Last of Malaera

Prologue

Prologue

          It's said that people can sense when they are about to die. Maybe they can hear the Angel of Death calling their name, or maybe it's just a gut feeling we all have so that we can make sure we are somewhat ready when our time comes.

         Whatever that feeling is, it neglected to come over me before I was lured into the woods by her. Perhaps it was because she was the last person I would expect, or it could be because I didn't listen to my brother when he told me I was naïve.

         None of those things mattered now, though. Once she captured me and took me to this place of agony and torture, she assured I would be on my own. I am here, and so is she. No one can hear me scream. Hell, if I screamed here, it would only intensify her pleasure. No one is coming to rescue me because they couldn't possibly know that I am here, in the Underworld.

         In the Underworld, time is different. A day here is equivalent to a minute on Earth. I have been here for three months, so that would only be an hour and a half back on Earth. They probably hadn't even realized I am missing yet.

         I twist my wrists in the cold metal shackles that confine them, trying to wriggle free. My once thick brown hair is now reduced to strings as it dangles in front of my eyes, blocking my view of the cell door. I hang my head as I struggle to fill my lungs with oxygen, the bruising on my ribs intensifying with each breath I take. My harsh breathing is the only sound to fill the loud silence in my cell. Every breath I take feels like it's going to be the last one. I don't know how much more I can handle. I hear the tell-tale sign of the cell door creaking open. Black boots come into my line of vision, and I close my eyes as I wait for our usual routine to start. Something caresses my cheeks, it's touch cool, but light as a feather.

         "Are you awake, my pet?" She speaks soothingly, but I know it is just part of the pleasure for her. When she starts to shred my once luminescent skin again, then her real fun begins.

         I refuse to answer. She crouches down in front of me, her dark obsidian eyes boring into my green ones. She cocks her head to the side, as her eyes rake over my body.

         "I have no idea why Alec thinks you are so special," she says as she stands back up, her knife sliding up my torso, "but he wants me to awaken your affinities, and so I shall."

         I spit blood as I raise my head to look at her. "You keep saying that, and I keep telling you: I don't have a damn affinity. I don't even know what it is."

         She let out a laugh that would be pleasant if it hadn't been for the fact that it was coming from her. "Of course you don't know, Esmae," she says as she walks around my body, dragging the cool blade slowly across it. "You're so naïve to this world, aren't you? Roman didn't bother to tell you what was going on, hm? Neither did your parents. Don't worry though. Everything will work out as he has planned."

         She leans in close to my ear and whispers, "I'll let you in on a little secret, my dear." She reaches up and runs her hand down my wavy brown hair and smiles at me. "You're going to die here, alone." She laughs quietly and says, "Are you ready?"

         My vision blurs, my strength beginning wane. I choke on my ragged breath, as my scream barely finds its way out of my constricted throat. Panic starts to rise inside of me, followed by a sense of dread as I feel the knife tear into the flesh of my torso. The blood flows rapidly down my body until I felt as if I were floating. The edges of my vision begin to darken as I see someone break into the cell.

         Liam.

         Knowing that he is here is all I need before I allow myself to fall into the deepest of slumbers.