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The thought cut my heart open, and all my fears came spilling out.

As the day crawled by, I grew paralyzed by that fear, until all I could do was sit stiffly in my saddle and force myself to take deep breaths.

My aunt rode next to me, her brow creased in thought as she stared into the distance. Asinia was also quiet, and the five fae men Conreth had sent with us weren’t speaking except to direct us when necessary. Apparently, we would eventually come to a vast lake bordered by fae villages. Within the forest behind those villages—the forest we would ride through—we would likely be watched by wildkin.

Hopefully, they would let us pass. However, according to one of the guards—a rather solemn fae named Cadrus—the wildkin may decide to play with us first.

We’d fallen into a routine. We’d wake, I’d train with Asinia while the fae pulled down the camp—we’d both offered to help and been ignored—and then we’d travel all day. Lunch was usually comprised of dried meat, fruit, and nuts, and eaten in the saddle. Conreth’s men seemed very interested in getting us to the pass as quickly as possible. Almost as if they were on some kind of schedule that involved Lorian not finding out where we were. Shocking.

Since that worked just fine for me, I woke with the sun each morning, readying myself for the day ahead. Telean, Asinia, and I slathered so much healing cream on our inner thighs, we were beginning to smell like brackweed.

We’d passed a few merchants at the beginning of our journey, before Cadrus had steered us off the paved road and toward a much narrower trail. Now, we saw no one but one another.

Telean had continued my lessons, and she stuffed my head full with history, protocol, and political alliances, quizzing me as we rode. And of course, I’d asked my own questions.

“I know what the hybrids and the fae received from the gods,” I’d murmured earlier today as we clopped down the trail. “But what did the humans receive?”

She’d stretched her back, already looking weary after a few days of travel. “A mirror. That mirror allowed Regner to spy on us. He’d already become jealous, and when his son died, he vowed to wage war until he was more powerful than both the hybrids and the fae. That mirror allowed him to learn all about the fae amulets—including how the fae used them and where they were kept. And he learned of the hybrid hourglass. The hourglass your grandmother wore on a chain around her neck.”

Was that the mirror I’d seen in the queen’s rooms? It seemed unlikely that the king would allow such an important artifact out of his sight. The amulet, I could understand since Lorian would never have known it was in the queen’s rooms if not for my position as one of her ladies.

By the third day, the forest had thickened, huge canopies blocking out the sun until I huddled in my cloak, skin chilled. This forest was ancient in a way my mind could barely comprehend. It felt as if the trees themselves were watching us.

Thoughts whirled through my mind. There was so much still to do. Even if Madinia found Jamic, we would need to learn how to take down the barrier so we could beg for help from across the seas. And if we didn’t mobilize our people soon, we would have no chance at receiving that help before Regner waged war.

Hybrids were still dying daily in Eprotha. Vicer and Ameri would smuggle out as many as they could, but no hybrid would be safe until Regner was dead.

And then there was my cousin. I’d hoped…

It didn’t matter now.

“Pris?” Asinia murmured.

“Hmmm?”

“You’ve got a strange look on your face. Like you might vomit.”

“I’m just thinking about everything we need to accomplish. And at some point, I’ll need to do that favor for the pirate queen.”

Asinia snorted. I’d told her about the blood vow with Daharak. “With our luck, she’ll choose the most inconvenient time possible.”

We had to do all of this without Regner learning of our plans or attacking while we were still unprepared.

My limbs turned numb, and I suddenly couldn’t breathe.

“Pris?”

I stuffed the list back into my cloak pocket and attempted a smile. From the grimace she sent back, it hadn’t worked.

The birds weren’t singing.

The breeze had stilled.

Everything went silent.

Asinia’s eyes widened, and I nodded. She was on my left, and without a word, she steered her horse until my aunt was riding between us.

The fae guards were alert, swords in their hands. I drew my own sword, although on horseback I was just as likely to stab myself as I was anyone else.