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In the blink of an eye, the Cockatrice is gone, leaving me alone and trembling like the last leaf in autumn that has yet to fall. Tears prick my eyelids.

No. This can’t be true.

Abedon loves me. He would never forsake me, no matter how vile my betrayals have been. I’m his only weakness and he’s mine. Destiny binds us together in ways very few understand.

***

THEREN

Mount Dolgum

Hot, moist soil dampens my cheek as I try to breathe past the putrid odor that causes my nose to tingle. My fingers are numb and cold, yet I’m sweating. Rope digs into my wrists and I try to see past the sweat in my eyes as I fight through the nausea still assaulting my body. The rope is crude, fashioned by raw materials found around the ruins of the old succubus village, but the spells cast on the fibers are strong. And not fae. They must be the necromancer’s.

The vampire and the gargoyle stand nearby, watching me with their dark eyes. I know they’re even more wary of me now that they’re aware I use blood magic. As a catoptromancer, I know the risks of the forbidden arcana more than most. My father succumbed to darkness, but I won’t follow in his steps. Though I’m of the Unseelie, I’m no more evil than anyone else in the realms. “How far are we to the volcano?’

“Close,” the necromancer responds.

“We can’t stay here long. Morrigan will—”

“Shut up,” Baron hisses, flashing his fangs in a warning that I’m sure causes others to cower. He lifts me off the ground andleans me against a rock that presses against my broken bones that have yet to heal. I rasp painfully, fighting through the black spots in my vision.

“We have questions that need answers before we head for the volcano,” he says.

I grind my teeth together, because I knew this would happen. “And what do you want to know?”

“What are the plans of the Midnight Queen and Variant?” the gargoyle asks. I turn my head to observe him, ignoring the throbbing at my temples.

“Which plan?”

“Don’t toy with us.”

“I’m merely asking because Morrigan always has more than one plan. She’s a schemer, Stone Lord—surely you’ve noticed by now,” I reply, watching the way the harsh planes of his face tighten with anger.

“Don’t fuck with me, Theren,” he says.

“If you mean to ask what Morrigan intends to do with the power she seeks from the Veil, I’m surprised you don’t already know.”

“Be surprised then but fucking answer the question,” Baron says.

“She intends to murder the last being in the realms with a divine title.”

“Silvanus,” the necromancer says.

“Precisely. Once Silvanus is slain, there’s nothing to stop Morrigan from getting her hands on theEclyp. Then Morrigan can focus on the prophecy.” I see the way they regard me with suspicion. They have every right to do so and they would be wise not to let their guards down.

“What’s the prophecy she wishes to complete?” the vampire asks.

When my answer doesn’t come, a fist collides with the underside of my chin. Blood fills my mouth and I spit it toward the necromancer’s boots as I look up at him. “Get your pups under control. Beating me won’t get you the answers you seek, Necromancer.”

“His name is Pyre,” Baron seethes. “So fucking use it.”

The necromancer rests his hand on Baron’s arm, stopping him from landing another painful blow to my already aching head. I run my tongue along my gums and wince when I touch a sore spot.

“There are other ways I can get the information out of you, Theren,” Pyre threatens. “I don’t need anyone to beat you.”

“But it’s fun to watch after everything you’ve done,” Dragan adds.

“It wasn’t me who did those things... notallof me, anyway,” I insist.