“Oliver?” I kept my voice low, careful not to draw attention.
He blinked, slow and unsteady, before finally turning toward me. It took him a moment to register who I was. When he did, something in his expression cracked.
“Mavis?” His voice was barely above a whisper.
I nodded and offered a small, reassuring smile. “Yeah, it’s me.”
His lip trembled. I could see the struggle behind his eyes—desperation warring with fear, trying to decide if he could be hopeful. I reached up, brushing away the single tear that rolled down his cheek with my knuckles.
“Don’t let them see you break,” I murmured. “I don’t know what they want from us, but I know that we have to be strong if we want to survive it.”
Oliver sniffed and wiped his face. It wasn’t much, but I saw the faintest flicker of fight return to him.
Beside him, another boy shifted uncomfortably. His tawny skin looked paler than it should have, like the blood had drained from his face long before I sat down.
I placed a hand gently on his shoulder, feeling him startle under my touch. “What’s your name?”
His throat bobbed as he swallowed. “Isaac,” he rasped. “I’m from Dewwich.”
Dewwich was about two weeks’ travel from Oak Hollow. My father used to do trade in Dewwich all the time because of its proximity to the Corrish Sea and the capital.
Before I could say anything, Oliver stiffened beside me. His eyes widened in silent panic as he looked past my shoulder. Isaac followed suit, the color leaching from his already pale face. I stood and slowly turned, finding myself face-to-face with the woman of flame herself.
Her ginger hair was loose now, cascading over her shoulders in soft waves that fell to her hips. But there was nothing soft in the way she looked at me. Beneathher mask, her green eyes burned with something I couldn’t quite place—contempt? Intrigue? Disgust?
Probably all three.
“Forming a coup, are we?” Her voice was smooth, but there was a dangerous undertone that caused goosebumps to form.
“Of course not. He’s from my village.”
“I don’t care.” She stepped forward, closing the already too-small space between us.
I resisted the urge to take a step back. She was close enough now that I could see the freckles dusting the bridge of her nose and the faint scar along her jaw. Close enough that if she wanted, she could grab me by the throat before I even had time to flinch.
“Let’s clear some things up,” she continued, “because you seem to beconfusedabout your place here.” She tilted her head, eyes flicking over me, sizing me up like a predator would its prey. “You may bechosen, but your being here was notmychoice. If it were up to me, you’d still be rotting back in that little primitive village. Rowan may think that your behavior is entertaining, cute…” She let the words settle, and I felt my stomach tighten at her tone. “But I find it to be concerning. You are a risk to everything that we are doing.”
I swallowed back down the acid creeping up my throat.
I lifted my chin. “Iama risk,” I warned. “And yet, here I am.”
Her eyes narrowed.
“There are some things,” she murmured, “not even I get a choice in.”
Before I could push further, the sound of someone clearing their throat caught both of our attention.
We turned to find Rowan standing with his hands in his pockets, deceptively relaxed. His face was expressionless, but then he flicked his gaze toward Renata. Something unspoken passed between them. A silent conversation that I wasn’t privy to, but one that made Renata’s posture stiffen.
She exhaled sharply and stepped back, brushing past me as she walked away.
“Making friends with everyone I see,” Rowan teased, and his jaw flexed. I felt the unease in his tone slither against my skin.
“That wasn’t my fault.”
“I thought you promised to be silent for the night,” he scolded.
I sneered. “I bit my tongue well enough. Trust me.”
