Soldiers and civilians warred on either side of me, clanging swords and crying children and severed body parts littering the hard ground.
This time I knew it was a dream, but I still couldn’t wake from it.
Ragnar, Morgana, and Beau lay before me in a pool of red, a dagger the size of my forearm held in my hand above them. Their blood slid from the blade and down my fingers until my entire hand was covered in it.
Sunlight caught the steel, making my reflection shine back at me. My eyes were ablaze, cheeks flushed, dark hair whipping around my face.
And I was smiling. A deep, sinister smile that made my insides shrivel and my spine tingle.
“No!” I shouted, hurling the dagger away, and as it embedded itself in the dirt, I sprung forward.
My eyes flew open. I found myself sitting upright, tangled in unfamiliar sheets. A warm hand steadied my back.
“It’s only a dream,” a voice said, rough with tiredness. “You’re safe, Rose.”
Leo. It took me a moment to reorient myself with visions of the second trial and my nightmare clogging my senses, but I slowly started to remember. He and Rissa had brought me back to their cottage, where I’d passed out in his bed.
The confusion subsided, replaced with a nervous energy. I knew none of it was real, but itfeltreal. And with it came memories of my father—memories that were so true and potent, I could still feel his blood on my skin.
Leo propped up on one arm to my left, the other still at my back. His dark hair was mussed from sleep, his eyes hooded and tired. It was still dark out, and the only light came from the moon shining through the window above his desk, landing on the foot of the bed and creeping up the black sheets.
Seeing him like this, loose and unguarded and lying next to me, made something press against my chest, diverting attention away from my unease.Fates, nobody had the right to look that good, especially in the middle of the night.
I settled back onto my pillow, turning to face him and pulling my knees up into a curled position. Resting my head on my arm, I studied his features as he mirrored me, surprised by how much I’d missed in the light that was now revealed under the moon.
His hair always seemed perfectly placed, but now there were small curls at his ears and neck, stray tendrils hanging low on his forehead. Those eyes drew me in, soft and searching, as if in the dark he could finally let his guard down, could finally stop caring about keeping up his intense, moody bravado. I knew it came from a place of protection, a constant need to be on the alert, but I liked this side of him. My gaze traveled further down to a small scar on the edge of his jaw. He didn’t so much as flinch when I reached out to trace the length of it, feeling its smoothness against rough stubble.
The image of my back digging into a tree trunk while my thumb ran along his lip came back to me, and I dropped my hand, swallowing hard.
“Do you want to talk about it?” he asked quietly. “The trial?”
I closed my eyes. Did I want to? No, not necessarily. I’d never been one to talk through things or share my troubles with others. Everyone had their own burdens to carry; I figured they either didn’t need to add mine to them, or they didn’t truly care. Either way, I was used to shoving things beneath that heavy cloak in my mind, stifling them of their power over me.
I wanted to do that now. To reject him, turn my back, and pretend to sleep. Then we’d wake up in the morning in an awkward silence, right back to how things were a week ago when we left this very cottage with forced trust and heightened vexation. I’d been so frustrated with him and his pride, how he’d quickly brushed me off as a mistake, as someone not worthy. Beneath that, though, was my burning desire for revenge against his father transferred over to Leo’s unwitting head.
That wasn’t an excuse anymore. I don’t think I was ever really angry withLeo, anyway. He didn’t have anything to do with the actions of his father. And I couldn’t fault him for his pride. Those offhanded comments he’d made that had struck so deeply in the heat of the moment were more easily understood now that I’d gotten to know him. Now that I could clearly see the singular focus for most of his life had been protecting him and his sister and finding a way to usurp Gayl. Looking at it from his perspective, I wouldn’t trust myself, either. It must be nearly impossible to hand this task over to an outsider with no remarkable ability, who had a knack for getting herself into unfortunate situations.
I couldn’t help but remember how he looked at me—not with the wariness of the people back home, but with intrigue. Admiration, even. The things he said about me…that I was bold, brave, unapologetic. That I challenged people.
It made me feel good. It made me feelseen.
So where did that leave us? I had no reason for retribution, no anger holding me back, no sharp chip on my shoulder.
Instead, I was in awe of the way he loved his family so unabashedly. I was curious about his background, how hisAlchemist and Shifter blood worked together. I had an acute desire to know what that scar on his jaw felt like against my lips.
And I had secrets.
The truth behind the Somnivae curse gnawed at my mind, unwilling to release its hold. I couldn’t tell him. Not until I knew I could trust Gayl’s confession, or until we found another way. I refused to believe Leo’s death was the sole solution to savingcountlesslives.
A lock of hair came loose from behind my ear and he reached out to brush it back, the movement so natural it was like second nature to him.
“It was a test,” I started in a whisper, clearing my throat. “The second trial. It was a test to see what choices we would make when thrown into this…battlefield.” He didn’t look surprised, but lowered his hand to the space between our chests on the bed, leaving it near my arm.
“I woke up and the palace was empty. I could see signs of an invasion out the window into the central sector…buildings burning, people fighting and running. And it was in the palace, too. Mysthelm soldiers had made a surprise attack, some sort of crusade to rid the world of our magic. They’d taken over and were—were killing Veridians on sight. The servants, the guards, the patients in the infirmary—” I choked on the words, and Leo shifted closer to me.
“Your uncle,” he acknowledged simply.
I nodded. “They were all dead. I tried to find my aunt and cousin, but they’d been kidnapped. Taken as hostages to the central sector. I fled the palace. I—I killed a soldier.” I sucked in a breath. “I killedtwosoldiers.” The first had been inadvertent; he’d tried to stab me, and my protection charm made his actions rebound onto himself. The second…the second had been my choice.
