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“You have no idea what she was forced to do beneath those cliffs, Scarlett. What happens if being there triggers something, and she freezes? What happens if she is captured by Alaric again? Answer me that,” he’d returned, taking another single step towards her. “If anything happens to her—”

“It won’t,” she’d interrupted. “Trust your wife, Cethin.”

“I trust Kailia with everything I am. It is everyone else I have no faith in,” he’d said before he’d turned and stormed out of the room.

“You are sure about this?” Scarlett asked Kailia now, finally letting her shadows out to breathe as they slithered over her witchsuit to form her shadow armor.

“I would not have come if I was not sure,” Kailia replied. She looked at Rayner. “You control the wards now. Where do we enter?”

“There is a hidden balcony on the side facing the sea,” he answered. “But we will need to climb.”

Scarlett still did not understand why he could not just let them pass since the wards around the cliffs were now tied to him, but after he’d explained for the third time it was simply the magic of the wards, she’d given up. They would Travel to the base of the cliffs and then climb. They’d debated flying in, but they were hoping not to be detected until they were inside. After that…

Well, they’d survive this part first and then worry about the rest. Cassius and Cyrus would stay outside to keep watch and discreetly take down seraphs when possible, while she and Sorin went in with Rayner and Kailia.

Scarlett closed her eyes, breathing deep. She rolled her shoulders back, stretching her neck from side-to-side, and when she reopened her eyes, she found everyone looking at her, waiting for instruction.

“Let’s start a fire,” she purred darkly.

Cassius Traveled Cyrus, while she grabbed Sorin’s hand and did the same. Rayner and Kailia moved among their ashes and smoke. It took nearly three hours to reach the hidden balcony, and it would have taken longer if Cyrus and Sorin hadn’t used their fire gifts to help keep everyone dry. This included their hands and boots to prevent them from slipping on the cliff-side that was drenched with spray from the sea. The sun hadn’t reached this side of the cliffs yet, so they were already partially concealed. Scarlett used her shadows to hide them even more.

Rayner was helping Kailia over the ledge, and they all took a moment to catch their breath and regroup. No one spoke, and she nodded to Rayner after a moment. Ashes spilled from his hands, seeping under the glass doors as they all stuck to the shadows.

“Two inside,” Rayner said in his low tenor.

“Does the Reaper get them or Death’s Maiden?” Scarlett asked with a wicked grin.

Rayner’s own smile was just as dark. “You can watch, your Majesty.”

Scarlett stuck her tongue out at him. Cyrus and Cassius moved forward to check the doors, and when they found them locked, Cyrus used his fire to melt the handles.

“Be careful, Seastar,” Cass said as the rest of them prepared to enter.

She winked at him. “You know better, Cass.”

He sighed. “I do. See you when this is over.”

She nodded again, and the two pulled open the doors. Rayner was already moving among his smoke, and Scarlett darted inside to see him standing between two seraphs. His hands were deep in their chests, and when he pulled them back, he held a heart in one hand and a lung in the other.

“How do you do that?” she demanded, the seraphs dropping to the ground before they could utter a sound.

The organs faded to ash in his palms, and Rayner bent to wipe the blood from his hands on some of their clothing. He shrugged. “The same way you make your shadow pets.”

“They are not shadow pets,” she scoffed. “But are you saying I could rip out—”

“No. You couldn’t,” he interrupted. “This way.”

Rayner strode towards what appeared to be a closet, and Scarlett looked over her shoulder. Kailia was idly wandering around the large suite. Every once in a while, she’d run her hand along a surface or the wall, ashes left behind. She glanced at Sorin, who nodded, and Scarlett followed after Rayner.

The Ash Rider was swiping his bloody palm along a wall, and Scarlett stood back as a doorway appeared. His ashes and her shadows speared into the dark passageway, seeking any sign of life, and when they found none, Rayner took the first step inside.

Sorin and Kailia appeared behind them as Scarlett followed Rayner into the stairwell, and Sorin sent small flames into the air to light their path. It was a winding staircase with landings that branched off every once in a while, and Rayner eventually took one.

Wooden doors lined the stone corridor. Rayner walked past them all. Scarlett couldn’t help but wonder how many times he had done this. How many times had he traversed these halls? She knew the bare minimum of Rayner’s history, but his knowledge of these cliffs had been invaluable to their planning.

At the end of the hall were two heavy stone doors etched with intricate carvings. While Rayner sent ashes to the other side before they entered, Scarlett traced along one of the carvings. It was the same language she’d been struggling to decipher in the Elshira catacombs.

“Do you know of it?” Rayner asked, the first words any of them had spoken since entering the hidden stairs.