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“Youare in control, Hyacinth,” he said, his voice softening as he sensed the anger and anxiety flaring inside of me. “You are the one on the outside of those bars, the one that decides whether he lives or dies. He cannot hurt you, not here.”

The muscles on his body flexed, the tattoo across his skin rippling with the movement as he tilted his chin up and locked his hands behind his head.

His voice tightened as he spoke again. “If I continue on this path, Iwillkill him before we get any answers. We need to at least see if he will tell you anything, and if he does not, then the Gods of Hell can have him.”

I nodded.

I knew he was right, knew the time would come when I eventually had to face him again. But I was scared. Scared of the emotions seeing him would fill me with. Scared that the moment I laid eyes on him I would kill him for what he had done to us.

“What about Dukovich, can’t we let him try?” I asked, brushing a curl behind my ear.

The corner of Landers’s lips tilted up at my question. “No, we cannot. He will kill him the moment he sees him. The man has no self control.”

I rolled my eyes, groaning as I lifted my hands to the back of my neck and looked toward the ceiling. “What’s your plan with Dukovich, anyway? I know that he’s been useful in gathering information about The Silliands, but can we really trust him?”

“He is on a very short leash. Andrues has been watching him closely and it seems his loyalty lies with you, even if his ways of showing it have been . . . unconventional.”

“I still don’t trust him, I don’t want him left alone anywhere of importance. If he’s not needed for information, I want him confined to his chambers. He’s lucky we even let him out of the dungeons after what he did to Ata,” I spat.

The memory of her hanging from those chains still haunted me, still made my heart clench whenever I thought about it for too long. The fear that had consumed me in that moment was etched into my soul, unshakeable and unforgettable. No matterhow hard I tried, I could never fully escape the weight of that gruesome image.

Wren had beaten and tortured Dukovich for days after he arrived here, taking every ounce of pain and anger out on him for what he and his men had done to Ata and Pri. For taking Ardan from us. I had never seen Wren so violent, so full of hate and rage, but I didn’t blame him, and I did not stop him.

Dukovich never denied any of his actions. He took the beatings, the torture inflicted on him, without complaint, giving us any information we asked for. Eventually, we had all come together and decided that, as much as some of us wanted him dead, he would be an asset in the long run. I didn’t like the decision, didn’t think he deserved to walk the same corridors as Ata, but war was coming and we needed as many allies as we could get.

“Andrues and I will be headed back to Ithia in a week’s time,” Landers said, pulling me from my thoughts. “The High Priest and Priestesses have requested a meeting with you.”

My stomach churned at the thought of going back there, seeing the fields where my heart had been ripped from my chest nine months ago.

“I told them I would give them your answer when I return.”

I nodded, the weight of responsibility I hadn’t asked for, pressing down on my chest.

I had no idea how to lead armies, had no knowledge of war, or the strategy it took to win one. Every second between training with Andrues and Nithra I had spent in the war room, pouring over texts, trying to learn everything I could about the realms—about the art of war.

It wasn’t until I began digging through Locdragoon’s archives that I truly understood all of the history and truths that had been kept from us. There were volumes and volumes ofThe StoriesI had never seen, never even heard of.

“Can I go with you, so we can just get it over with?” I finally asked, meeting Landers’s gaze again.

“Of course.” His words were soft as he pushed from the desk and reached for me. His fingers slid up the length of my neck, pulling my chin up to his eyes as his lips pressed to mine.

The kiss was gentle, tired, and I let myself bask in its softness, letting it wash over me and seep into my bones, calming my body. I felt his hand reach up to tuck a stray curl behind my ear before he pulled away and smiled down at me. A yawn escaped my mouth as I dragged the blankets over my body, squirming into a comfortable position as Landers slipped into bed. He settled by my side and pulled me into his chest.

“I’ve been thinking,” I said into the calm. “Ata, she . . .” I paused, trying to steady my voice.

These days, more often than not, tears threatened to spill at the thought of her—the distance she put between us, the pain I saw whenever she let her eyes meet mine. I was losing her, I could feel it in every conversation we had, and I didn’t know how to stop it. I didn’t know how to fix it.

I cleared my throat.

“Winter solstice is coming, and for her new moon gift, I want to give her a home away from the castle. I don’t want her to be further from me, but she’s always spoken of a house by a stream with land of her own, and I want to give her that.”

“If you think that it will help her, I will make it happen,” Landers responded, his lips brushing the top of my head.

“I can't lose her,” I whispered.

I didn’t say the words to Landers, didn’t even say them to myself. It was a plea to whatever Deity would listen.

A plea to bring my sister back to me.