Chapter 20

Aurelia POV

The morning sun cut through the lingering river fog, painting the stone terrace of Talia’s cottage in shades of pale gold. The air smelled of damp earth and crushed jasmine, clean and untainted by the stench of burning fuel or old blood.

I sat on the edge of the stone steps, pulling my knees to my chest. My bare wrists were exposed to the crisp wind. The heavy null-iron cuffs were gone, but their memory remained burned into my skin—thick, angry rings of purple and raw crimson where my golden magic had fought against the metal. I kept rubbing my thumbs over the tender flesh, trying to convince my mind that the iron was truly gone. That I was no longer chained to a wall.

“You didn’t sleep a single minute, did you?”

Talia stepped out onto the terrace, carrying a steaming ceramic mug and a heavy woolen shawl. She draped the wool over my shivering shoulders and handed me the tea, her dark-blue eyes filled with quiet concern.

“I couldn’t,”