My mouth is bone-dry, joints sore. A dull ache pounds in my temple. Dusky red light filters in through my blurry vision.
I blink my eyes, trying to force myself to focus. Last thing I remember…
I sent Keldarion, Ez, and Caspian to Castletree. I have no idea where Dayton and Farron are. As for myself—
Kairyn took me.
Shaking my head, I look around. My arms are bound in two huge steel manacles. They’re chained to a pole. I’m in a small wooden room, dark except for a window letting in the fading red light.
My legs shake, but I force myself to stand and peer outside.
Sky as far as I can see, with clouds drifting past at an incredible speed.
I’mflying.
This must be Kairyn’s ship. Where is he taking me?
My stomach lurches as I peer over the side. A sparkling ocean lies beneath us, waves crashing upon cliffs of white rock. I recognize the sandstone from a fateful night months ago.
The Summer Realm.
I can feel it creeping up: the panic, the terror. But I close my eyes and force a few deep breaths. More than ever, I need to be strong.
They’ve taken my bow. But they can never take my heart.
Beyond anything else, I know I will escape. My friends are counting on me. I will not forsake the people of Castletree to the chains of their curse or abandon my father to the desolation of a daughter lost.
Somewhere, across the realms, my mother is out there. I will find her, wherever she is.
The Enchanted Vale is not only my home, it’s my legacy. I won’t let it fall.
And more than anything, I know I will tear this ship apart, obliterate Kairyn’s entire army with thorns and curses, and uproot the Below itself to return to my princes.
Spring may be lost, but not my hope.
It’s time the Enchanted Vale had a queen again.
112
Queen Aurelia
The boy is coming. I know the near silent tread of his footsteps well.
His screams were particularly loud this time. I can always hear them as they rise through cracks in the pit. But today they filled my whole cell with the agonizing sound.
Does she know the sound carries to me? Is it another part of my torment, or just one of the multitude of horrors in the Below?
He doesn’t look at me—he hardly ever does—but simply sits down against the wall of green crystal that serves as the border of my prison. His dark hair is spread against the flat, sheer gem. A few drops of blood splatter from the wounds on his back. He’s shirtless. It would be too painful to wear a shirt until he heals.
I kneel, waiting for him to speak. A wave of dizziness overtakes me, and I grasp the wall to steady myself, fingers clutching some of the multitude of green crystals growing along the rock wall.
The crystals she uses to slowly drain away my power, drop by drop. All at once would ruin her plan, after all.
“He’s fallen ill,” the boy says dryly.
My heart clenches. I don’t let it show on my face. “What?”
“Your husband.”
