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A headache still throbbed at my temple, and surely Nik’s suffocating shadows hadn’t helped the situation. What hadhe meant when he said he was trying to say the right thing? Why couldn’t he speak the words he wanted to? Was it due to his link to Donika that he appeared to be fighting?

He had claimed he would never hurt me… but he had.

Twicenow.

The thought had tears stinging the back of my eyes, but I pushed them down as I settled on the floor in front of the stool. I ripped off pieces of the bread, soaking them in the soup to soften them and hopefully prevent any of my teeth from chipping.

As I ate the meal in silence, I perused the books that had been left in my cell. I was surprised to find they were some of the volumes that graced my own shelves back in the mortal realm.

Had Nik brought these for me?

No… it couldn’t have been him. He hadcapturedme.Hurtme… knocking me out twice now and keeping me prisoner. He had no reason to be kind to me. It was only a matter of time now before he stole my magic, leaving me entirely mortal before dragging me back before Donika. Whoever had brought this meal for me had to have brought the books, taking pity on me for being stuck in this cell all alone. But if not Nik… then who?

Corian had seen me in that dream, but he hadn’t initially revealed my presence to Donika. Had he wanted me to see how their army had grown? How hopeless the resistance was now? It was something I had already feared, but the dream had solidified it. In this moment, I truly did feel hopeless.

My bond was broken, and I didn’t have control of my magic. The resistance numbers were scattered across Prins after our last battle. Isaac and Nikolai were Noctani. And I was a prisoner… again. It surely didn’t appear as if we were on the winning side of things.

I finished the soup as I contemplated my next move. The items in my cell could be used as weapons now. Surely the fire from the burning lantern that flickered at my knee could be of use. I pushed the empty tray of food towards the cell door and settled back onto the cot with one of the books.

The door at the end of the hallway creaked open, and I wasn’t surprised when Nikolai appeared. His shock of blond hair was concealed by his hood, which was pulled up over it, concealing part of his face.

“Are your accommodations to your liking?” he asked as he stopped before the cell door, his brow raised.

I met his gaze. “My… accommodations?”

“I brought these things to you in hopes it would add some… comfort… to an uncomfortable situation. You had fallen asleep on the cold concrete floor and… ” his words trailed off as his gaze flickered towards the door at the end of the corridor.

“Youbrought me these things?” I asked, my brow furrowed.

“Of course,” he smiled, but the smile never reached his eyes. I couldn’t see the dimple in his right cheek. It was hollow, and my stomach sank at the thought.

“But… why?” I asked, confused.

Why would he want to make me comfortable? I was hisprisoner. It didn’t make any sense.

He inclined his head as he examined me. “I care for you, Diana.”

Care for me.

Not love. No… it would never be love again. Not unless we succeeded with the antidote, which I wasn’t sure was even an option at this point.

“I thought Noctani didn’t care for anything.” My words were soft as my gaze fell.

I didn’t have the energy to be angry in this moment, and I didn’t think my heart could break any more than it already had. Tears pricked the back of my eyes and I pinched the bridge of my nose as I fought them back.

Nik didn’t appear to be as mindless as the other Noctani. He wasn’t as… catatonic. I didn’t think he was under Donika’s complete control the way the Noctani in the dream had been. He appeared as a darker version of himself… fighting off his Noctani instincts and compulsion. This second interaction with him solidified my idea that the bond we shared had to be playing a hand in the version of him that stood before me now.

If I ever got out of here, I would have to ask Zion and Annelise. The bond was strong blood magic—it was entirely possible that it altered whatever Noctani spell Donika had conjured up since the bond came first.

I released a heavy sigh as my hand fell back to my lap.

“Nothing has changed,” he said slowly.

“Nothing has changed?” My voice came out raw. “Everythinghas changed, Nik.”

He shook his head. “It doesn’t have to be like that.”

A humorless laugh escaped my lips as I tipped my head back against the wall of the cell. “Doesn’t it? Were you not sent to capture me so that Donika couldkill me?”