Page 91 of Visions & Shadows

God, how long I’ve been here?

A day? Longer?

“Prophecies! Have they started, child?” She raises an annoyed eyebrow.

“I don’t understand what you’re asking me,” I snap.

“Stupidity does not become you, child. Have you had dreams of the future?” She bites the words out, clearly losing her patience with me. “Who are the chosen ten?”

I swallow hard, then answer, “I’ve only seen disasters, and I can hardly remember them.”

I close my eyes, hoping the consequences won’t be bad. I’m determined not to give her too much information in case something I say might lead her to a chosen one.

“You can hardly remember them?” she asks, her tone deceptively soft.

“Yes.”

“There have been no visions concerning the chosen ones?” she asks.

I suck in a fortifying breath, and opening my eyes, I answer, “No.”

Adeth looks furious, and I know it means nothing good for me.

This is it! I’m a goner. Oh God!

“Then why have a guardian?” She shrugs as humorless laughter spills over her lips. “You’re useless and of no worth to me. Your parents managed to hide you for the last five years, and it was all for nothing?” She glances at Ares and my eyes dart to him.

Before I can register any movement from him, a dreadful pain spreads across my face. His fist slams hard into my jaw, knocking my head back.

A copper taste fills my mouth, and I force myself to swallow the blood.

The next punch is more brutal, splitting my lip. I don’t bother swallowing the blood this time. Instead, I spit it at Adeth’s feet.

“You and your son can go fuck yourselves,” I slur.

Ares walks behind me, and I try to keep an eye on him, but I can’t.

When I lose sight of him, my fear intensifies. I hear something fall to the floor, and my stomach coils into a hard knot. My whole body is wound so tightly that I’m shivering uncontrollably.

I hear something drag across the floor, then it hisses through the air.

A whip cracks, and I cringe, trying to make myself smaller. When the leather lashes at my back, white-hot pain licks at my skin, ripping a scream from me as I try to arch my body away from the whip.

But it cracks through the air again, hissing toward me a second time. As it strikes, the pain sears itself into my flesh.

Ares doesn’t stop, and with each strike, I grow weaker until my head hangs limply. I stare at the blood dripping from my feet to the dusty floor, forming a pool beneath me.

When the torture finally stops, I can only hear a ringing in my ears, and my body’s on fire with pain.

God. I’m not going to last much longer.

“If youareAlchera, you should be having visions,” Adeth snarls. “You should be seeing your precious chosen ones.”

“If you don’t believe me,” I let out a miserable-sounding chuckle, “…that’s your damn problem.”

“You’re a brave one to speak to me in this manner,” she says, her eyes narrowing on me. “Hmm…either you’re brave or very foolish.”

For a long moment, Adeth’s angry gaze holds mine captive, then she says, “You’re strong to keep me out of your mind, dear Alchera.” She shakes her head. “Poor Raighne. He must be out of his mind with fear for your safety.” She slithers closer like the damn snake she is. “Let me into your mind, and I’ll set you free so you can run home to comfort your guardian. How can you let the man you love suffer so much?”

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