𝔸 ℂ𝕠𝕦𝕣𝕥 𝕠𝕗 𝕃𝕠𝕧𝕖 𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕎𝕣𝕒𝕥𝕙 (Book 2)

Six

It was dark under the caverns of St. Everens. Stijn's grip on my small hand hurt and I tried pulling away so many times but had only encouraged him to draw blood.

"Please," I sobbed as I tried to stop the walking, "Please I'm sorry. I'm sorry." Salty tears streamed down my face in waves. I didn't want to do this. Not again. Never again.

I saw the door at the end, and could hear their screams as the door opened to let someone out. Her fiery red hair was a stark contrast to the black monochrome dungeons.

Amarantha tsked before she laughed, "Oh, little Danika, have you yet to learn your lesson?" Her loud heels clanked on the stone floors as she took a step and waited for us to come to him. Stijn still dragged me crying. I was small. Smaller than either of them.

My wrist had begun to bleed as his fingernails pierced my flesh, Stijn threw me into Amarantha's hold and the queen caught me by the neck, as she choked me. "Sweet, sweet Danika. Always so weak." She laughed and Stijn came to her side, smiling the menacing look I was so familiar with. Amarantha turned around, adjusting her hold on my neck so that she could choke me again if needed.

Stijn opened the door for us and I wept at the contents of the room.

Astrid and Flynn's bodies lay on the ground in a pile, their throats still bleeding from the long gashes. Their eyes turned to me, still alive, pleading for me to help them. To save them. But I couldn't. Amarantha's hold tightened on me as she laughed in my ear.

My eyes caught on the large stane table in the room and on lay a crying seven-year-old Feyre.

I was eight.

Stijn approached the table carrying a too familiar bundle in his hands. And I cried harder, "Please don't do this." My voice broke on the words. But Stijn just smiled in response and Amarantha's satisfied laugh rang in my ear again.

Stijn placed the tool kit at the sit of Feyre's head, grinning like an addict as he pulled out the sharpest knife in the tool kit. He looked up at me then, "There's no one left to save you now, Little Warrior."

─── · 。ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

There's no one left to save you now.

In every dream, it was always the same words. Whether it was Amarantha or Stijn. Whether Amarantha tortured me, or if Stijn made me torture someone or he did it himself. The same words every time before I woke up.

There's no one left to save you now.

The words hadn't stuck to me as they did on the morning of Feyre's wedding day. Once my sister did marry Tamlin...there truly wouldn't be anyone left to save me. But I wouldn't be selfish. I wouldn't cost Feyre her happiness. Even if I was sure that after they were married that Tamlin would find some way to get rid of me, to make Feyre hate me. Maybe he'd finally get her to see what I truly was.

I rushed out of my bed once more, heading for the balcony and its fresh air. I slammed open the doors, welcoming the fresh breeze and the sun I could just barely see on the horizon.

I calmed my breathing over the course of minutes.

It was only after I had regained my bearings that I realized what day it was.

─── · 。ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

I looked at my sister in her ugly wedding gown as she stared at herself in the mirror. Her dress was terrifying, but she looked self-conscious enough that I said nothing.