The Messenge (Iva and Nick) novel Chapter 408

A Memory

Caleb waited until morning before bringing it up again.

He had barely slept, because every time he closed his eyes, he saw Iva lying beneath the blankets

with tears in her eyes, whispering that she believed she had lost Avalon.

When Iva finally appeared for breakfast, she looked exhausted despite the hours she had spent sleeping.

Caleb watched her for several seconds before speaking.

“I want to ask you something.”

Iva looked at him cautiously.

“That sounds dangerous.”

A faint smile touched his lips.

“Probably.”

She raised an eyebrow.

Caleb pulled out the chair opposite her and sat.

“Would you be willing to see someone regarding Avalon?”

Iva immediately became guarded.

“A healer?”

“No.”

“Then who?”

Caleb hesitated.

“She isn’t a usual healer.”

Iva stared at him.

“She is a white witch.”

Silence settled between them.

“A witch?”

“Her name is Melissandre.”

Iva’s fingers tightened around the cup in front of her.

“Why would I need a witch?”

“Because ordinary healing would not be a solution.”

Caleb’s voice remained calm, but his eyes were serious.

“And because I don’t believe Avalon is gone.”

Iva looked away.

She wanted to believe him.

25 P

After everything Lori had told her, after everything she had learned about the lies surrounding her

life, she no longer knew which parts of herself were real and which had been taken from her.

“Is she safe?” Iva finally asked.

“Yes.”

“Can she hurt me?”

“No.”

Caleb leaned forward slightly.

“But she may discover something that neither of us expects.”

Iva studied him for a long moment.

Then she sighed.

“Fine.”

Chaos stirred.

Caleb felt the beast rise beneath his skin, not with the violent hunger of the previous night, but with something closer to hope.

He lowered his gaze before Iva could notice.

“Tomorrow.”

Melissandre lived far beyond the main castle grounds.

The place looked nothing like a healer’s residence.

Iva stopped just inside the doorway.

“This is where she lives?”

Galeb nodded.

Before he could knock, the door opened.

An older woman stood there.

“Come in,” Melissandre said.

Her gaze moved immediately to Iva.

Then to Caleb.

Something changed in her expression.

“You brought the wrong person.”

Caleb stiffened.

“What?”

Melissandre looked directly at Iva.

“She isn’t broken.”

Iva swallowed.

“I didn’t say I was.”

“No,” the witch replied quietly. “But everyone who comes through my door carries that belief.”

She stepped aside.

“Come.”

The ritual chamber was beneath the house.

A spiral staircase led downward into a circular room carved directly into the earth.

At its centre was a large stone platform covered with intricate symbols.

Four black candles stood at the cardinal points, while four white candles burned between them.

A shallow silver bowl rested beside the platform, filled with clear water.

Bundles of rosemary, lavender, sage and dried moonflower hung from the ceiling.

Iva looked around nervously.

“What exactly are you going to do?”

“Find what is missing.”

Melissandre’s eyes met hers.

Caleb immediately stepped forward.

“I’m staying.”

The witch smiled faintly.

“I expected you would.”

Iva glanced at him.

For some reason, knowing Caleb would remain nearby made the room feel less frightening.

Melissandre instructed Iva to lie on the stone platform.

Then she placed a small crystal above Iva’s chest without touching her skin.

“Close your eyes.”

Iva obeyed.

The candles were extinguished one by one.

Only the four white flames remained.

Melissandre began speaking in an ancient language Caleb did not understand.

The air changed.

The temperature dropped so suddenly that Iva’s breath became visible.

The water in the silver bowl began to ripple.

Then it started rotating.

Slowly at first.

Then faster.

Melissandre dipped two fingers into it and drew a wet symbol across Iva’s forehead.

“Do not fight whatever you see.”

Iva’s eyes remained closed.

“What if I am afraid?”

“You will be.”

A Nemory

The witch’s voice became softer.

“But fear is not always a warning.”

The chanting resumed.

“No!”

She ran toward her.

The moment her fingers touched the first black thread, pain ripped through her body.

She woke with a violent gasp.

Caleb was beside the platform immediately.

“Iva!”

She grabbed his arm.

“I saw her.”

Melissandre remained completely still.

“You saw Avalon.”

Iva nodded desperately.

“She was there.”

Caleb’s eyes flashed.

“You were right.”

Melissandre looked at him.

“I wasn’t guessing.”

She turned back toward Iva.

“Your beast is not gone.”

Iva’s breath caught.

“She isn’t?”

“No.”

Melissandre’s expression became grim.

“She is locked inside you.”

The room seemed to shrink around them.

“Locked?”

“Yes.”

The witch walked toward the stone platform and examined the glowing symbols.

“Someone deliberately severed the connection between you and your beast.”

Caleb’s face hardened.

“Can you undo it?”

Melissandre did not answer immediately.

Instead, she touched one of the symbols.

The entire chamber shook.

A black mark appeared across the centre of the stone.

Melissandre’s eyes widened.

“No.”

Caleb stepped closer.

“What?”

The witch looked at Iva.

“Whoever did this didn’t merely imprison her beast.”

Her voice dropped to a whisper.

“They placed something inside the seal.”

Caleb’s expression darkened.

“What?”

Melissandre stepped backward.

For the first time, genuine fear appeared in her eyes.

A Memory

“A memory.”

The candles suddenly went out.

And from somewhere inside the darkness beneath the chamber came a woman’s whisper.

Iva…

Her blood turned cold.

Because the voice sounded exactly like her own.