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The fabric fluttered one final time, its silky surface brushing my cheek. A burst of lilac scented the air. I blinked—

The fabric faded, its magic spent. “Save my brother.”

I found myself standing on the deck of Zayne’s boat.

6 | Her Reward

Zayne

The Gray General was on their way to theUmbral Star.I waited, maintaining my necromantic command. They would brand me. I maintained a vague connection to the Living Realm and waited.

Suddenly, the light shifted, a new power nearing.

“Zayne?” someone asked. A voice I barely knew… Someone who was standing far too close.

I snapped my eyes open. “Ayla.”

She stumbled, the smaller boat rockier than the ship, and she looked at me, mouth gaping. “You’ve got to get out of here. Fast! There’s another tentacle, and it’s sneaking up on us. A creepy gray Shade is coming closer.” She turned to Vanessa. “Go!”

The sprite bit her lip and addressed me. “Is this part of your plan?”

“The gray Shade,yes. That’s my plan.” My gaze darted from Vanessa to Ayla. I recalled how brightly she had shone in the Underworld, how she had called the Shades. “Ayla, you shouldn’t be here.”

Ayla scrunched her face. “Well, I never asked to come here! It was your stupid handkerchief. It shadow-stepped me here. Or something.”

She seemed genuinely confused, her balance off and not just from sea legs. Her green eyes pierced through me.

This wasn’t safe for her.

“I’m sorry to be such an inconvenience,” she snapped. “But to be clear, I think this is your fault.”

“The handkerchief…”

“Bespelled. And not to protect the wearer, but to protectyou.And because nobody thought to tell the handkerchief about your plan to… I don’t know,be eaten by Shades,it decided to send me here. To keep you safe.”

Eleanor must have done that. Overprotective to the last. “Nobody needs to save me,” I hissed. “I have this under control… So stay out of the way.”

“With pleasure.” Her gaze darkened as she stomped her feet. “I wish I had thrown that handkerchief into the sea,” she muttered.

“I’ve got work to do.”

She huffed.

Everything was already difficult, and I had no time for a female so shiny she attracted my prey.

I grunted, hoping it would release some tension, but I found little relief. I turned from her, looking at the sea. The Gray General would be near, and I needed focus.

I drifted to the Underworld. “Come here,” I reinforced my command.

Too late. The Gray General slipped from my grasp. Left untethered, they pursued a brighter target.

Ayla

I can’t trust him.Not after this. Of course he deceived me—he’s royal. I should have known better.

There I was, worrying about his safety. I was shadow-stepped by a damnhandkerchief.And he wasn’t even in danger?

“You should grab something,” the sprite said. The ship amplified her voice, reaching me despite the distance. She looked down from the crow’s nest and motioned to a rope anchored to the central cabin. “It could get a little bumpy.”