Riven's Pov
I woke slowly, like a body dragged up through mud. My eyelids were heavy, the kind of weight that made each blink feel like lifting stones. My vision swam at first—blurry shapes, colors bleeding into one another—until the haze cleared enough for me to recognize carved black stone walls, crimson drapes, and the faint scent of burned resin. Selthra's room.
I let my head fall back against the pillow with a dull thud. Perfect. Of all the places I could have woken up, it had to be here.
I shifted instinctively, trying to push myself up. That was when I heard it: the metallic rattle of chains. My wrists jerked against cold iron cuffs, bound tightly above my head to the carved headboard. The chains clinked softly with each small movement, a sound that felt louder than my own heartbeat.
Memory slammed back into me like a hammer. Nyelle's laughter. Her hand tugging mine as we wove through the streets. Me coming back here to be ambushed, chained and knocked out by Selthra.
