Chapter 153

VALENTINA Darkness pressed against me, damp and choking, like I was buried alive. For a moment I thought I was dead. My lungs burned, my veins ached, and my nose was crusted with blood. But then—pain. Sharp, alive. My wrists throbbed, cold metal biting into them. Heavy, it felt as though I was laced with some kind of magic that prickled against my skin… Chains… I forced my eyes open. I was surrounded by stones. Not the smooth walls of the packhouse, not the smoke-smeared courtyard. This place was older, ancient. A cavern that had been carved into something sacred—or cursed. Symbols burned faintly on the walls, shifting when I looked too long. At the center of the chamber, a shallow pool reflected the dim light of torches, black water rippling as though it were breathing. And my bracelet—It glowed like a wound, silver cracks spiderwebbing across it. Every pulse seared my wrist, heat and cold at once. “Finally awake.” A voice scraped like stone against steel, startling me, confused and d