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“She stepped right through them like it was nothing when I first met her.”

I stared at him. “Are you certain?”

“Very.”

The whole idea was strange, if Aviaryn could leave Morrath and live elsewhere, then why was Nox keeping her here?

None of it made sense.

Colsar interrupted my thoughts. “She is your blood, and she will be safe. She will be here with me whenever it happens, so long as we know when it will happen.”

I sighed. “There are so many plans, so many secrets, so many moving parts.”

He looked at me. "Tell me everything."

So I did.

CHAPTER 40

Promises and Plans

When I returned to the Darkway my mind was racing.

What exactly did Dali plan to do with the amulet? Did she even plan to do what she claimed? A twinge of anger moved through me as I thought about how my mother had wanted it hidden to protect everyone, yet here was Dali using it for her own purposes.

Patience, Asharin, I reminded myself.

I turned the corridor and looked for Dali's room. I needed to speak to Maridale.

I knocked once.

Maridale answered. She looked tired. Not physically, but in some deeper way I could not find the words for.

"I need to know what Dali plans to do with the amulet," I said. "Truly."

Maridale looked at me for a long while. Then she stepped back and let me in.

"She plans to retrieve it in the coming days,” she said quietly, closing the door behind us. "She has been mapping the Vault. Learning its entry points." She paused. "She will not wait much longer."

"And what does she plan to do with it when she has it?"

Maridale looked at the floor. "She believes it will give her what she wants. Revenge on Yorali. A way home. She believes it may merge us into one and make her whole.” She was quiet. "She does not know what it will actually do to her if she wears it."

"And you?" I said. "Do you know?"

She looked up at me. "Yes," she said. "I know."

Part of me wondered what it did but not enough to ask.

"Then we do not have long,” I said.

She nodded.

"Help me get there first," I said.

She looked at me for a long time. Then she said, "I cannot. Entering the Vaultline takes an enormous amount of power and strength that I do not have. In fact, you do not have it either because during the day you are depleted."

I briefly wondered how she knew that so confidently, but thought better of asking.