“You’re late,” Kythel said with a sigh.
I smiled, though it was edged. “I was otherwise engaged. My apologies.”
Kythel snorted. He knew what “otherwise engaged” meant.
I ignored him as I scanned the projections of my brothers. “Where’s Kalia?”
Our only sister.
“Away,” Azur replied with an unreadable expression.
I frowned. “Again?” I turned to Lucen. “Where does she keep sneaking off to?”
Lucen and Kalia were closest—though Kalia had chosen to live in the capital of Laras in Azur’s keep.
“She’s been going to Grandfather’s island. Across the Silver Sea,” Lucen told me. “At least that’s what she’s been telling me.”
“Why?”
He shrugged. “She said she feels connected to Mother there. To our ancestors. She’s been working on the garden, planting more starwood blooms because she said they’ve died back.”
That buzzing grew with my anger, though I kept it locked tight.
I looked at Thaine, who met my eyes. We shared the same thought, and he interjected by saying, “I don’t think it’s wise to let her so far from the keep, Azur. Especially after the threat with Zyre. We all know what he wants.Her. She’s vulnerable away from our borders. I don’t trust the Kaazor, but with war looming…we should keep her close.”
“Try telling that toyoursister,” Azur said. His tone matchedThaine’s—reasonable and patient—though I saw the underlying bite in Azur’s expression. “She doesn’t like to be told what to do. How do you think she’d react if I told her she needed to stay in the keep? With guards? She’d go mad.”
“If we told her about what Zyre threatened, she would understand,” Lucen reasoned. “But we’ve kept her in the dark, which I, again, didnotagree with. You think I like lying to my sister?”
“You thinkwedo?” Kythel asked. “But this goes beyond Kalia. This involves the entire Kaalium,allour citizens.”
“And you insult Kalia in thinking she wouldn’t understand that. She would marry Zyre tomorrow if it meant helping the Kaalium,” Lucen argued.
“Which is what we are trying to prevent,” Azur drawled. “You think any of us want to see our only sister married off to a mad Kaazor whokilledhis own father?”
We’d uncovered a plot of war among our enemies across the sea—the Thryki and the Dyaar were joining forces to plan an attack on the Kaalium, our beloved homeland. The Kaazor to the north might’ve been our only allies, and Zyre was their king. We’d met with him over a month ago and he’d made an offering of a war bond—but we all knew that war bonds were typically sealed in bloodandmarriage. With the Kaazor at our side—and their dragon-like beasts, thekyriv—the Thryki and the Dyaar would fall.
We could end a war swiftly—or perhaps even prevent one entirely. How many lives would that save?
But it would come at the cost of Kalia.
“Enough,” Thaine interjected, his wings flaring and his voice cutting through the rising tension between us. We all loved one another—of course we did—and I would die right here in this study for any of them. I knew they would do the same for me. But these meetings often ended in arguments and barbs. Thaine—or even myself—tried to keep the peace, perhaps one of the only things we had in common.
But family was family. Family waseverything. Our mother had taught us that.
I dug my claws into my palm, feeling my skin hum. I wondered if Lydrasa was still in the keep or if she’d managed to charm her way into the kitchens with Maudoric so she could stay longer. There might still be time to catch her.
I caught Kythel’s glacially blue eyes.The ice to Azur’s fire. That was what our mother always said about Kythel. She’d meant it as compliment. She’d always believed in balance. Balance was beautiful, and her beloved twins were as balanced as they could possibly be. Kythel kept Azur in check—like he did with all of us—and Azur reminded Kythel…well, not to be such an unfeeling, cold prick all the time.
Looking into Kythel’s eyes, my sudden smile felt more like a grimace.
Have more control,he would say.
Perhaps, for once, I should listen to him.
The momentthe meeting ended with my brothers—we’d managed to stay on topic concerning the South Road construction after our hundredth discussion about Kalia—I went to look for Lydrasa. But instead I found Maudoric in the kitchens, alone, sipping on tea as she watched a keeper scrub the dishes from the afternoon meal.
“Not so hard, Velle,” Maudoric chided. “Be careful of the silver around the edges.”
