I wrap it back in the satin and tuck it into my pocket. Against my hip, it pulses once, then settles.
I don’t show Kestra. Don’t mention it.
I don’t know why. Just that I shouldn’t. Not yet.
I move on, finding weapons. Mostly small knives. Throwing knives. And more knives.
When I come out, the girls are dressed in Kieran’s clothing, looking less like the queens of Faerie and more like—well, human.
“My mother?” Anxiety twists inside me. “Finnian?”
They pause. Then nod.
There’s a secret there. Something they aren’t telling me.
And something in my heart whispers I may have to choose. That I can’t save everyone.
I push the thought down. I have to try.
Right now it’s the middle of the night. Darker than usual, but purple still streaks across the sky, kissing the dark blanket of stars above.
“All right.” Kestra walks over to a wall, a tote around her body full of weapons. We all look the same in our earth colors. She presses a spot on the wall and the stones shift, exposing a secret passage.
I love castles.
“Silent,” she warns.
Single file, we enter the exposed space.
The passages twist through the castle walls like veins through a body. Cold stone presses against my shoulders. Cobwebs catch in my hair. We move in silence, Kestra leading, Tiana behind me, our breathing the only sound.
I don’t know how long we walk. Time stretches strange in the dark.
Then Kestra stops. Holds up a fist.
I press against the wall beside her. She points to a small gap in the stone—a viewing hole, barely visible.
I look through.
My hands press against the wall. Cobwebs stick to my fingers. My heart feels like it’s being wrung out.
On the bed, Amarantha lies naked. Davis at her feet. Also naked.
I should look at them. Assess the threat.
But Finnian is the only one I see.
On the floor. At the foot of her bed. Like a dog.
Something in my chest cracks open.
His eyes shoot open.
I swear he can see me through the wall. Through stone and magic and everything we built between us.
He rolls to his side, eyes locked on mine.
And crawls.
