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Asger and Kage were already standing in the shadows against the stone walls. Once we came close enough, Asger crouched. He used a bone shard and a steel pin to unlock the door that had not been locked last night, and eased it open.

My stomach twisted, but the disquiet faded a bit when Kage took my hand and pressed a kiss to my palm.

With slow, feathery steps, we descended into the Well.

“Shit.” Kage cursed furiously.

A man stepped into the torchlight, a blade in his hand.

“Hugo.” I gripped Kage’s arm. “What are you doing?”

Hugo’s kind features were twisted in disquiet. “I’m under orders to return you to the crown prince should I find you, My Lady.”

“You won’t touch her,” Kage said, voice a threat. “Or am I no longer a prince, Hugo?”

The guard lowered his blade, but his words did not align with his actions. “I cannot follow a prince who plots a coup against the true crown.”

“A coup. You damn fool.” Cy shoved through, and the rage on his face burned toward Hugo. It was heartbreaking. Cy butted his chest against the guard. “Where is the evidence? Who are the accusers? Prince Kage has done nothing but try to end this darkness with no thought for himself.”

Hugo blinked, but lifted his chin. “Prince Kage, by order of His Highness, Crown Prince Destin, you are to face the council of seers for your tribunal about improper usage of your title, thieving, and attempted murder of the sleeping king and queen.”

“You bastard.” Kage lunged at Hugo, but I caught his arm. His face boiled in anger when he jabbed a finger at Hugo’s conflicted face. “You’ve been duped, Hugo. This is Destin’s doing, isn’t it?”

Above ground a great clang of bells rang out over the walls of the Sanctuary. I shivered when a manipulated version of Destin’s voice filled my mind, more than it did my ears. Almost painful, I winced as his magically amplified voice itched across my brain, down my spine.

“He’s enacting The Call. That’s used in war,” Gwyn whispered.

The Call. I remembered it. A powerful, dangerous spell where generals of the armies or leaders infiltrated the magic in the blood of each mage. My heart raced. Every man, woman, child, across the whole of Magiaria would hear Destin’s pronouncement.

Kage didn’t speak, merely pulled me close through the wretched sensation, the cold words.

“My people,” the hiss of Destin’s voice struck me to the roots. “It is with a broken heart I must tell you of the betrayal of a son of Magiaria, my brother—Prince Kagesh. He has taken the Blood Sacrifice for his own gain. Do not house him, do not aid him. Should you find him and those who stand at his side, do all in your power to contain him and turn him over to the crown. Do this and you will be greatly rewarded.”

The words faded like a gust of wind. I coughed against the force of it.

“That bastard,” Asger said in a growl. “He’s sent the entire kingdom against us.”

“Forgive me, Prince Kage.” Hugo’s tone was rife in sincere remorse. “I must?—”

“Stop, Hugo.” I shoved around Cy’s imposing form. Kage tried to draw me back, but I shook him off, eyes locked with my sweet rider who’d been a gentle force since I arrived. “I see the hesitation in your eyes. You know this is not right. Now be the man I believe you are, and do not do this.”

Cruel silence surrounded us like we’d been tossed into a tomb. Hugo blinked between the others, until he once more landed on me. One breath, then another, and his grip eased off the hilt ofhis blade. “One round of the clock. That is all I will give you. One round to leave these grounds and disappear. Then, I will report it.”

It wasn’t a grand mercy—a mere hour—but it was something. I gripped his wrist. “Thank you, Hugo.”

“The Well,” Gwyn began, a broken gleam in her eyes when Asger tugged her back toward the stairs.

“There’s no time, Gwyn,” he said, taking her hand in his. “We must go.”

I rested a palm against Kage’s cheek, urging him to look at me. “We’ll find a way to make this right. All of it.”

He ground his teeth, then pressed a hard kiss to my knuckles before dragging us up the steps.

Cy did not take a step, not until he aimed a knife at Hugo’s chest and said in a dark threat, “I will not forget which side you took this day, Hugo Byrne.”

“Cy,” I said gently, a little desperate. “Remember that he is giving us a chance.”

My friend gnashed his teeth at Destin’s guard, then spun out of the Well and my heart tore in two.