Lord Fashire's hand shot out to grab my neck. A surge of energy coursed through me. I lurched to the side, narrowly escaping his grip.
Surprise flickered across his eyes.
I stiffened.
His gaze, now glowing silver, bore into mine. The air grew heavy with icy chill. A scoff tugged at his lips, and his face twisted in disgust.
He turned away from me and stalked towards Melody. The ice shield melted to reveal her quivering form on the ground, clutching her bloodied wrist to her chest. The snow beneath her turned crimson.
I stood paralysed with fear.
'What are you doing? He is going to kill her!'
Fashire halted beside her. A sinister smile twisted his lips. From the frigid air, multiple shards of ice materialised, hovering ominously above her. They shimmered, poised to impale Melody on the spot.
"No. Stop!" I lunged to shield her with my body.
I would heal. He wouldn't want to kill me. At least, not immediately...
A sharp slicing sound pierced the air. A thread of light flashed across Fashire's neck, disappearing as quickly as it appeared.
His hand flew to his throat as a beaded red line formed there. His eyes widened in astonishment as blood trickled from his lips.
Then it spurted from his slit throat in a spraying torrent.
A burst of yellow light shot towards me, enveloped me, and lifted me off the ground. I struggled to keep my eyes open against the torrent of air and light as I was hurtled through the skies.
The next moment, I could sense us descending and I braced myself for a rough landing, only to find myself floating gently above the damp earth of a thick, shrouded forest. The swirling ball of light dimmed and morphed to form Melody.
I stood still as my feet slowly landed on the wet, soggy ground, my pulse racing.
What had just happened?
"Are—are you okay?" I whispered, trembling.
Melody remained silent, her gaze fixated on something in the distance. The night came alive with the chorus of crickets and the gentle melody of dripping water from the foliage.
The air was warm and the forest's thick canopy concealed most of the starry sky above.
"Melody!" I called out, my voice firmer as I tried to break her from her trance-like state.
She whipped her head back at me. A distant look vanished from her dark eyes.
"Hiln..." she breathed.
I stared at her wrist—the one that had been severed. Her hand was still there.
How…
I started, "What… what is happening? You were just—"
Melody shook her head and rubbed her wrist absentmindedly. "It's alright, Hiln. You're safe now." She looked up at me, unsmiling.
I faltered. There was something disturbingly foreign about the way she looked at me that I couldn't pinpoint.
I rubbed my arms. "I am so happy to see you… but how… what is happening?"
Melody's brows furrowed upwards in concern. "I know you have questions, but we'll get to them later. We have to hurry—"
My senses went on alert and I stilled. "Is he after us?!"
"No. But we have to quickly get in before Madam Strome closes it," she said in a rush, taking hold of my hand and pulling me through the dense jungle.
Mud splashed at my feet as we prodded through, but I couldn't believe my ears.
Strome hadn't abandoned me?
Exhaustion caught up to Melody. She faltered, crouching on the forest floor.
"Mel—"
"We should rest," she muttered.
I quickly offered my arm for her to lean on for support. She accepted my gesture and we both got out of the water, my lower dress drenched by the muck.
After everything I had just escaped, mud hardly seemed worth complaining about. I wouldn't even mind if we had to sleep on the muddy ground as long as I got away from that demon.
As we settled on a large protruding tree root, I couldn't ignore the burning question inside me any longer. "Did you really kill him?"
Melody leaned back against the rough bark and let out a weary sigh. "He is dead. You do not need to worry."
I stared at my friend.
Her casual admission stunned me. Lord Fashire was incredibly powerful, and she had gotten rid of him just like that?
She tilted her head to face me. "You do not have to look at me like that. I am not that strong. Just good at taking advantage of the most opportune moments."
An uncomfortable silence engulfed us.
I should have felt relieved. But he died too easily when he should have suffered.
I hadn't even actually seen him collapse, but if he wasn't chasing us, then he really must be gone…
"You said we needed to hurry. That Strome was about to close something?" I asked, reminding her of her earlier urgency.
Melody shook her head with a touch of sadness on her face. "It's closed now."
I was confused. "Closed? What do you mean?"
"The space we will use to escape is a hidden enclosure that your aunt controls. It opens and closes periodically to remain concealed… we will not be waiting long, so do not worry."
I couldn't make sense of her words.
"Wait, please," I spoke up, brimming with questions. "What does that mean? What are you really and how did you find me? What are you and Strome planning. What mess have you pulled me into? Why did you leave father? Do you have even have any explanation for what is happening to—"
"She was right. This was futile," Melody flatly mumbled under her breath as our eyes locked.
"What?" I whispered.
What had she just said?
Her words aside, there was a subtle change in her demeanour that made my stomach clench.
Come to think of it, Melody never had dark eyes.
My senses heightened and I remained rooted to the spot, unable to tear my gaze away from Melody's.
In that pivotal moment, it all hit me—her indifference, her cold demeanour—they had always been there, hiding beneath her smiles and comforting presence. I had either just been too busy tending to my father to notice, or my new hypersensitivity had picked up on this glaring detail.
"Melody?" I whispered, blood draining from my face.
Her response was chilling. "Things like that are none of your concern."
The forest seemed to close in around me. Flimsy threads of light hung from the branches and trees, surrounding us. A fine line pulled taut around my throat.
"Why...?" I whispered. The movement of my vocal cords caused a tingling sensation against the hot thread at my neck.
None of this made any sense. Was I overreacting or was she just about to take my life?
A horrifying thought seeped in.
My father...
My heart stuttered to a stop.
Lord Fashire had told the other Lords my father wasn't in the village.
What if Strome had done something to him?
What if he was dead, and Lord Fashire hadn't told me so he could use him as leverage over me?
"No!" I let out a guttural scream and lunged at Melody. A searing pain cut my scream short. Lights danced around my vision. My throat burned.
The continuous screeching that I thought was mine belonged to none other than Melody, and the dancing lights were the blazing inferno of the forest surrounding us.
Melody was on fire, thrashing around in front of me.
The flames flared so bright they split my skull. Then everything went dark.