“Arvelle.”
Gerith is suddenly standing next to me, tears running down his face as he stares at Kas. “No, no, no.”
My mind can’t make sense of him being here, so I turn my attention back to Kas. Some part of me still expects her to open her eyes.
“Velle. Velle, it’s important. Velle!”
Crack!
My cheek is suddenly hot with pain. I stare at Gerith, and he swings again, slapping me on the other side of my face. His lower lip is trembling. How did he get here? I took them home. Where …
“We were at the mine.”
My gaze shoots to the smoke in the distance, and some of the fog lifts from my head.
“No.”
“Evren was close to the entrance of the mine. Closer than me.”
Tiernon closes his eyes. “Gods. Velle—”
“I’m not done,” I hiss, my voice trembling. I’ve imagined this moment so many times. Imagined telling him exactly what happened the day he left. The ruin my life became.
“Evren almost died. His lungs were severely damaged. But he was alive, and we were going north anyway, as soon as he was stable enough to travel. I was taking him to the healers in Nesonias.”
“But you didn’t go.”
“No. My mother stupidly told her brother I’d won. He broke into my room and took my winnings while I was at the healers with Evren. Three days later, our mother took her own life. Her note said she couldn’t live with what she’d done. Allowing Evren to be so badly hurt, and then watching her brother take my winnings … it was too much for her.”
“So you’ve been alone all this time.”
“I’m not alone. I have Evren and Gerith.”
His mouth thins, but he gives me a sharp nod. “Tell me how you ended up here.”
I open my mouth and my throat tightens, that spot on my neck burning with searing pain. I can’t tell him I’m here to kill the emperor. My deal with Bran prevents me from speaking of it.
“A vampire bond.” Tiernon’s gaze drops to my neck and he gets to his feet with a rough curse. “You know better than this.”
“You can see it?”
“Only vampires can see it, and only when it flares. I should have paid more attention, maybe I would have noticed it sooner.”
When I don’t reply, he takes a step closer. “Where are your brothers, Arvelle?”
I strain but the words won’t come out, and the pain turns sharp enough to make my eyes burn.
He crouches in front of me, taking my hands. “Someone took them then. You don’t need to tell me who. Just tell me where they are.”
“Nesonias.” The word is a relief.
“Because Evren needs to be healed.”
My brother’s face flashes before my eyes, purple and straining for air. “I didn’t have a choice.”
“You do now. I’m getting you out of here. Tonight.”
My heart leaps, but I shake my head. “You can’t.”
