave ceiling and curse at the Gods for putting us through this hellish ordeal.

With a sudden burst of urgency, I strike Ruelle across the face, desperate to wake her from her deep slumber. She stirs, dazed and confused, until her bleary eyes focus on me. “We have to go,” I bark at her, my tone leaving no room for argument.

“Ow,” she groans as she attempts to move, and I let out a sigh of relief.

“I’m sorry for hurting you, but we have no time to waste,” I apologize quickly as I frantically try to untie her hands, now slick with blood. Frustration boils inside me as I struggle with the ropes, tears streaming down my face.

“Leave, Verena,” Ruelle’s soft voice interrupts my efforts, and I snap my head toward her in anger. But she looks at me with tired love and understanding.

“You’re insane if you think I’m leaving you behind. If you die, I die,” I declare fiercely. “I won’t let you sacrifice yourself for a war that isn’t even yours.”

“Well that will make for a beautifully tragic ending,” Amaelya’s voice sneers from behind me, and I whirl around to see her standing unsteadily. Dryston stands beside her this time, his expression cold and calculating.

“You could’ve stopped this bloodshed if you had only come to me, Verena,” Dryston spits as he towers over me, his dark smirk dripping with malice and superiority.

I steel myself for the inevitable confrontation, my mind racing with memories of our previous encounter — how he effortlessly overpowered me despite my training. But then a realization hits me.

My dagger. I always carry a small blade strapped to my thigh, even when wearing a dress. For a moment, I question if provoking him was a foolish move. But then I remember his actions and words toward me.

“You should be thankful,” he sneers. “I could have let you go after my father died. Instead, I simply delayed your coronation and now I’m the villain?” He scoffs, his voice laced with bitter sarcasm. “Verena. You cut off our wedded rune! That was madness! I wanted to make sure you were ready for the commitment. The responsibility. Clearly, you couldn’t handle it.”

He thinks he has the upper hand, but I refuse to back down.

“You’re right,” I interrupt, surprising everyone with my sudden compliance. Dryston eyes me warily, unsure of my change in demeanor. “I don’t know why I’m acting like this. I did want this marriage. But…something changed after that cursed ball. Eryx offered me a drink and I thought nothing of it at the time. But now I realize he must have cast some sort of spell on me.” My voice trembles as I speak, tears welling up in my eyes. “He got into my head and twisted Hadeon’s orders to take me from Zorya.”

I can see the shock and suspicion on Dryston’s face as my confession sinks in. But I know the truth, and I will not go down without a fight.

My body trembles as I fall to my knees in front of Dryston, begging for his forgiveness with tears streaming down my face. “Please forgive me,” I cry, my words dripping with desperation as I hide my revulsion.

Dryston places a hand on my head, stroking my hair back as he speaks. “I forgive you,” he says calmly, but I can see the fire burning behind his eyes. “Come home with me and we will make him pay for this. No one disrespects the Queen of Zorya and gets away with it.” His condescending tone makes my blood boil, but I force myself to nod and pretend to be grateful for his mercy.

As I speak, I slowly move my hand to my thigh, fingers brushing against a small knife concealed there. “I’ve been thinking about our wedding night,” I say with feigned innocence, my voice dripping with false lust. “You treated me so well…I missed you terribly while Eryx tried to touch me.” A wave of disgust washes over me as I continue speaking, but I channel that emotion into my performance. “But I resisted him because all I wanted was you.” With a sickening smile, I pull the blade out and prepare to strike. He doesn’t see the movement.

“I know you do,” Dryston responds sweetly, reaching for my chin to lift my gaze up to him. But as soon as our eyes meet, my expression shifts from fake desire to a chilling smirk. In one swift motion, I thrust my hand forward and slice his arm away from me, backing away quickly before he can react. The taste of revenge is both bitter and satisfying on my tongue as I prepare to fight for my freedom.

The knife is drenched in a sickening mixture of our blood, glistening red in the dim light as I hold it up triumphantly. My opponent, seething with rage and disbelief, “You bitch!” He hurls insults at me but I can’t stop the manic laughter that bubbles out of my throat. He tries to use his magic to disarm me, but for once it doesn’t obey his command. The spectators are frozen in shock as they watch our deadly dance.

“What’s wrong with you? Just take the damn knife!” Amaelya screams at him, her voice shaking with anger.

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