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“Then, we better know for certain sea witches were—”

“Calista, sweet Calista.” Raum gave me a bemused look. “You offend me. I see practically everything as though it were in front of my damn face. I saw the markings. Saw those beautiful witch folk adding more along his wrists and arm. He’s warding his body, and we can be certain, he’s accounted for the fatal blows of Ari’s blade.”

“Dammit.” Ari turned away, pacing, his hands on his head. “Then what do we do? Don’t tell me that bastard is unkillable, I won’t accept it.”

“There will be a way,” Valen said firmly. “We’ll find a way. I’ll cut off his damn arms if I need to.”

“Good plan,” Raum said, “except, as I said, he’s always under watch from the sea fae at Harald’s command—”

“Not Erik,” Stieg interrupted. “It’s interesting, but Davorin plots with Harald. I think he has little influence over the boy king.”

“But does a boy king have influence over his people?” Kase offered.

Raum let out a sigh. “I don’t know. I can’t tell. They look at him with fear, but also look to Harald with the same fear.”

“Erik Bloodsinger is hells bent on avenging Thorvald,” Valen said. “He will not be an ally.”

“Perhaps not,” Stieg said, “but if he holds little love for Davorin, perhaps he won’t put up too much resistance if we happen to corner the bastard. You heard yourself, the king is here for you. This is his uncle’s war.”

“I don’t care for the way everyone disregards this boy,” Elise said, taking a step closer to Valen. “Yes, he’s young, but we know what his damn blood can do.”

She cast a look toward Tor. “I’m unspeakably grateful for what he did, but he will not use his blood to heal Valen. It will be to kill him. I don’t want to depend on a boy capable of killing my husband, thank you.”

Valen pulled the queen against his side, pressing a kiss to her head.

“I agree with the queen,” Kase said. “Better to find a way to get Davorin vulnerable and take him ourselves. I’d be glad to cut his bits off. I’d leave some for you to finish him off, Saga, I swear it.”

Saga looked pale. “We were depending on the heirloom blade.”

“It is still an option, sweet menace,” Ari said. “We just need to find a way to break those protections on him.”

“We need to get him vulnerable, unfocused, maybe even while he is sleeping,” Niklas said. “What I know of flesh wards is that the magic within them is connected to the will to live. Distract that will, get the mind in a restful state where it is not locked within constant surges of adrenaline—the skin could soften. The wards might be penetrable.”

“Oh, is that all? Get the bastard drunk? Get him asleep when he’s surrounded by a damn sea kingdom?” Ari’s frustration was locked on his tongue. Soon enough, I suspected our Golden King might start lashing out with violence.

“If he is warded against a blade, how do we cut at his skin?” Saga dragged her fingers through her hair. “He’s had ten damn turns to plot how to avoid that blade and our different magicks. Heknowsus.”

“Not all of us.”

I startled. Silas stepped forward, fingers flicking at his sides, a hint of his nerves.

“He knows you, Wraith.” Ari pointed at Silas’s face. “The proof is in that bleeding scar you ought to flaunt more than you do.”

“Riot Ode hid a great deal of what Calista and I could do together. He knows our power is connected, but he does not know how deeply. He does not know everything I can do. He never saw me with you, Golden King. He invaded the dream, but never saw me.”

“What are you saying?” Ari folded his arms over his chest.

Silas looked to me; he took my hand and squeezed, like I was the sure place to keep him steady before he went on. “Use our gifts. That is what Calista keeps telling us, and I think it’s . . . Ifeellike it is the path to take. Gifts of fate began and ended this long fight to reach this moment. Fated queens have risen to power across the realms. We’ve been given these gifts. We ought to use them.”

“What gifts are you expecting to use?” Elise asked.

“All our magicks, but . . .” Silas paused. “To do it, I have an idea. Calista and I create songs that ensnare paths of fate between us. It is how we’ve broken them before, and it is how we restored these lands. We sang a song and that new twist of fate was entrapped by our seidr; it yielded to our heart’s desire. It is possible that we might have a way to keep our battle lord ensnared long enough for all our gifts to play a part in this battle.”

There was drawn silence until Saga spoke. “Are you saying you have a plan, Silas?”

He tightened his hold on my hand. “Yes.”

“Going to share?” Kase muttered.