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“I trust you will not do anything stupid, Robin?” Cassial asked as he took the leash connecting to my cuff and guided me toward the tent’s entrance. “Remember, I have preparations if you do.”

“Of course not,” I replied, “I know who is at risk.”

“Good boy,” Cassial praised, making me wish to tear my ears off my head.

As we stepped out into the glare of daylight, I winced, hiding my smile. A plan formed in the back of my mind, in a place Cassial couldn’t touch.

Cassial was just as desperate to survive Duwar’s corruption as I was to stop this war. I would use that to my benefit. But for that to work, I needed to give my signal. I had to hope that Erix would still not act until he saw it, army or no. When the time came, it would take Rafaela, and the full power of the Faithful to save the realms.

With every step toward my destiny, I could practically hear the ghost of Seraphine whisper in my ear. “Be selfish, Robin.”

“Always, Seraphine.”I thought.“As if I haven’t been all this time.”

Cassial had to believe I was hesitant. He had to believe I was unsure of how to act, when the truth was, I knew it was going to end like this. From the beginning. Cassial didn’t know it yet, but this was all working tomyplan after all.

CHAPTER 35

Dark storm clouds rolled over the sky, blanketing it in a heavy, oppressive darkness. My bare skin itched against the charged air, as though I could feel unseen fingers offering me a sense of calm in a moment of complete lack of control.

Magic was everywhere, but it didn’t come from Cassial or his warriors. It came from the distance, like a song caught on the breeze, whose tune promised war and ruin.

The fey were close; my time was running out.

I lifted my hand to shield my eyes, giving myself a better view of the hell before me. Beneath the darkening storm, an army –myarmy, stood waiting. A shiver ran over my skin as I took in the distant vision of the stain of fey. The sun caught off plates of metal armour which refracted the light back over the league of humans behind me. Banners danced in the winds, showing the humans a united front as the full might of four fey courts stood as one, ready to fight back against them.

Cassial – wearing Duncan’s skin – was at my side, the leash connecting to my iron cuff held firm in his hand. He hadn’t given me the option to put clothes on, instead parading me in nothing but my bare skin and undershorts. His attempts to demoralise me wouldn’t work. I had other focuses now.

Fallen warriors waited behind him, poised and ready. Not to fight, but to stand back and watch as they sent their human shield forwards to face death.

I felt the tension in the air, so palpable that I could taste the sweat and anxiety on my tongue.

“Bring forwards theDefiler,” Cassial commanded in Duncan’s voice. He didn’t necessarily shout, but his voice carried on the winds, no doubt amplified by Duwar’s power.

I turned back as the rustle of bodies sounded. Even though I knew what I was going to find, it still took the wind from my lungs.

Duncan – cast in the illusion of Cassial’s form – was guided through the crowd. His skin had broken in parts, his left eye swollen shut, lip split and a web of dark bruising mapped out over his naked torso. A gag had been forced into his mouth, muffling the grunts he expelled with every painful movement.

Cassial had done this, to keep Duncan silent. To keep him from spoiling this glamour and telling the world that he was not Cassial, but someone under his guise.

“The fate of his life will be in your hands, Robin,” Cassial warned at my side, speaking with a voice that never belonged to him. He’d stolen it from Duncan. Snatched it from his throat and kept it for himself. It sickened me, but I couldn’t react – I wouldn’t.

Not yet.

“Let me speak to him,” I pleaded, unable to conceal the bite of hate in my voice. “If you want me to do as you will, then I will need to hear him one last time.”

“We both know that wouldn’t be wise.” Cassial leaned into my side, turning his back on the fey army, whilst bringing his mouth down to my ear. “You’ve been given a simple choice. Aid me, and Duncan will live. The Nephilim will find it in their hearts to forgive him for his sins. Work against me, try and dismantle my hard work, and I will personally see that his throat is split from ear to ear.”

“Don’t you get tired of threats?” I asked, body trembling with the need to lash out and cause pain.

“Yes, actually, I do,” Cassial replied, drawing back. “Duncan may not be able to speak, but hecanlisten. If you have got anything to say to him, this would be your moment.”

There was so much I wanted to say, but a goodbye was the only thing that I could offer. I needed Duncan to know how I felt, and what I required of him moving forwards. I didn’t want our last moments to be cursed.

With a wave of Cassial’s hand, Duncan was brought to kneel before me. As he hit the ground, fingers digging into the dirt, I noticed the flash of an iron cuff bound around his wrist.

I knew exactly how this would look to the fey.

They would see Cassial – broken and bloodied – on the ground. They’d think we’d already won. That was why they glamoured Duncan to look like Cassial. More proof that the real Cassial was always a step ahead – constantly painting pictures to those around him, tricking us with lies. He mentioned a contingency plan if I tried to kill him, and I knew now that this was it.