CHAPTER THREE: WHISPERS AND SHADOWS
511 Words
Amara kept her hand clenched as she walked.
The mark on her palm pulsed faintly beneath her skin—warm, alive, and frightening. No matter how tightly she closed her fist, she could still feel it, as if the school itself had branded her.
She didn’t tell anyone.
Not Lila.
Not Jayden.
Not even Kade.
Especially not Kade.
Morning came with tension thick enough to choke on.
Students whispered openly now, their eyes darting toward Kade whenever he passed. Some stepped away as if he carried a disease. Others stared with fear mixed with fascination.
“You didn’t do anything wrong,” Jayden said loudly, throwing an arm around Kade’s shoulders. “They’re just dramatic.”
Kade managed a smile, but his eyes searched the crowd.
They stopped on Lila.
She smiled back—soft, reassuring.
Amara noticed.
She hated that she noticed.
Later that day, Amara was summoned.
The message appeared on the inside of her locker in elegant, glowing script:
COME TO THE NORTH TOWER. ALONE.
Her heart pounded.
She should have told someone.
But she didn’t.
The North Tower was colder than the rest of the school, shadows clinging to the walls like living things. At the top stood Headmistress Morvena, gazing out a tall window.
“I was wondering when your mark would awaken,” Morvena said calmly.
Amara froze. “You know about this?”
Morvena turned, smiling. “Child, I know everything.”
She stepped closer. “You feel it, don’t you? The pull. The power. And the fear.”
Amara said nothing.
Morvena circled her slowly. “Your friend Lila has power too. Gentle power. The kind everyone loves.”
The words slid into Amara’s mind like poison.
“She’s always been like that,” Morvena continued softly. “People choose her. Even Kade.”
“That’s not true,” Amara snapped.
Morvena raised a brow. “Isn’t it?”
With a flick of her fingers, an illusion bloomed in the air.
Amara saw Lila laughing with Kade in the courtyard. Saw his hand brush Lila’s. Saw the closeness.
Her chest tightened.
“You and I,” Morvena whispered, “we are alike. We see the truth others pretend not to.”
The mark on Amara’s palm burned.
That night, Lila searched for Amara.
She found her in the training hall, magic crackling wildly around her.
“Amara, stop!” Lila cried. “You’re going to hurt yourself!”
Amara turned sharply. “Why do you always act like you know what’s best?”
Lila froze. “What?”
“Everyone looks at you like you’re perfect,” Amara continued, her voice shaking. “Even Kade.”
Silence fell between them.
“I never asked for that,” Lila said softly. “And I would never choose someone over you.”
But the words came too late.
From the shadows above, Morvena watched, satisfied.
The wedge had been driven.
As Amara stormed away, the floor beneath her feet shifted.
Stone cracked.
And she fell—straight into darkness.
Her scream echoed once… then vanished.
- Writer
