Seraphena watched him. “Glad you’re at least self-aware.”
“I may not always be, but I am always aware ofher,” he stated. “Before we talk about anything else, I want to make one thing clear. She’s not Sotoria. She is Penellaphe Da’Neer—Poppy, if she allows it.”
My breath snagged as my chest swelled. Gods, I couldn’t love this man more.
“You’re right,” Seraphena said. “She is Sotoria reborn. But, at the end of the day, who Sotoria wasisgone, and sheisPenellaphe.”
Casteel nodded curtly. “Glad we’re on the same page.”
Her gaze shifted to me. “Are you sure you’re okay?”
I opened my mouth, closed it, and then tried again. I felt…numb. Like I had when I learned Kolis could influence me. Detached. “I think I would like something to drink now.”
A small smile appeared on her face. “Understandable.” Turning, she went to the armoire, picked up the bottle, and poured me a glass. “Casteel?”
“I’m good.”
Seraphena turned and started toward us, and I went to rise.
“I got it.” Casteel moved forward, took the short, square glass from Seraphena, and brought it to me.
“Thank you,” I said and took it. Energy passed through our fingers as they brushed. I took a sip of the rich liquor, barely tasting the slight hint of caramel as Casteel moved to stand beside me. “I…I don’t even know what to say.”
Which was true. All I could think about right now was whether Ian knew about this? Was that why he’d told me Sotoria’s story—what was considered a legend now and all but forgotten by the masses?
“You mentioned that you saw something while in stasis,” Seraphena said, skirting the platform.
“A cage.” A muscle in Casteel’s jaw flexed.
The gilded cage Sotoria had been kept in…like a pet. Or, more accurately, a prisoner.
My stomach churned. I wasn’t sure my next drink helped. “I only briefly saw that.”
“Did you see anything else?” Casteel asked as Seraphena approached the sitting area.
“I think so—no, Ididsee other things—but…” Frowning, I tried to make sense of what I remembered, but it was like trying to view a portrait in the darkness. “It’s like the memories are hazy and out of focus.”
“It was like that for me after my Ascension.” Seraphena sat across from me.
“But I remember seeing people I didn’t recognize and places that looked nothing like anything today. Almost as if they were from a different time.” I forced myself to let go of the chair arms. “I saw her. I remember that now.”
“Sotoria?” she questioned.
I nodded. “I saw her at the Cliffs. She was picking flowers—poppies.” A thin, hoarse laugh parted my lips.Her?She? I couldn’t think of her as me. “It was right before I woke.” My gaze lifted to Casteel as my mind reeled from the fragmented memories, quickly piecing themselves together. “She told me tolisten. Said you were calling to me. And I heard you. You asked me to open my eyes.”
Casteel’s chest rose sharply. “I did.” He swallowed. “Ididask you to do that.”
“And I heardyoucalling to me.” I faced Seraphena. “You said…it was time for me to wake up.”
“How did you do that?” Casteel asked. “I tried to reach Poppy in her sleep but couldn’t find her.”
“I had help from a God of Dreams,” she told us. I think we both had questions, but she continued. “It took a bit, but he was able to find you.” She watched me closely. “Is that all you remember from that dream?”
I started to say yes but couldn’t force it past my lips. “She warned me he was coming.”
Casteel turned his head to the side and stretched his neck. “Kolis?”
“She didn’t say his name. But she said Death. So, yeah…” I cleared my throat. “The dream was pleasant up to that point.”
