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“Scarlett…”

She could hear the awe in Sorin’s voice.

“So many treats, Prince,” she crooned.

Talwyn stilled, but she did not back away from the shadow snakes that hissed from the floor, rallying to strike at Scarlett’s first thought.

“I did not know it was truly her until the day I surprised you both in the courtyards and saw your Mark but without a companion.” Talwyn’s eyes were on Sorin, and they narrowed in disgust as she said, “Only you would do something so reckless and stupid. I had hoped she would discover it while you trained her.I had hoped that you would help her see it, that your useless Inner Court would step up and do their godsdamn jobs and tell her.” She threw a glare at the others when she said it. “But it was taking too long. Things are happening too quickly across our borders, so I summoned you here with the other Courts. We needed to plan, and I needed you away from her. When I felt you enter these halls with Cyrus, I sent Shirina to take her to the Oracle.” Talwyn stopped on the other side of the shield, her jade eyes shimmering. “Welcome home, Scarlett.”

“You lie,” Sorin breathed.

“Do I?” Talwyn countered, raising her brows. “Ask her.”

Sorin turned to Scarlett. “Shirina? That is how you got to the Witch Realm?”

Scarlett nodded. “Yes. She took me to the High Witch who took me to the Oracle.”

Sorin blinked in surprise and horror, glancing behind himself to Rayner who nodded confirmation. His eyes settled back on Scarlett as he asked, “You met the High Witch?”

“I do believe the Oracle also told you of some keys?” Talwyn chimed in again, an arrogant smirk in Sorin’s direction.

Scarlett looked from Talwyn to Sorin. He was waiting for her to answer. Scarlett felt as though she were being forced to choose a side when Juliette had made it sound like they’d all be working together.

“Yes, she told me of the keys,” Scarlett sighed.

“Who can find them, Scarlett?” Talwyn taunted softly.

Scarlett glared at the queen. Turning back to Sorin, she said through her teeth, “I can. Eliné hid them, so I am the one who can find them. Henna disguised them so Talwyn can restore them to their true form.”

“So in a way, Prince of Fire, you finding your twin flame indeed found me the weapon I sought. The weapon that will aid me in finding the Avonleyan Keys, which will get us inside of Avonleya to seek our true revenge.” Her jade eyes were glowing brightly as she held Sorin’s stare. Scarlett looked back and forth between them.

“The Oracle also told me that the two of you would willingly help with the tasks that lie ahead,” Scarlett ventured.

“What tasks?” Cyrus asked from behind them.

“Oh, you know. Keys. Answers. Blood magic,” she said, waving her hand dismissively. “All the fun things.”

“Of course I will help you,” Sorin interjected, still glaring at Talwyn.

“Yes, but we will need Talwyn’s help, Sorin. She is the only one who can restore the keys, and if you two cannot at least tolerate each other, it will not help matters.”

“We all have our roles to play in this,” Talwyn said, turning and walking back to her chair. She sat down, leaning back comfortably and crossing her legs one over the other. “Sorin and I do not agree on many things, but I do not hate him entirely.”

Sorin snorted a laugh. “It appears we are getting lots out into the open today, Talwyn. Let’s not fabricate more lies now.”

Talwyn’s voice was hard as she replied in that cool, calculated voice of hers. “I have known you my entire life, Prince of Fire. You were by my aunt’s side every single day. I would pray to the Fates that if I could not have you by my side when I was queen, that I would have someone just as loyal. No, I did not start to hate you until you left me alone. A child on a throne. Even now, years later, I cannot find it in myself to entirely hate you, if only because I once loved you so fiercely.”

Scarlett looked between Sorin and the queen. She couldn’t quite read his face. It was a mixture of regret and disbelief.

“You sent me from your side,” Sorin snarled. “Iwasthere for you. You sent me from your side and replaced me with Luan.”

“You begged to leave my side and retrieve Eliné,” Talwyn snarled. “You led that mission yourself and lost more than a queen in the process.”

Scarlett could feel the hurt and betrayal emanating off of Talwyn.

“I know you, Sorin," Talwyn continued. There was no kindness in her voice. “You are the one who taught me how to watch others. To learn their tells and weaknesses. I was your last remaining connection to Eliné. You had watched me grow up. You had trained me. In many ways, you were more my father than my own ever was,even with the short time I had with him. I had barely lived. Ihavebarely lived, not compared to you and many of the others. And now I was expected to rule in a realm, in a world, I knew very little of, and you begged to leave my side to retrieve her. You left me and lost what I valued most in the world.”

Scarlett had no idea what she was talking about. Her mother? Did she blame Sorin as he had blamed himself for her death for so many years? Sorin said nothing as he stared at Talwyn.