Dayton raises his brow and gives me a slanted grin as he exits the room. “I see you’ll have no trouble, Blossom.”
I steady my breathing and clench my hands into fists.
Ice creeps from under the door. With a great shudder, it bursts open, and the High Prince of Winter steps through. It’s as if he’s surrounded by a blizzard. Snowflakes swirl around his body, and frost forms beneath his feet with every step. He wears a full set of cold-weather gear, and his white hair is in a tangle.
His lips curl back as he snarls, “What is he doing here?”
But I am not the same human girl who arrived in Castletree and cowered in fear of this beast. I walk forward, summoning the flames of the Autumn Realm, melting the ice below me.
“The Prince of Thorns was injured,” I say. “So he’s here in the healing ward under my protection.”
Kel’s gaze narrows, the frost around him thickening, spiraling into jagged shards. “You’ve made a mistake, Rosalina. He doesn’t belong here. He never did. Caspian is dangerous.”
I take another step forward, my flames dancing higher, casting flickering shadows against the walls. “Dangerous? Caspian saved my life. He’s saved all our lives. He’s here because I trust him.”
“Did you even listen to what I’ve told you? Don’t make my mistake.”
I close the distance between us. “You say he’s dangerous, but he’s done more for Castletree than you ever have.”
His fists clench, the frost creeping up the walls, snuffing out the fire in a puff of smoke. “You don’t see it yet, Rosalina. The Prince of Thorns isn’t just a man. He’s a storm wrapped in shadows, and when it breaks, it will destroy everything you’re trying to protect.”
“Then I’ll stand in the eye of that storm. If you think I’m going to abandon Caspian, you don’t know me at all.”
Kel’s snarl softens, replaced by something darker. “He will destroy us.”
“Like you are?” I shout. “The people of Castletree are suffering. Your realm is suffering, because you can’t trust theman behind me who again and again has shown us he’s on our side.”
For a moment, the room falls silent, save for the crackle of melting ice beneath my feet. Kel’s storm swirls slower, as though he’s weighing my words. “He cannot stay here.”
“If he goes, I go.”
Keldarion’s blue gaze pierces mine, but I refuse to break it. I will not back down from this. I will not back down fromhim.
The silence stretches thin.
Caspian gives a low, rasping laugh. He props himself up against the headboard, his dark eyes gleaming with something dangerously close to amusement.
“You came to rescue me,” he says.
Kel freezes. His brows lower as his blizzard condenses, swirling tight around him.
“The dirt on your boots—that’s from the Below. And those shards of prismatic stone clinging to your cloak…” Caspian tilts his head, smirking. “You traveled to Cryptgarden. You went forme, didn’t you? Only to find your Spring flower beat you to it.”
Keldarion strides forward, his movements sharp and deliberate, and before I can react, his hand clamps around Caspian’s throat.
“If I went for you,” Kel snarls, “it was only to house you in my own dungeon. Don’t mistake my actions forconcern.”
“Kel!” I step toward them, but neither of them spares me a glance.
Caspian’s smirk doesn’t falter, even with Kel’s grip tightening on his neck. “Oh, of course. Because risking the Below for someone you hate makesperfectsense.”
Kel’s jaw tightens. Frost creeps up Caspian’s throat.
“Was it Rosalina’s pleas that made you venture there?” Caspian rasps, his grin turning razor sharp. “Or something else?—”
“Enough!” I force myself between them, my flames roaring to life, melting the ice spreading across Caspian. “Let him go, Kel. Now.”
Kel’s gaze snaps to me, his storm crackling as his hand lingers for a beat too long before he releases Caspian with a shove.
