Chapter 37. That Spark

The hard, cold floor—that was the first thing I felt the moment I came to.

My cheek was pressed against it, the dampness of the earth seeping into my skin.

Everything around me pulsed in shades of gray, and behind my eyelids, jagged lightning forked and danced like angry spirits.

Where was I?

Think, Rex. Breathe first, then think.

Air sliced into my lungs, sharp and metallic. Each inhale brought the stench of rot and rusteach exhale burned the back of my throat. I tried to move—only to be met by a cruel resistance.

Chains.

No, not just chains. Shackles. Both ankles weighed down with iron, cold and cruel.

And pain—gods, the pain.

A white-hot stab tore through my leg, and I bit down hard on a scream. I looked down. A nail still jutted from my right heel, embedded where they had dragged me like an animal. Blood pooled beneath me. Fresh. Real.

This wasn’t a dream. It wasn’t some twisted nightmare.

It was happen