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A gust of wind from Vaper’s wings billowed up dirt and debris and she shot into the sky. The sound of beating wings alone would put fear into his father’s soldiers.

Mathekis was nowhere to be seen and he’d yet to spot Varlett in the skies or on the ground, but his father, mother, sister, and Aldrich sat on white horses in the front of the army. Typically, High King Tenebris stayed out of the line of duty, far behind the protection of soldiers, and not once had his mother or sister been on a battlefield, least of all at the front of it. He knew exactly why his father dragged his mother and sister out here. His father’s horse shifted slightly, and Thane’s heart lurched. Evalyn stood with a rope around her wrists and his father held the other end. Even from here he could see her dress was tattered at the ends and torn in places. Dirt and grime covered her from boot to head. Frazzled bits of black and silver hair came loose from the tie in the back. Layala might not think clearly here so he must. He didn’t care for her the same way Layala did, but she’d still become a soft spot for him, despite her apparent dislike of him.

His stomach knotted but he trudged forward until a great winged shadow cast over him. Layala and Dax hovered above. A vine shot down and with a crash, rooted itself in the ground. Thane smiled. Layala jumped off the dragon’s back and swung onto her vine, sliding down the smooth stalk as gracefully as she danced. Her boots hit the ground with a thud, and she stood tall. She tugged her raven-winged helmet down tighter and adjusted the neck of her armor, breath hitching a little. There was just something about seeing her in full battle armor that captivated him. A smile played at the corners of her mouth and those bright blue eyes met his. “You didn’t think I’d let you face your family alone, did you?”

She hadn’t seen Evalyn yet, he presumed. His jaw clenched.

“What is it?” she asked.

He turned to look at them, still a hundred yards away across grassy fields sprinkled with tiny white and purple wildflowers. A place too beautiful to have blood spilled across it. They weren’t close enough to smell the stinking bogs of the Void yet, so the air was fresh and calming. A white flag rose up in Aldrich’s hand and the five of them moved ahead.

“You need to allow me to negotiate,” Thane said. “Her life depends on it.”

Worried eyes scanned the horizon. He saw the moment Layala spotted Evalyn. Her face fell slack, but her fury electrified, and the heavy weight of her magic clouded around them. “I’m taking his head now.”

“No,” Thane said. “You knew this would happen. You knew they had her. Now is the time to remain calm. They have a white flag—”

“Screw the white flag. He has Evalyn. This only ends one way, Thane,” Layala said, lifting her chin slightly. “I’ll put a throwing star right through his forehead.” The terror on her face was evident despite her demeanor.

“He wouldn’t bring her out in the open unless he had something up his sleeve. Do not attack.” He ground his teeth. Years of battle with his father told him all he needed to know. Tenebris was cunning and smart. Evalyn was his best tool against them, and he’d use it well. “Or you may very well put her in a grave.”

She pulled her hand away from her belt of weapons and swallowed hard but said, “I trust you. Do you have a plan?”

“I expected Evalyn to be held somewhere else. I’m working on one.” The glare she shot him turned his stomach. He didn’t want to ever see disappointment in her in regard to him. He’d have to come up with something fast. If Layala lost Evalyn, he feared what she might do. They marched side by side. “Do you see Mathekis or Varlett?”

Her bright-blue eyes darted back and forth along the line of soldiers. “No. They must be hidden in the mist. Piper and Ronan will fly to the edge of the Void and burn down the pale ones who dare cross.”

That was the plan anyway, but plans could change in battle. Thane looked over his shoulder. His Ravens came to a stop; the horses stamped and tossed their heads eager to push forward. “Unless the pale ones are behind us.”

A firm line formed on Layala’s lips. She turned, searching the wooded area to the left and the vast rolling green hills to the right side. “There is only that grove of trees. We’d have seen them from above if they hid in there.”

“I hope so,” Thane replied, though nerves tightened his stomach. Those trees were thick and tall, so to see bodies on the darkened floor would be difficult.

Layala and Thane stopped and waited for his family and Layala’s to meet them. Though Evalyn’s face was bruised, and her wrists bled from the rope burns, she defiantly held her head high. Talon’s horse snorted, and tails swished at flies, but for a moment no one said anything. His sister’s chin trembled, on the verge of tears. She wore a pink dress, and her chocolate-brown hair was pulled up with small curls around her face. Thane shook his head. She had no business being here, let alone in a pink dress with lace. She was barely eighteen and looked every bit the child she still was at the moment.

Somehow Orlandia held her tongue, though if glares could cut, Layala would be sliced to ribbons. Why his mother could be so blind to the truth and place blame on Layala made him boil inside. Layala’s lazy stare gave no indication that any of this bothered her, but he knew she was terrified of what could happen to her aunt.

“I hope it was worth it,” he said to Aldrich. This was the first time Thane came face to face with Aldrich since he’d injured him back at Kail’s place, and the inconvenient pain of seeing him ride beside their father hurt more than he thought it would. The white flag at the end of the pole shifted slightly in the breeze, casting a wavering shadow on Thane’s chest. Aldrich didn’t meet Thane’s gaze. Coward.

Tenebris’s horse pawed at the ground, and the reins pinged against the silver armor around the horse’s chest and shoulders. He jerked Evalyn’s rope, and she winced as it went taut. “We can do this the easy way or the hard way.” He looked straight at Layala. “I can be merciful. Your aunt can live.”

Thane lifted his chin and took in a deep breath through the nose. “You have two options. You can surrender but the cost is your head, High King. You can save the lives of hundreds, if not thousands, if you give yourself over to be executed for the many crimes you have committed. It will be swift and painless but just. Or you can choose to fight but you will die along with your soldiers, andmymercy will not be found.”

Tenebris threw his head back in maniacal laughter. The sound grated on Thane’s nerves.

“You are in no position to make any demands, Thane. You think your five hundred and a handful of dragons scare me?” He tugged on the rope again to make a point, and Evalyn squeaked, face scrunching in pain.

Layala took a step forward and Tenebris held up a finger. “She’s been poisoned and only I know the antidote. Don’t come any closer.”

Poisoned? Her lips did have a purple tinge and upon further inspection, her bloodshot eyes rang alarm bells. Shit. The only exchange he’d accept would be Layala for Evalyn.

“It’s alright, Laya,” Evalyn said, tears gleaming. “I’ve made my peace.”

“Shut up,” Tenebris snapped and jerked the rope for the third time.

Thane’s body tensed, ready to spring into action as blood rushed down Evelyn’s arms in streams. He could hardly bear to see any female abused let alone one he cared for.

A glint of metal flashed from Layala’s hand and then a quiet gasp. Thane’s heart clenched. She’d thrown that star, the one he asked her to stay. He fully expected to see blood streaming down his father’s face but… his brows furrowed, had she missed? Suddenly Orlandia screamed with the kind of pain he’d never heard from her before, then her hand clamped over her mouth.