IN THE ELEMENTAL REALM, BEFORE SILAS OPENED THE BARRIER TO THE SUPERNATURAL REALM

KATHERINE

The stench of dampness and rot clung to every corner of my small "room"—or rather, the cell that held me captive, hidden from the world.

I hugged myself, curled up in a filthy corner, trembling, pressing my knees to my chest.

My wrists were raw from the chains, my bare feet covered in grime, and my skeletal body barely concealed by a tattered white gown.

My teeth chattered against the gag that kept me silent, my entire system drugged to the brink by the powerful sedatives that he injected into me.

Laurence. My “caretaker” or, more accurately, my personal executioner in this prison. I struggled to take in a deep breath.

It felt like I was suffocating, my congested chest rising and falling slowly as my mind started to drift.

I hated feeling like this, hated how my will to hold onto life faded more and more along with my strength.

Footsteps echoed in the distance, and I tensed with hatred. It was