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“I do not give a damn about my legacy,” Asrai hissed, her words bitter. “My loyalty, myword,is all that I have, and I gave it to that child. We all have secrets, and if I would have spoken her name a second sooner, it could have fallen into the hands of a traitor.”

Andrues’s mouth shot open, but I cut him off. “Why tell us this now and betray her trust after so many centuries?”

“Because Ammord would not create them again unless they were desperate. The prophecy of your birth says that you will unite the realms, that you will rule over Nimbria and usher in the age of Ataraxia. They do not want peace, they want power and control and they cannot get that without killing you. This war started the day your mother brought you to me. They have been a step ahead of us for twenty-one years, have known every move we were going to make, and now we have a chance to get ahead of them,” Asrai answered, leaning back in her chair and resting her chin in her palm.

My eyebrows pulled together. “How?”

Andrues stood, his muscles tensing as he walked toward the bar cart and poured himself a drink, downing it in one gulp before pouring a second and turning back to face us and leaning against the doorway into Landers’s office.

Five hours.

It had been five hours since they were taken from me and I could feel it in my bones, my soul—they were torturing him.

“When you leave for Ammord, take Yenne with you. Find a few Hanth guards and let her turn them into daemons and send them back on their way. Get any information you can on where Landers and Ata are being held, how to get them out safely, and any intel on their plans for war. Then slaughter their leadership,” Asrai said, her eyes sliding from mine to Andrues.

Andrues lowered his glass, his eyes narrowing. “It is a risk, bringing Yenne into this, taking her back to Ammord if what you say she has done is true.”

“It is,” was all Asrai responded, her voice firm.

I stared back at Asrai, her words—everything I had just learned—sinking into my mind like a stone being dropped into a still pond, the ripples of their impact spreading outward into every one of my thoughts. My feet began pacing again before I had even realized I was moving. The creaking wood panels under my boots echoed through the room as my mind raced.

Using daemons—using Ammord’s own evil magic to defeat them—it feltwrong. It felt like a betrayal of everything we stood for. Asrai had warned me about this, about the things that I would do and who I would become when it came to war, when it came to keeping my family whole.

My feet slowed as I turned back to Asrai and Andrues, my decision made. “We do it and we do it now. I need to speak with The Fallen Ones and check on Nithra, Mara, and Wren at the infirmary. If she is not here and you are not back by the time I am done, I am leaving without you.” I turned to Andrues,my eyes locking on his. “If Dukovich is being held prisoner with Landers and Ata, we get him out too.”

Andrues straightened. “Hyacinth, he cannot be trusted.”

“Maybe not, but I intend to find that out for myself. If he is, we kill him. If he isn’t, then there is one less drop of innocent blood on my hands.” My voice was cold as steel as the words slipped from my lips, leaving no room for argument.

Andrues’s jaw clenched, but he inclined his head. “Understood.”

“Bring her to me,” I said, turning to Asrai as resolve settled into the pit of my stomach. “And tell Elric and Pri the plan when you see them. Tell them to prepare. When I have Landers and Ata back, I’m going to wipe Ammord and The Silliands from the face of Nimbria for good.”

Asrai rose from her chair, her movements fluid and precise as she strode toward the door. Her fingers curled around the handle as she paused and looked back at me, almost as if she were going to speak, then turned back to the door and slipped from the house.

I turned to the fireplace, the flames dancing and cracking, casting shadows across the walls as the sun rose between the Elmmere peaks, taking its place in the morning sky. A bird sang somewhere in the distance, the sound so beautiful against the dread that had settled into the air.

Andrues’s footsteps approached from behind, stopping at my side. “Are you certain about this?” His voice was low, laced with concern.

My lips parted as I dragged in a deep breath, turning to look at him. “No. But I’m certain I’ll cross every line to bring them home.”

Chapter forty-four

ATALIIA

Thescreamshadfinallystopped, the loss of the harrowing sound making room for deafening silence to fill the prisons. Somewhere in the distance, the steady echo of water dripping from the ceiling hummed against the quiet like a metronome of death.

Drop. . . one, two, three . . .

Drop. . . one, two, three . . .

Drop. . . one, two, three . . .

I counted over and over again, the words slipping from my lips in a whisper that was swallowed up by the oppressive darkness. A shiver trickled over my body as I leaned my head against the cold metal bars, a momentary reprieve to the heat pulsating through the humidity. I slipped my hand through.

My fingers found Dukovich in the dark, brushing over his arm as he leaned into my touch with a low groan. His skin was wet and sticky—hot to the touch, as if fire was flowing through his veins.

He hadn’t had a fever just minutes ago.