Third-Person POV
E groaned in sheer frustration as the guards yanked her forward, their rough hands gripping her arms like she was some wild beast that needed taming. Her wrists throbbed under the tight metal cuffs that chained her hands behind her back, the skin already raw from the constant pulling and struggling.
The air outside the cell was cold, carrying that damp, early-morning chill that always came before dawn. The dim light seeping in from the corridor made her squint, and the sound of boots echoing down the stone hallway did nothing to calm the boiling irritation rising inside her.
She'd spent the entire night awake, thinking, planning, and trying to figure out how in the world she was going to get out of this situation. None of it made sense. One moment she'd been healing Seraphina, and the next thing she knew, she was in a dark cell, her powers cut off, her strength fading, and the taste of helplessness thick in her mouth.
