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“I’m not sure about that.”

“Ash—”

He halted halfway up my forearm, his gaze lifting to mine. “I have no idea how to remove her soul from you. We’re only assuming Keella can. That means she will likely have The Star when she does it and could try to take your embers.”

My brows flew up. “Delfai said the embers could only be taken if—”

“I remember what he said.” A muscle flexed in his jaw. “We don’t know if Keella knows that. Or if Attes does. Both could try something.”

“Ash,” I began. “Do you really think either of them will try something? Keella is not a Kolis loyalist.”

“I’m not worried about her,” he muttered. “Attes? Different story.”

He finished with the sleeve. Perfect timing, too, because I crossed my arms. “You’re worried about Attes?”

“Is that a rhetorical question?”

“It shouldn’t be a question at all,” I pointed out. “He helped us escape, and he helped me before.”

“When did he do that?” Ash eyed me as I started to step back. He cupped my elbow. “Not yet.”

“I know you two haven’t had your little chat yet—wait, why do I need to stand still?”

Ash arched a brow as he reached on either side of my neck, slipping his hands under my hair.

“Oh.” I stood motionless as he began gently working my hair from where it was stuck beneath the shirt. “Anyway, Kyn was ordered to destroy the Shadowlands to send a message and then take me. Attes intervened.”

“By taking you himself.” The air charged in the cavern. “To Kolis.”

“It was the only way to stop Kyn from destroying the Shadowlands,” I reasoned.

The look Ash gave me made it clear what he thought of Attes’s interference.

“Look, your father trusted Attes,” I said, trying another tactic. “Trusted him well enough that Eythos told him what he planned to do with Sotoria’s soul and the embers.”

Ash halted again.

“Attes has known this whole time, Ash. Wouldn’t he have told Kolis about Sotoria’s soul if he were loyal to him?” I said. “Wouldn’t he have said I wasn’t Sotoria? Because Attes also knew that whatever your father attempted did not entirely work. He knew I wasn’t Sotoria, and he had no reason to keep that information from Kolis, who likely would’ve come to the same conclusion I did. That if The Star is powerful enough to hold and transfer embers, it would be strong enough to do the same with a soul.”

That muscle running along his jaw ticked harder. “If Attes knew this entire time, why didn’t he tell me?”

“That’s a good question. I asked that myself.”

Ash had managed to get all but a few strands of hair out from under the shirt. “I’m sure he had an answer.”

“The Fates. They demanded that you never know of the plan. It was one of their ways to keep their precious balance. And, yes, that is really dumb, but Attes and Eythos feared that if they told you, it would end up turning back on you somehow.”

That muscle in his jaw worked overtime as he scooped a curl from where it was plastered to my neck.

“And he didn’t trust you.”

“That is the first easily believable thing I’ve heard.”

I sighed. “He didn’t trust you entirely. He never knew what you really thought of Kolis, which sounds hard to believe.”

“It’s not.” He moved on to the other side of my neck. “I told you. Even if I didn’t always fool Kolis, I could be very convincing.” He looked at me. “None of that means I trust Attes in this.”

Frustration rose. “I sort of want to knock some sense into you right now.”