Morwenna's smile is ancient and knowing. "That depends. How long do you intend to stay in the Grove?"
Something in her tone makes my shadow magic stir uneasily. "We'd hoped to return within days. The war effort requires?—"
"Ah." Her lips curve wider. "You haven't realized yet."
Dread coils in my chest. "Realized what?"
"You arrived here via Peri magic, did you not? Transported directly across realm boundaries without following traditional paths?"
"Yes," I say slowly.
"The Grove's borders are... particular about such things. We permit entry through various means, but departure..." She spreads her hands with elegant regret. "Departure requires proper authorization. From me, specifically."
The chamber falls into absolute silence.
"You're saying we're trapped here," Yasar says, his voice carefully controlled.
"Trapped is such an ugly word," Morwenna demurs. "I prefer 'indefinitely detained pending measured resolution.'"
"How long?" Nesilhan asks, and I can feel her panic building through our connection.
"That depends entirely on the nature of our ongoing negotiations."
The political implications are clear. Every day we're trapped here is another day the Light Court has to prepare. Every day is another day our forces fight without their leader, without coordination, without hope. Is Emir holding the eastern borders? Are the lords still unified, or are they starting to fracture without my presence to keep them in line? How long before someone decides they'd make a better Shadow Lord than an absent one?
My temper flares, I can feel the Grove's magic pressing against my power—ancient, patient, utterly immovable. This realm has been playing games of power since before the courts formed.
The mask cracks for just a moment, and genuine fear bleeds through my sarcasm. If we're trapped here indefinitely, if I can't get back to defend my realm...
"This is how you negotiate?" I let my voice drop to something dangerous. "By taking hostages and calling it diplomacy?"
"This is how I ensure that my decisions carry appropriate weight," Morwenna replies without concern. "Wars have consequences, Shadow Prince. I will not commit my people to yours without absolute certainty."
"In the meantime," she continues, "you'll have full access to the Grove's resources. Consider it an opportunity to learn about your potential allies."
"How generous," I say through gritted teeth.
As we're led from Öz Odasi, I catch Yasar moving closer to Nesilhan. Too close.
"Did you forget what the Peri said, Nesilhan? About departure requiring the Queen's permission?" His hand brushes her arm with calculated casualness. "I mentioned it during the negotiations, but you were so focused on Banu's rescue... Perhaps if you'd paid closer attention to the details, we might have avoided this trap."
The casual intimacy makes my blood turn arctic. It's Nesilhan's reaction that alarms me—the way she goes rigid, the spike of confused desire and self-loathing.
"Don't touch me," she says quietly, but she doesn't pull away immediately. Can't, I realize with growing horror.
"Of course," he murmurs, withdrawing his hand with theatrical regret. "Though the binding between us suggests otherwise, doesn't it? Your words say one thing, but your body..." He lets the implication hang in the air, and I realize with growing horror that he's not questioning her honesty—he's pointing out that the magical compulsion makes her physical responses betray her conscious will.
I move between them, shadows spreading through the corridor. "Keep your hands off my wife, cousin."
"Your wife?" Yasar's smile is all sharp edges. "Strange. I haven't seen much evidence of marriage lately."
"Besides," he continues, "I was merely offering comfort. Being trapped in a foreign realm can be quite stressful."
"Some people," I reply, letting shadows bleed into my voice, "respond well to having their hands removed at the wrist."
"How violent. How predictably you." Yasar adjusts his sleeves with elaborate unconcern. "Though I wonder—if you're so concerned about your wife's wellbeing, why didn't you pay closer attention to what the Peri actually said? The warning was quite clear about needing permission to leave."
He's right. Damn him, he's right. In my focus on getting everyone to safety, I'd pushed the Peri's words to the back of my mind.
