A Kingdom of Bloodshed (A Crimson Court Series)

*¬*Chapter Thirty Four*¬*

           It's cold. That's the first thing I notice. It's cold here and I can hear rain. Slowly peeling my eyes open, a headache pulsing at the base of my neck, I wrap my arms around myself and peer at the space. The walls here are stone and so is the floor. There's a beam in the middle of the room and chains hanging from a link in the ceiling above it. This room is familiar. I've been here before.

The air smells of mildew and moss but the pounding of rain far above can still be heard. Am I underground? What the hell happened?

A door creaks open at the far end of the room. Wooden. Old. Iron hinges and handles. Made to keep Fae in. My skin shivers at the sight of iron, hating everything about it. Heavy steps enter the room, and a familiar voice murmurs, "Good. You're awake." I blink blearily at him, noticing his gloved hands as he shuts the door firmly behind him.

Blue eyes, short black hair. He kneels before me, reaching out to stroke my cheek. "Such a shame, to see you like this. But I have plans and I need them executed tonight." Augustus flicks my nose before pushing himself to full height. Wrinkling my face at him, I mumble, "Where are we?" He chuckles, "We're in the dungeons buried deep beneath Nefaris. This particular room was once used for torture. It's ancient. A place of history, one I think you're familiar with."

Something tickles the back of my mind. A sense of familiarity as I peer around the space, at the wooden beam in the center of the room with chains hanging from the top. The smell of mildew even strikes something within me, sending warning bells ringing.

Augustus laughs, "I see the gears turning in your mind, Althea. Yes, you've been here before, I bet. I think Myra showed you this place. I figured since she was tortured here by my great grandfather, why not have you follow in those steps?"

My stomach turns, but I am too stunned, too exhausted to understand what he's talking about. Augustus doesn't give me a chance to breathe. "Reese!" He storms for the door, wrenching it open with his gloved hand, "Reese, come in here!" The red haired green eyed male from before strides in. Sauron and I both curl our lips at his presence.

"Yes sir?"

"I need you to separate Sauron from Althea. I need each piece to be in existence for my plan to work. And since I already have the Crown, all I need is the demon."

Reese stares at me from over Augustus's shoulder, "She isn't in optimal condition to do this, sir. We should wait." But Augustus shakes his head, "No. You're going to use your Divider power to separate their souls. You will do it tonight." Reese shakes his head, "Yes sir." They close the door before striding for me, hands grip my shoulders, my wrists, they haul me up. I try to kick and flail but it is no use. Augustus puts those iron cuffs on my wrists and I am chained. My magic gutters in my belly and Sauron begins to roar.

One, two, three.

"Ready?"

"Yes, sir."

Four, five, six. They will pay for this, Cruel Queen. We will make them pay.

Seven, eight. I don't get a chance to make it to ten when Reese's fingers are cupping my cheeks, sliding over my nose and pausing just before my temples. "This is going to hurt."

That's my only warning before he touches my temples and everything in me shatters.

⤗

   This must be what a Moment feels like. I've heard stories of moments. Portions of time freezing, everything flashing before their eyes. I've heard the tales but never believed them. This must be what they meant, because minutes before my soul shattered, I felt nothing.