Vireya's POV
Eventually, the storm of chaos died down. The whirlwind of dust settled into silence, and I dared to open my eyes.
He was staring at me.
Not with the eyes I’d known before, but with something far more terrifying, his eyes blazed.
Not metaphorically blazed. Flames danced in them, alive and cruel, licking at the edges of his pupils like he’d been set alight from within.
“I underestimated you,” he said, chuckling darkly.
And that laughter chilled my blood more than any scream could.
He entered the cell and took the stone then before I could move, he lunged forward and grabbed me by the hair, his fingers yanking hard, snapping my neck back.
I cried out, striking his arm, clawing at his grip, but it was like hitting stone. He dragged me through the corridor like a rag doll, my feet scraping against the floor.
I barely had time to register the outside world before he threw me onto the steps in front of the castle doors. My body hit hard, my back knocking against the ground.
A
