What aren’t you telling me, Zander?
The ring trembled slightly in my grip as a gust of wind swept through the courtyard. I glanced back toward the path he’d taken, but he was already gone—just the muted echo of his boots on the stone, the press of his absence settling over me like dusk.
He was shielding me from something.
And I hated it.
Because I didn’t need a ring.
I needed answers.
ChapterSix
We were finishing breakfast in the dining hall, the long table cluttered with half-empty plates and cups still warm with tea. The usual chatter had faded into an odd quiet. No one had said it, but we were all thinking the same thing.
Where was Zander?
I’d checked the skies the night before, standing alone near the barracks with my cloak drawn tight and my hand pressed to Kaelith’s scale at my throat, hoping for a glimpse of Hein’s silhouette in the moonlight. Nothing. And when I’d reached for Zander through the bond… silence.
A new kind of silence. One I was beginning to recognize.
He blocked me when he was on crown business.
He didn’t do it to be cruel. I knew that. But it didn’t make the cold ache any less biting. And I was starting to see the pattern. The secrecy. The tension that curled behind his every quiet apology. It had something to do with Dorian. It had to. The eldest prince’s refusal to return to the castle wasn’t just disobedience, it was something deeper.
And I had no idea what that something was.
I glanced across the room to the Crownwatch table, where Zander would normally be seated beside his second, Cade.
But Zander’s chair was empty.
And Cade… he was just staring at his food. Fork in hand. Not eating. Not speaking. Like he wasn’t even here.
My throat tightened.Does Zander’s best friend know more about this than I do?
Then, like a ripple across the bond, the words brushed against my thoughts.
I’m back.
I exhaled hard, the breath catching in my chest like I’d been holding it without even realizing.
Did you find Dorian?I asked silently, focusing on the feel of him, that steady weight I hadn’t realized I’d missed so much.
No,came the reply, clipped but not cold.I have to report to Theron and will meet you on the grounds soon.
I pressed my fingers around the signet still hanging beneath my collar.
Soon,I echoed.
The wind carried the scent of oil and charred leather as we made our way toward the Ascension Grounds. Boots crunched against the gravel, the sound of conversation thinning the closer we drew to the circle. The others were already falling into line, the air heavy with purpose.
The major stood at the newly rebuilt podium, posture rigid, arms clasped behind his back like he was carved from stone. But his head was tilted slightly toward Zander, who stood at his side, murmuring something hushed enough that I couldn’t catch it.
Whatever he said, the major gave a short nod.
When he raised his voice, it carried like thunder over the grounds.
“Thrall Squad,” he called, gaze pinning us as we halted before him. “You will accompany Prince Rayne. Another outpost between Thubia and Raweath was attacked. You are to assist the remaining forces in any way needed.”
