Chapter 105

AVERY

I recall learning to swim.

The North was the House of Sea. The salty waters. The depths.

I had to be excellent at navigating my way through those depths, to be better than all others who resided North. That was the duty of a Princess.

But...I was always scared of it. Water—the sight of it made my heart clench.

The fear of the unknown, the noose that tightened around my throat every time I held my breath to take a dive, the memories that swarmed my head—of blood and pain...It all scared me.

But I had to get over that fear.

I watched the sea everyday, dived in even if all I wanted was to run away, and kept doing it until the fear was pushed somewhere at the back of my head.

It was not easy to do it. It took endless days of torture, of pounding heart and trembling hands to finally find the ability to hide the fear behind a neutral smile.

The dam that I built on that fear seems to have broken.

As I sink to the depths, my survival response kicks in. I try to swim up, strug