Page 53 of A Kingdom so Crimson

My heart stopped and began beating too fast as the chain passed through him as if he were nothing but a shadow. Fear scraped down my mind, causing me to tremble more than the cold.

The man turned to face me, cocking his head to the side, baring his teeth amidst the encroaching darkness emanating from him like tangible liquid, flowing and crawling toward me. I tried to scream, but no sound escaped as tendrils of the shadow wrapped around my neck. Their slick, icy touch paralyzed me, constricting and cutting off my airways as its spidery touch taunted my lips, prying my mouth open. Desperately, I clawed at them until my hands were restrained by my chains, leaving me helpless as they lifted me off the ground.

No, no, no. Please!

The man stalked toward me as white speckled my vision, ready to pull me under into oblivion. Its icy tendrils clawed into every crevice of my being, seeping into my mouth, ears, and nose, violating my senses and scraping against the fragile walls of my mind, releasing an unfathomable torrent of terror.

"Hello," the man whispered, sending razors down my exposed body. His smile was a sinister promise of torment. "I've been waiting for you,Eliah."

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My scream pierced the oppressive silence, reverberating until my voice faltered into a hoarse rasp. Refusing to confront the chaos, I kept my eyes shut tight against the onslaught of sounds—shouts, scrapes, and a persistent tugging against me. With every fiber of my being, I'd fight and claw my way out from the suffocating grip of darkness, even if I became a part of the darkness itself.

"Eliah!"

"What's the matter with her?"

"Eliah, open your eyes! Look at me."

No. No. No.It was all wrong; the shadows were too loud, whispering and taunting me, ripping me open and apart.

"El! Look at me!"

El.That—that voice.

"El, please!"

The darkness constricted around me, dragging me into its embrace as I struggled against its suffocating grip. Desperately clawing, I finally felt something solid beneath my fingers. Something warm.

"El, open your eyes." The soft voice pulled me back to that wretched tree of comfort—of home.

I forced my eyes open, blinded by a cascade of light that seared my pupils. I recoiled but felt the comforting embrace of warm, solid arms encircle me.

"Shh. You're safe now. You're okay," he murmured soothingly, his fingers gently tracing my cheeks as he drew me nearer, his touch tender against my hair. Blinking against the brilliance, I finally managed to focus on his soft, golden eyes lined with silver. "El," he breathed, holding me tightly.

"Cal?" I rasped, my mouth dry. I pushed him away slightly, desperately seeking his gaze for confirmation, for the grounding touch of reality. "Calum? H-how?" I cried out, pulling his tunic and nestling into his chest that thumped hard and…beating.

This is real.

I sat cradled in his arms with my tears flowing freely, staining my cheeks with salt until my body trembled with the force of my sobs. His reassuring whispers against my ear were my lifeline in the gloom until, gradually, my cries subsided into shaky breaths.

"You're safe," he repeated, his fingers threading through my hair with a tenderness that eased the ache in my chest. He held me until my frantic heartbeat steadied into a familiar rhythm.

As I finally gathered the strength to open my eyes again, he gently moved me to face him. His tousled hair remained, but there was a newfound maturity etched in the stubble along his jawline and a subtle heaviness in the depths of his gaze.

"How…how are you here?" I managed to choke out, my voice breaking the heavy silence.

I glanced around, seeing the soft golden hues dancing in the sheer curtains as sunlight streamed through the window. I was in my room.

It had all been a dream. Every terrifying moment was just a figment of my imagination. I rubbed my wrists and then myneck as if trying to physically banish the lingering remnants of the darkness that had tormented me. The whispers echoed in my mind, still haunting me.

He chuckled softly, but his words sent a shiver down my spine. "What? You don't want me around? Even afterthatemotional meltdown?" His attempt at humor fell flat, and I shot him a glare, my head throbbing with my distress.

I wasn't in the mood for games.

His smile faltered as he pulled back, a strong crease forming between his brows as he looked at me like he'd never seen before. He opened his mouth, then closed it before shaking his head and looking down. He cleared his throat, smiling oddly, which sickened my stomach. "Jesri got word that something had happened and sent me on the road the same night. You had us all worried. Especially now," he confessed. "Tell me, what happened?"

I struggled to find my voice, my thoughts a tangled mess of confusion and unease. "What…what do you mean you got word?"

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