{Music Recommendation: So Cold ~ Ben Cocks & Nikisha Reyes-Pile}
"Rhane... Rhane!"
The night pressed heavy, and though Rhane's body lay motionless on the bed, his mind was not his own. It dragged him backward, down into the dark corridors of memory where the air stank of iron and wet stone. He was a child again, his wrists bound in rusted chains that dug into skin already bruised. The world was cold, mercilessly so, and he lifted his gaze upward to the towering figure of the woman who had birthed him.
His mother's eyes were sharp, her mouth twisted as she barked commands. She did not look at him as a son, but as a soldier, a beast meant to obey. "On your feet," she hissed, "You'll fight. And if you don't—" she leaned forward, her face inches from his, "—your sister will pay for it."
Rhane's small fists clenched, his teeth gritted until his jaw ached. He wanted to scream, to cry, to beg her to see him, but there was no space for weakness in her eyes.
