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Tybalt stepped in, pausing mid-step. His gaze darted from the various spirit animals to the shadows that still swirled loosely around her. She had reached over and picked up her glass, taking another sip of alcohol.

“I am sorry to interrupt,” Tybalt finally said, glancing at Cethin before focusing on her once more. “I was hoping you would know where to find Cassius. I have been trying to find him, to check on him after everything that has happened.”

Scarlett set her liquor back down, reaching up to undo the buttons on her cloak. Her hands were immediately knocked aside, and Sorin made quick work of them before pulling the cloak from her shoulders as she said, “He was still sleeping on the sofa when I went down to the den last night.”

“He was not here when I woke,” Sorin supplied, moving to drape the cloak over a chair.

“I went to his rooms, but he did not answer,” Tybalt said, standing with his hands clasped behind his back. “I did enter, but he was not there.”

“He did not go to his own rooms,” Scarlett said. “He would have gone to Cyrus’s rooms.”

“I thought that too, but there was no response when I knocked on his rooms either.”

“He is there,” Scarlett said. “I need to bathe, and then I will go to him. He will not want to speak to anyone for a while. Not even me.” She turned to Sorin and Rayner. “After I have spent some time with him, we can discuss getting Cyrus back. Cassius not taking a Source is going to change our plans.”

“But he will take a Source,” Sorin said.

“When we have returned with Cyrus, if that is still their choice, then yes, he will,” Scarlett replied, beginning to make her way to the bedchamber.

“That is not the course of action we previously discussed,” Cethin said.

Scarlett shrugged. “Plans change.”

“So, what, Scarlett? You go speak to Saylah and now everything has changed? The weeks of planning and strategizing mean nothing because you have unilaterally decided to change the plans? Despite the fact that these plans affect more than just you?” her brother snapped, taking a step towards her. Sorin and Rayner both tensed, but neither of them needed to do anything. Shirina stood, a low snarl issuing from the feline.

Scarlett stilled, turning back to face him. Her shadows coiled tighter around her arms and torso when she saw the inky darkness beginning to pool at his feet. “You are right, Cethin. I will letCassiusdecide if and when he shall take a Source. Seeing as this affects him the most.”

“This is about more than Cassius, and you know it.”

“I do not care,” she snarled, sparks echoing her footsteps when she moved closer to Cethin. “He wants Cyrus. There is no one else he will accept. I will not force him to take someone else. Enough sacrifices have been made for mistakes that are not ours. I will not require him to make another. My safety and wellbeing will not require him to forfeit his own happiness, even if he would willingly do just that.”

“He needs to take one so you can draw from him,” Cethin insisted. “You cannot find the lock without being at your most powerful.”

Ah. There it was.

Her lips slowly curled up in a knowing smirk. “Tell me, dear brother,” she said, Cethin stilling at the faux sweetness of her voice. “If this lock is so important, why don’tyougo look for it?” He stared back at her, mouth pressing into that thin line again. She took a single step forward. “Why haven’t you come on any of these missions to the continent? Why are you so content to be one of those kings who lets others fight for their kingdoms and their people while he sits safely behind his walls? Or should I say Wards?”

“You know that is not the case,” he said, his tone low and dangerous.

“I do now. No thanks to you.”

“What did you learn, Scarlett?” Sorin asked carefully.

She kept her stare fixed on Cethin when she said, “My brother has not joined any of the missions because he cannot. He cannot leave these lands. If he crosses the Wards, they all fall and leave his entire kingdom defenseless. He is trapped here until I find the lock. I am, as I am for my mother, a means to an end.”

“No,” Cethin said, lurching forward a step. “No. You are not that, Scarlett.”

“Then why hide it from me?” she demanded, orange embers flickering in her vision.

“Because I did not want this exact situation to occur,” he said bitterly. “I did not want you to think I only came for you because I needed you to free me.”

“You need me to free you. Saylah needs me to free her. This world needs me to free it,” Scarlett sneered. “You all need freedom, and yetIam the one who has been required to make sacrifice after sacrifice to ensure you receive it.Iam the one who is being asked to give up her freedom for everyone else to have theirs.” She huffed out a harsh laugh. “I supposeaskedis not the proper word, is it? It is simply assumed I will fulfill what everyone demands of me.”

“I know, Starfire,” Cethin said gently as she felt a hand settle on the small of her back. She looked up to find Sorin at her side. His touch still calmed her, and a small part of her felt a surge of relief. It wasn’t like it had been when their twin flame bond had been in place and Anointed, but it was still something.

Sorin kept his muted amber eyes fixed on her when he said, “I think everyone needs to leave now. I need to speak with my wife. Alone.”

“I am sorry, Sorin,” Cethin said, and Scarlett believed he truly was judging by the remorse ringing in his tone. “This cannot wait.”