Heart of Fire

Chapter Ten

I wake up feeling a cold, hard surface beneath me rather than my bed. My mind reels, trying to remember how I ended up here. Looking around, I find that I am in some sort of cell. It's dark, the only source of light being a small window in the corner of the cell. I move to go look through the window, but my hands are restricted. I'm chained to the wall with metal coverings over my hands, completely trapping them.

The last thing I remember is being at the ball, completely fine. I remember having a conversation with Kenton, then when he left, Zehra came out and started talking to me.

Zehra.

The drink she insisted on giving me.

Shit.

Realization dawns on me as my breathing becomes unsteady. I try to pull on the chains, but they won't budge. I feel so weak, even my flames won't ignite with the metal covering my hands. I don't know where I am or if anyone even realizes that I'm gone. For all they know, I could've just gone to bed, leaving the ball early. I don't know what time it is or how long I've been here. I feel defeated, utterly defenseless. I'm still in my dress from the ball, though it is now dirty and ripped in various places.

I hear a door open down the hall, then footsteps walking towards my cell. A spark of anxiety coils in my stomach. A figure appears in front of me, though I can't tell what they look like because of the darkness.

"Glad to see you're finally awake, I brought you some food so you don't die on my account." A woman's voice says. I can tell now that I'm speaking to Zehra, I know her annoying voice well enough. She slides the tray of what looks like slop through the bars.

"Where am I and what the hell did you do to me?" I demand, my voice scratchy and weak. She crosses her ankles, leaning against the wall behind her, a devious grin marking her face.

"I brought you back to Caraq with me. Don't worry, I only spiked your drink with a sleeping bane to knock you out long enough to get you here without any problems." She says, as if drugging someone is a normal thing to do to a person. I shake my head, not believing that this is happening. There's no way in hell she could've pulled something like this off.

"They will come for me." I spit out, swallowing the lump forming in my throat.

She laughs, the sound awful and evil. "Oh what a sweet, naive girl you are, Adira. Do you truly think your little princes are going to come save you? You were there because King Bastian wanted to use you for your abilities, not because anyone cares for you. They've most likely blamed your absence on you running away on your own free will. They might search for you around their own kingdom, but they won't suspect me of being the one to take you away. I am just a pretty, brainless princess in their eyes. You can kiss your hope for them goodbye." She says, grinning the entire time.

I try not to let her words get in my head. Hudson knows I wouldn't run away again, that would be incredibly stupid of me. They have to know that something is wrong. They have to.

"What use do you have of me? What could possibly compel you to keep me here?" I question. If she plans to use me for my powers, she's terribly mistaken. I am nowhere close to having them completely under control.

"I have spies all around Narva that have been watching you. Ever since you started to train your abilities, they've been watching your every move. If the king truly wished to use you to his dispense, Narva would hold too much power over us. You know how rare abilities are. With Narva possessing someone with abilities, Caraq would be at a disadvantage. We can't have that happening, therefore, we're keeping you here where we know that won't happen."

I launch at the bars keeping us apart, only to be pulled back by the chains. I land harshly on the ground with a grunt, my body aching from the impact.