Page 1 of Sands of Atonement

Prologue

Crahst, Zyriah

Once I was free from these ties, I would kill my brother.

He’d pay for tying me to these outdoor baths, and under no circumstances would I be deterred.

I’d shove his face into these waters and ask him how it felt when he was the one drowning. Better yet, I’d bury his body in the dunes and tunnel sand down his throat until he suffocated. But as much as I wanted revenge, nothing mattered more than surviving these baths under a surging storm.

I screamed his name, choking on the water that poured into my mouth.

The rope around my wrist tightened more as I attempted to flee at different angles. I couldn’t undo it—I couldn’t breathe as panic gripped my chest. If I didn’t get out of this poorly executed prank, I would miss my sixteenth birthday celebration.

Dark clouds gathered over the city of Crahst, and a storm replaced the desert’s blue skies within thirty minutes. The last time it stormed like this was three years ago, and we thought God was punishing us for our country’s frivolous rivalries.

I gasped for the surface, only to be filled with more water, drawing me deeper into darkness.

As the rain filled the baths, the splattering on the marble floors pounded in my ears. But my heartbeat was louder.

My body contorted, trying to reach the surface. My fingers clawed the water, and I pulled my head through. Air rushed into my chest.

I jerked against the rubbing rope, feeling my wrist chafing. Blood dissipated into the roiling waters. If I were going to survive this, I had to pull my hand out, and if I had to damage myself permanently doing it, then so be it.

This was going to hurt.

I yanked harder until the ropes loosened. Hope rushed through me as I cradled my bruised hand to my chest.

I was free.

I could barely see the setting sun as the dark storm loomed over the palace. The water had left me bleary-eyed. My fingers searched for the ridge of the baths until I found it. My hands and arms shook as I heaved myself up. The gallons of water I swallowed emerged from my throat.

No matter how much I coughed it up, I felt as heavy as the sea itself. My limbs barely functioned as I crawled and slipped further from the baths, hoping a monster wouldn’t leap through and suck me back in.

Though the sky was mourning, the air was thick and warm as I drew my trembling legs up.

My brother was so going to regret this.

Earlier this week, Kavid and I experimented with different knots that my teacher, Salazar, taught us. I’d undo each in record time, and the frown on Kavid’s face only deepened with each victory.

After a few minutes of walking through the outdoor halls, I stumbled into the large wooden doors that would take me to safety. There were no guards because, well… they were where they were supposed to be.

At my own goddamn celebration.

My jaw clenched.

It wasn’t just my birthday but an important day for my family, and I would not be blamed if matters turned south. Today, royalty from neighboring countries we didn’t trust filled the event.

Payback was a bitch, but not a killer. Kavid didn’t deserve to almost die. I couldn’t live without him. Which was a one-sided thought, apparently. But he, at the very least, deserved to have his feathered pillow replaced with dog shit.

My soaking feet crossed the last marble hallway into the waiting room, where I should have been all along.

A symphony of gasps filled the air.

Standing near Salazar was my mother, the Qahless of the House Barazi, and she flew toward me. She wore her traditional gold-threaded yellow robe. Gold jewelry encircled her neck, wrists, and ankles. They clanked against each other, almost like a song, as she pulled me into her arms. We were about the same height, but right now, I felt so small in her arms, shaking uncontrollably. I heard her muttering over me and barking orders to the servants nearby for linens, but I kept my eyes on Kavid.

His dark eyes went wide, and his face paled in contrast to his dark tunic. Kavid shook his head and took a step forward. “What happened?”

“What do you mean, what happened?” My voice was shaky. I still felt as if I were deep in the baths, hardly breathing. Despite the remorse visible on his shattered face, I didn't feel very forgiving right then.