Tell Me My Name Read Free

my elbows into my stomach, though
for what reason, I don’t know. None exists in my mind; there’s only
anguish and despair as the horror stretches into an unforgiving
eternity of endless searing, until I wish I could dissolve into
air, or melt into water … anything to make it stop.
    Then the burning ceases, and though
the fire that consumed me just moments ago is gone, I still feel
the specter of the torture that wrapped around every muscle, every
bone, every vein. How long did I endure it? It might as well have
been a lifetime. My pulse hammers so rapidly that it’s almost a
hum, and sweat clings to my face. All my strength has drained away,
as if the pain burned my very life for fuel, and I can barely lift
my arm to examine it. Though I expect to see welts or scars, it’s
as smooth and pale as before, and I let it drop to the ground. My
legs and back sting from the cold floor, but I don’t have the
energy to move. I’m dying – I’m sure of it. Whatever happened to me
just now dragged me to the edge of oblivion, and the darkness
beckons.
    But some spark inside,
perhaps the only one the ruthless magic didn’t take from me, tells
me I can’t let
death win, and I manage to look up. My gaze meets that of the
green-eyed man, whose hands remain raised, red mist swirling around
them. A scowl twists his face, and he clenches his
fists.
    “ I will discover your secret,” he
growls, his eyes fixed on mine.
    My secret? What could he mean by that?
    The question fades as a
realization hits me: He was the one that
hurt me . This man must be a magician, and
it was his spell that caused my pain, that nearly drove me mad,
that almost killed me. Is he also the one
that trapped me?
    I can’t fathom why he’d do either, but
if he uses such magic on me again, I have no way to fight him. And
I might not have the strength to survive. I feel myself trembling,
although I don’t know if it’s from the overwhelming cold or the
fresh wave of fear washing over my heart.
    Then a surge of anger rises. What
right does this man have to do this to me?
    “ Who are you?” I demand,
managing to speak clearly this time, though the words emerge
shakier than I intended. I realize I’m still lying on the ground
and quickly stand, hoping I appear stronger than my quaking heart
feels. My head rushes from the movement, making the world tilt, and
my legs, still weak from the effects of the spell, protest the
effort of standing. But I resist the urge to grab the wall for
support and, doing my best to harden my expression, say, “What do
you want with me?” Though my heart continues to race, my voice
doesn’t quiver this time.
    The man stares at me, but doesn’t
answer. After a few seconds he turns to the hooded figure beside
him and mutters, “I don’t understand why it didn’t
work.”
    “ With all due respect, sir,
I’m not surprised,” says the other, who has a low, female voice.
“We barely gathered any information last time, and we were working
on assumptions. We need to know more.”
    Their words make no sense to me, and I
ask, “What are you talking about?”
    But I might as well be invisible. The
man turns to another hooded companion and mutters, his voice too
soft for me to make out any words.
    I take a step closer, intending to
demand answers, but he shoots me a glare so full of rage that my
courage withers. The memory of the pain he caused me – the
unrelenting fire I was powerless to fight – causes my heart to
pound even faster, and I shrink back. My feeble knees buckle,
threatening to collapse beneath me, and I wonder suddenly if I’d
survive that torment again.
    To my great relief, he doesn’t shoot
another spell. Instead, he turns his back to me, revealing the
brilliant pattern of swirls and shapes embroidered in metallic
thread down the back of his cloak. Light flashes off the gleaming
embellishments – silver spirals, golden stars, bronze ciphers –
that adorn his coat and those of his five of his companions.