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Cassial entered the room, dripping in glory and power. His shield – the namesake of his position in the Nephilim, was held aloft in one hand.Creator’s Shield, protector of His word.I could hear Cassial say it, just as he had on the ship from Lockinge to Icethorn all those months ago.

He wore an armour set of pure gold and white – not a speck of damage to suggest he’d ever seen battle wearing it.

It was Rafaela who gave everything, not him. And she was now in the prison beneath my feet. Yet I couldn’t admit I knew that with Cassial here.

Volcanic fury rose in me, fierce and frenzied until I was trembling on the spot. Before I released it, spilling into the room in an undulating wave, Erix slipped his hand into mine and squeezed.

Everything unravelled beneath his touch.

Cassial’s midnight hair was swept off his face, shiny and slicked back with a thick salve. Everything about him was neat and tidy. Even his thick, dark beard was brushed and full, the edges sharp from recent shaving. Cassial’s ivory-white wings shivered, some downy feathers falling to the floor beneath him like snow.

“Robin Icethorn,” Cassial announced, the brightest grin plastered across his handsome face.

I stiffened beneath his inquisitive gaze. Unlike Erix’s silver eyes, Cassial’s were closer to white, giving his gaze an almost endless and all-seeing expression.

“Cassial,” I said in greeting, although my posture was anything but welcoming. I found my fists balled, my back straighter than it had ever been before. As if sensing my discomfort, Erix squeezed my hand until I felt his heartbeat in his palm, his leathery wings shadowing the room behind us.

“A little birdy has told me you have beendyingto speak with me.” Cassial’s white-toothed smile came across as genuine, but it was no different to a dog licking your hand before biting it. “I am so glad you made it. I was beginning to think I would have to make the journey to see you myself.”

“No need for that,” I replied. “Although am I to read between the lines of what you are saying about Rafaela? Because if I am, it sounds like she is no longer with us, in this realm.”

She is well cared for in the hands of the Creator, and there is no better place for her to be.

It sounded an awful lot like she was dead to me. Even though the note in my pocket suggested otherwise.

“Rafaela is certainly still withinthisrealm,” Cassial explained, laughing to the watching crowd. When no one returned it, he faltered, snapping his bright stare back on me. I was rooted to the spot.

“Where?” Was all I could manage.

“Not in Durmain,” Cassial said, “which I am sure is not the news you have been hoping for, considering your persistent requests for an audience with her.”

Not even a minute into his presence, and already Cassial was lying.

“So, Rafaela will not be attending the wedding?” Althea asked, voice sweet but even I could sense the distrust in her tone. “That’s a shame. I rather liked Rafaela.”

“I’m afraid not, Queen Cedarfall.” Cassial bowed his head to show respect, but not enough that his eyes ever left her. “Rafaela has returnedhome. The Isles of Irobel are the best place for her to reconnect with her faith and prove herself worthy in the Creator’s eyes once again. With many of the Nephilim here, we required someone of merit to care for our lands until the day these realms are secure, and we can leave them to return home too.”

“Liar,” I mumbled under my breath. If he heard it, Cassial showed no reaction.

In that moment I longed to tell everyone the truth. Rafaela wasn’t in Irobel, in fact she was beneath the very room we stood in. But I bit down on my tongue until I tasted blood, refusing to speak a word.

Yet.

If he was lying, it was for a reason. I knew that all too well.

“Is she not already worthy? After all, she did play a hand in saving the world from ruin,” Gyah said, hand never straying from Althea’s back. “Or am I missing something?”

My breath hitched in my throat, catching so suddenly I almost choked. I suddenly wanted that glass of sparkling wine. “Gyah makes a good point,” I added.

Cassial took his time to drink us all in, his height far taller than anyone who stood before him, to the point he had to look down his sharp nose.

“Rafaela’s sole purpose in life was toprotectAltar’s keys and ensure they never were used to open Duwar’s gate. Instead, she turned her back on our task and had plans of her own – plans that, I am sure no one here needs reminding, backfired rather grandly.” Cassial settled his eyes back on me. I felt every inch of skin flay wide where his gaze touched. “On that matter, how is Duncan Rackley fairing, Robin? Zarrel informed me that he won’t be joining us in Lockinge, or for the wedding.”

I faked confidence, pushing down every ounce of panic to the pit of my stomach, replacing it with my well-practiced demure nature. “He’s doing well.”

“I’m very pleased to hear it. It is not every day you face a demon-god and survive.” He laughed for a second time, and still no one reciprocated it.

Zarrel shifted where he stood just shy of Cassial’s back, carrying Rafaela’s hammer as if it belonged to him. If I got close enough to touch it, the truth would come spilling out. Everyone in this room would know my secrets, and the threat I continued to harbour – the threat to the peace everyone longed to enjoy.