Arawn's voice echoed through the giant television screen in our waiting room.
Today's episode of the Crown Show had officially been initiated, yet many of the suitors were nowhere near ready to appear on stage. Evie didn't look too pleased about it.
Not every stylist had been as prepared as Adriel, and some were still tailing their respective suitors to finish the last details of their masterpieces.
Tonight's episode would be different than the usual one-on-one interviews with Arawn. Tonight, three randomly selected spectators would be offered a chance to ask the respective suitor a question of their choosing.
It was terrifying. Arawn's questions were always somewhat predictable, but the audience... Not so much.
Worst of all, we couldn't lie our way out of any questions. Arawn would know right away. His abilities truly did him horrible favors during interviews.
"It's slightly terrifying that the audience is allowed to ask us three random questions," Calla whispered beside me. "What do you think they'll ask?"
Calla and Piper had arrived fully dressed like me, so we'd placed ourselves in a corner, observing the others struggle to finish on time.
We had been relatively quiet so far, intimidated by Evie's striking wrath. However, one could only be quiet for so long with countless questions humming in our minds.
"You're definitely going to be asked about your pending date with Prince Atlas," Piper laughed and poked Calla's shoulder. "I have no definitive answer to what the rest of us will be asked since we haven't exactly done anything particularly interesting since the last announcement."
Piper had a point. The most obvious questions would clearly concern the dates, but that was a narrow topic. Many of the questions would likely be similar, and so would the answers.
Fortunately, I wasn't the first suitor to wrestle with Arawn's terrifying abyss of nameless inquiries. At least, I'd get a chance to moderately prepare myself based on the first couple of questions.
If only my position as the enigmatic Wildcard didn't prompt any odd questions, perhaps I'd be okay.
Kaia was the first to emerge through the floor. Arawn offered her a gentleman's arm, and she happily accepted his offer.
Two red chairs appeared in the middle of the platform. Arawn guided Kaia to one and seated himself in the other.
Thank the spirits that chairs had been added to the stage this time. I wouldn't have to rely on my shaky legs and balance on my impossible heels.
Kaia looked calm in the limelight—as if she belonged there. She didn't appear remotely fazed by the random questions that the audience relentlessly tossed her way and answered them with a level of confidence that made me a little jealous.
Azure wasn't as gracious as her predecessor. When asked simple questions about her date with the crown prince, she stumbled over her words and stuttered through every sentence.
Honestly, I felt a bit bad for her. This should have been her moment to shine, but the fear of the unknown seemed to have robbed her of the warm light we'd seen radiate from her before.
Piper was next. Her first two questions were—as expected—about dating expectations and future aspirations. The last question, on the other hand, made my entire body grow cold and numb.
"What thoughts went through your mind during the trial when you first realized that the monster in the darkness was a Raeewh?"
My stomach threatened to churn, and the world before me started to sway dangerously.
The first trial.
Why hadn't any of us thought of that? Because it had been almost a month since that barbaric event? Because of the dates?
My throat tightened, cutting off my air. I dug my fingers into the fabric covering my chest, begging my racing heart to calm down and clear the haze starting to shroud my mind.
I had finally gotten rid of the nightmares that had haunted me behind closed eyes for weeks following that trial. Now, I was being dragged right into that dreadful darkness again.
Everyone with access to a screen had seen what had happened during my trial. Everyone had seen how horribly wrong everything had turned out. There was no way I could make it through this interview without addressing it.
I couldn't do it.
"Willow?" Calla asked beside me when my breathing started sounding audibly erratic. "Will, are you okay?"
The walls were closing in on me, black dots dancing in the periphery of my vision. I couldn't answer her.
All I could think of was the Faceless Shifter imitating Koa and Tristan's voices and the wretched twist of my mirrored lips.
I felt my powers surface, crawling like ants just beneath my skin. I was about to lose control.
"Willow! Look at me!"
Calla grabbed my wrists, the chill of her skin around mine piercing a small area of the suffocating darkness.
She squatted before me, my wrists still firmly caught in her hands. "The Raeewh is gone," she said, her voice reassuring. "It can't hurt you. Breathe."
I nodded, focusing my attention on her eyes. I inhaled, breathing in the heavy air all the way to the bottom of my lungs. I held it for a few seconds before exhaling.
"Good. Again."
I repeated the process until my heart stopped thrashing wildly, and the darkness was merely a shadow in the back of my mind.
"Calla," I whispered, my voice still quivering. "What if they ask me what happened in there? I don't want to go through it again."
She squeezed my wrists. She knew that the possibility of that happening was nearly certain. "Keep it short," she finally said. "They only have fifteen minutes allotted to each of us. No one expects our answers to be through."
That's right. Fifteen minutes for three questions—including the selection of the random spectators and introductions—wasn't much. I could do this.
"Wildcard! You're up!"
My heart shot to my throat again, my limbs locking. I couldn't do it.
"No," I whispered, wrenching my wrists from Calla's hands to grab hers. "I don't want to, Calla. Please, don't make me. What if I say something that could jeopardize everything? What if I—"
"You won't, Will." Calla's eyes were stern but filled with worry. "You've done this before."
"Wildcard!"
Time was up.
"Piper will be waiting for you on the other side," Calla said when two men dressed in red suits showed up beside us. "I'll be there shortly."
The men grabbed my arms and started escorting me toward the door.
"Calla!"
"Fifteen minutes, Will! You can do it!"
My heart threatened to burst as I was pushed into the adjacent room with the platform mechanism.
"Let's all applaud Miss Weldon on her way out," Arawn shouted to wrap up his interview with Piper.
The platform descended before me, lowering Piper from the stage.
"Piper," I whispered, my voice barely audible past the sound of blood rushing past my ears.
Tears prickled my eyes. I wasn't ready to go up there.
Another man helped Piper down from the platform before my guards lifted me onto it.
"Piper," I said again, my lips trembling.
By some miracle, she heard me and turned to see my frightened eyes.
The platform started moving.
Piper let go of her escort and rushed toward me. Her escort grabbed her before she could reach me.
"Will!" she shouted, trashing futilely against the man's grip. "Stop the platform!"
"Sorry, Miss," said the old man by the handle. "Can't stop it once I've started. Boss's orders."
"Tell your boss to get lost! She is in no shape to go up there. Stop that platform right now!" Piper shouted, but the old man shrugged her off.
"Cursed blood!" she swore and turned to me again, still restrained by her escort. "It will be over before you know it, Will. I'll be right here when you return. You've got this!"
Fear bloomed like a sprouting rose in my chest, panic rising to my throat. This was it. There was no way out of it.
"Now, let's give a warm welcome to the fourth suitor joining us here tonight—our very own Wildcard!"
A cold, white light blinded me as the platform pushed me through the floor.
"Welcome, Miss Aldwyn." Arawn's voice sounded like an echo bouncing endlessly between walls.
The cheers from the audience were muffled, as if I wore earmuffs. My breath, however, was louder than ever, and a thin, gray mist creeping closer distorted my vision.
A warm hand suddenly brushed against my elbow, the physical contact breaking the panic shrouding me. The voices around us smashed the muffling barrier crushing me, and the mist lifted to reveal the illuminated stage.
"G-good evening, Arawn," I said, forcing the words across my frozen lips.
Arawn smiled as I wrapped my arm around his, clinging to the comfort of his touch as he escorted me to the chairs.
"How are you doing on this winter moon?" Arawn asked as he helped me into my seat. It wasn't graceful, but not entirely sloppy, either.
I took a deep breath, reminding myself of Calla's final words. Fifteen minutes. I took another breath and straightened my back, forcing my lips into a smile.
"You'd think I should have gotten used to the spotlight by now, but I am still quite nervous, I must admit," I said, my eyes fixed on Arawn. I studied the details of his face to distract my unraveling mind from the curious crowd.
Not much had changed about him from the first time we stood face to face. Shadows of a faint, dark stubble shaded his jaw, and a purple veil popped visibly on his copper-hued brow. Otherwise, he looked the same.
He wore his color well.
"Do not fret, Miss Aldwyn," Arawn said, smiling as he placed a gentle hand on my bare shoulder. "Mastering the spotlight takes years of practice. Trepidation is quite normal."
I smiled back at him.
"Regardless," Arawn continued, turning toward the crowd. "We are here tonight to discuss you and your current position in the Crown Trials. You have made it past the first trial. Congratulations. I don't believe many of us had expected the Wildcard—an Iridis who didn't place among the top in the exams—to have made it when others didn't. I'd say that deserves applause."
He started clapping his hands, and the audience quickly followed suit.
I kept smiling but didn't say anything. Whatever answer my tongue would spin couldn't possibly be anything that benefitted me.
The clapping soon faded, and Arawn turned to me again. "Now, as you know, tonight is quite special. Three random spectators will get a once-in-a-lifetime chance to ask our precious Wildcard one question each. I'm sure many of you have some exciting questions for this young lady, so why don't we get right to it?"
Arawn raised his hand. "Let the selection begin."
I dug my fingers into the delicate fabric of my skirt, biting the inside of my cheek as the blinking light raced past countless people. After ten seconds, it finally stopped.
A small, plum woman dressed in shades of orange jumped from her seat with a squeal as if being selected to ask a question had been the greatest honor in her life.
"Um," she said, correcting the much too-small hat for her impressive hairstyle. "Oh, Spirits. Can you hear me, darling?"
Arawn chuckled. "Yes, Mam. Please submit your question to Miss Aldwyn."
The woman giggled. "Of course. Um... Miss Aldwyn." I sucked in a sharp breath. "Would you mind elaborating on how you personally envision the ideal arrangement for your future date with the crown prince?"
I kept holding my breath. It certainly wasn't a question related to the first trial, but I wasn't sure whether it was necessarily better."
"Excellent question, Mam," Arawn said, directing his attention toward the platform hovering silently in the air beside the stage. "I hope you're listening closely, Prince Atlas. This brilliant lady may just have handed you a perfect date on a golden platter."
The hovering platform was shrouded in shadows from the blinding lights behind it. I couldn't see Caiden, nor did I want to.
This answer needed to be honest. Arawn would know otherwise. "Miss Aldwyn," Arawn said, handing me the spotlight again.
I closed my eyes and breathed, considering my options. Short and concise.
"Well," I said, opening my eyes to focus on the keen woman. Her infectious smile made me relax a bit. "I have always been quite fond of the outdoors. My dad taught me how to catch my first fish, but I doubt that a trip to the seas would be appropriate for this type of date."
Quiet laughs sounded from the audience. Another wave of calmness washed over me. This wasn't so bad.
"I like stargazing and curling up beside a bonfire. I could spend hours under a warm blanket, listening to the rain beating against the window, or lose track of time fixing tinkering with broken things."
A sudden whiff of burnt motor oil brushed my nose, transporting me back to my dad's old shed. I had spent so many hours there.
"You have certainly given our crown prince a lot of options to prepare a perfect date for you, Miss Aldwyn."
Arawn's voice jerked me back to the stage, but before I could regain my bearings, the spotlight had already settled on another spectator.
A young man in a green suit with a matching hat partially covering his face rose from his seat.
"Can you describe in your own words what happened with the Raeewh during your trial?" he asked, his voice rough.
Ice shot through my veins, freezing my body in place. The darkness crept closer from behind me again, prickling my nape like talons. I dug my nails into the armrest, using the pain as an anchor.
"What a great question, young man," Arawn said, covertly placing a hand on top of mine as if he could sense the panic rising through my throat. He probably could. "I am aware that most of you may already have witnessed Miss Aldwyn's horrifying encounter with the Raeewh, but just in case anyone missed it, here is a brief peek into the past."
A translucent screen rose from the margins of the rounded stage, and the obscure room I had fought so hard to forget unfolded before me.
My dress was still in perfect condition, not yet ruined by the shifter's claws. My past self apprehensively moved forward, hesitantly following the torches lighting my path. Then I started running.
It was strange to watch from the outside. There was no sound, and the entire stadium was so quiet only the wind disturbed the silence.
However, inside my head, I heard everything.
"You don't belong here!"
"Misfit!"
"Delusional!"
I shut my eyes, trying to spare myself the pain of witnessing the moment the Faceless Shifter first stepped into the dim light.
It was too late.
The darkness swallowed me. I felt the Faceless Shifter's cold hands lock around my ankle, the fatigue, the despair. I heard Tristan's voice screaming for me and Koa shouting my name.
My powers surfaced, stirring violently beneath my skin. I took a breath, trying to calm myself and regain control.
I imagined the precious memory of Tristan showing me his first lost tooth. I imagined Mom hugging me and Dad handing me my first wrench.
Nothing did the trick.
The air shifted around me, weaving through my hair and winding around my neck like invisible serpents.
A hurricane was slowly forming, the wind responding to the chaotic mess of emotions overwhelming my brain. This entire stadium would soon be in ruins if I didn't find a way to calm myself down. Now.
"Willow!"
A bright light burned through the darkness, hauling me out of that paralyzing nightmare without warning.
Suddenly, I was back on the stage, sitting in the red chair beside Arawn.
That voice... I didn't recognize it, yet it had felt so awfully familiar.
"That was damned impressive, Miss Aldwyn," Arawn said, shaking my hand. "Not only did you survive your encounter with that rogue Raeewh, but you fought it and won. I would have been paralyzed. So, how did you do it?"
My jaw felt rusty as I forced my lips apart to answer him. However, before I could attempt to speak, the light went out, and the darkness swallowed me.
***
I hadn't fainted, and by the time I finally became aware of my surroundings again, the audience was clapping, and Arawn had jumped to his feet.
Somehow, I had managed to answer the last questions—as if my brain had shut down and my subconscious had taken over.
The audience seemed pleased, so the answers couldn't have been horrible.
"We will be back in a few minutes with the next suitor, Calla Young," Arawn announced and bowed before turning to help me up from the chair.
"Are you quite alright, dear?" he whispered as he guided my rigid body toward the middle of the stage. For a moment, your mind seemed to embark on an impossible voyage toward the golden cave."
Tears started prickling behind my eyes again as I realized my interview was over.
"I-I don't know," I whispered, clutching Arawn's sleeve tightly. "Th-the Faceless Shifter... Why—"
The words drowned as a sob twisted my throat.
"Mind the step, Miss Aldwyn," he said, grabbing my elbow to help me over the border of the moving platform. "We realize your encounter with the Raeewh was unusual and rather traumatic. I did try to persuade them not to play that video, but the majority of the board voted against me. Regrettably, fear has a great impact on revenue in this business."
Arawn slowly let go of me until he was sure my legs didn't give under my weight. "Take care, Miss Aldwyn, and please, do not hesitate to ask for anything. That is the least we can do."
Arawn tapped a button in the floor with his foot, and the platform began descending. "Thank you, Arawn," I whispered.
Piper and Calla stood beside Evie by the foot of the platform, restlessly shifting their weight from one foot to the other. Their eyes were wide and glazed with worry.
"Will!" they shouted when the dim lights from the torches around the room reached me. "Spirits, Will. Are you okay?" Piper continued.
I sent them a lazy smile as a numbness spread through my veins. It was over, and I was so exhausted.
I parted my lips to tell them exactly when the world started spinning. My feet swayed, and I lost balance. The platform hadn't reached the ground yet.
"Will!"
A warm embrace caught me, saving me from crashing into the ruthless ground. My eyes were so unbelievably heavy that I couldn't force them open to thank my savior.
I groaned when an icy hand settled against my burning neck. "Cursed blood," someone hissed. Evie? I'd never heard her curse before. "She's burning up. Get her some water and mix in some sugar. Miss Weldon, you have mastered the art of healing, correct?"
She didn't waste time answering Evie and placed her hands against my bare skin. Soon after, the familiar feeling of a healer's soothing powers washed over me.
"Don't worry, Will. I've got you," Piper said.
"What in the world were they thinking?" Evie whispered, guiding a glass to my lips. "This is completely unacceptable. I will speak to the king about this, Miss Aldwyn. Suitor or not, no one should have to relive a nightmare like that."
I gulped down the sweet liquid, not caring that a few rogue drops spilled onto my pretty dress. The tears streaming uncontrollably down my cheeks had already ruined it regardless.