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“We’ll need to cause a distraction—lure him away from his office, so we can check,” Adelina suggested as adrenaline flooded her body.

“There will be no we about it. You’ll stay with him, so he doesn’t suspect you,” Yelena said. “I can search through his office, find the right book, then return here. He won’t suspect a thing if I ensure everything remains undisturbed.”

“Won’t he eventually notice the book was taken?” Adelina said.

“We’ll have to be quick. I’ll bring it to you, learn what you must, then I’ll put it back,” Yelena added. “Now we need to figure out a way to get him and you away from the palace.”

Adelina rubbed the side of her head as she searched her mind for a plausible distraction. “I’ll give him what he wants. At least for a short while. I’ll practise my magic in the gardens. No prism world.”

“You could set the place on fire.” Yelena narrowed her eyes.

“It’ll be worth the risk—Filip needs to see me using it, believe I’m serious, broken to his will since he murdered my sister.

He’ll want to spectate, witness how uncontrolled my magic can be.

I’m sure he won’t mind some torched bushes.

” Despite the confidence she forced into her voice, her hands shook.

Filip was always a step ahead of her—would she outsmart him this time?

Yelena smiled. “You haven’t given yourself a second to grieve, and yet you remain focused on stopping Filip. I admire it.”

“I don’t have time to grieve.” Or the strength to. “If we don’t succeed at this, Filip will rip a hole through the barrier, and Veles will have his kingdom. Filip already has the three countries under his thumb—he has access to all armies, resources, you name it. No one will try to stop him.”

“It will be dinner time soon. Dine with Filip. Ask him to accompany you to the gardens. When I see you, I’ll go to Damir,” Yelena said.

“What about the guards? Won’t they see you?” Adelina frowned, aware of a potential fault in their plan. If they were caught, it would be all over.

“I’ll deal with the guards in the prison and let Damir out. We can use him as part of the distraction—have him make a run for it. The guards positioned on the ground floor will assume he is trying to run away.” Yelena’s words tumbled out of her mouth with haste.

Adelina nodded before she processed the words. “How can we ensure Damir’s safety? He’s been through too much. I’ve risked everything to protect him, and I won’t risk his life as collateral.”

“Trust me. For this to work, ensure Filip joins you in the garden. It’s not enough for him to simply see you from his office window.

He must be by your side for me to allow enough time for Damir to cause a distraction.

” Yelena inspected her watch, then lifted her gaze.

“Once I’ve grabbed the book, we’ll meet first thing in the morning.

If Filip sees you sneaking off to the training room late at night, it might ring alarm bells in his mind. ”

“Okay.” Adelina swallowed, ignoring the sickly sensation crawling up her neck. “I’ll see you later.”

Hurrying out of the training room, she headed for her chamber. Keeping a neutral expression so she didn’t draw attention to herself from patrolling guards, she slipped into her room and prepared herself for dinner.

∞∞∞

Adelina clamped her fingers together underneath the large table.

The banquet served was enough to feed the entire household, yet only she and Filip were seated, each of them at either end.

Instead of curling her lips in distaste at the waste of food when there were thousands of people starving in Saintlandsther, she plastered a smile on her face.

“You look as radiant as ever.” He eyed her over the rim of the glass in his hand. Swilling the liquor, he sipped it, then lounged back in his chair.

“Thank you,” she said, ignoring the nausea in her stomach. He made her skin crawl, but if false pleasantries and surface level dinner talk was enough to get him into the garden, then so be it. She’d stroke his ego if she needed to. “So do you.”

“What are you waiting for?” He nodded to the spread of food platters. “Eat.”

Picking up her cutlery, she ate only enough to line her stomach, to ease the cramping there. Anything more, and she might vomit. Taking the napkin from the table, she dabbed at the sweat on the back of her neck.

“All is well?” he asked.

She set aside the napkin and folded her hands in her lap. She wasn’t gullible enough to think he genuinely cared for her welfare, not unless it posed a threat to his plans. He could bait her all he liked, but she refused to fall into any of his traps. “Yes, thank you. Perhaps it is the alcohol.”

She glanced the goblet beside her plate—she’d taken several large gulps to quell her nerves.

“Perhaps,” he mused, his stare burning into her.

“I was thinking you might like to join me in the garden,” she said, keeping a casual tone to her voice. “I would like to practise my magic, and it might be wise to see how our powers interact with each other. After all, we are strongest together, aren’t we?”

He arched a brow. “I’m sure at the very least it will prove entertaining.”

She smiled again. “Of course. Care to escort me now?”

He flicked his gaze to his unfinished glass of liquor, then nodded, setting it on the table. Shoving his chair back with feline grace, he strolled over to her and held out his hand.

She accepted it and allowed him to guide her into the moonlight.

∞∞ ∞

Adelina strolled into the centre of the garden, with Filip at her side.

Closing her eyes, she coaxed her magic, urging it to drench her nerve endings in fire. The warmth of her power grew, intensifying, until it emerged as golden embroidery twirling around her wrist.

With one foot positioned slightly ahead of the other for balance, she raised her arm. The golden light shone, covering the gardens in bright sunlight—a stark contrast to the dull, cloudy sky.

Letting go of the loose grip she maintained on her magic, the embroidery shot out like a whip, severing the tips of nearby topiaries, the stumps charred. It wasn’t enough. She needed more. Fire .

She sucked in a deep breath, giving her body over to the burning sensation coursing through her veins. Sunlight streamed from her skin as if she’d become the sun herself. The whip shot out again, this time plunging straight through the conservatory window, raining glass onto the flowerbeds.

“You’ve destroyed the topiaries.” Filip smirked. “Entertaining, indeed. Although I’d much prefer if you didn’t destroy more of my carefully tended garden.”

“You’ve proven you’re smarter than me,” she said. “And you have proven you will take what you want by force. I’m not prepared to sacrifice anyone else I love, so I will do what you say without resistance. I will show you more of what I’m capable of, then we can see how our magic behaves together.”

He didn’t speak or move for a moment, but then he nodded and reclined onto the wooden bench nearby .

Straightening her back, she mustered another lash of energy. The tail of her whip thrashed.

Within seconds, Filip was on his feet, the tip of his black nether talon wrapped around her golden embroidery.

“I wasn’t attacking you,” she said quickly.

“It aimed for me,” he spat. “Do not test me, Adelina. You know what happens when you challenge me. Unless you want me to march right downstairs and slit Damir’s throat.”

“I’m sorry.” Her heart pounded, threatening to burst from her chest. “I didn’t mean to. I’m not in control.”

His talon let go, and her magic recoiled, fading from existence.

He walked towards her, positioning himself right behind her. With his cold breath on her shoulder, she locked her muscles. Her stomach churned with the threat of wanting to vomit. He made her skin crawl.

Ever so slowly, he touched her, wrapping his fingers around her palms. “Let your magic go.”

His words were soft, gentle…and confusing. It was like Damir was talking to her, encouraging her. But she wouldn’t be fooled into thinking his soothing tone meant anything other than deception and manipulation.

Obeying, she conjured the golden light again, letting it spin around her wrist.

“Aim for those bushes when I say. I do not care if you destroy those ones.” His lips brushed her ear, and she swallowed to stop herself from heaving. “Now.”

Training her eyes on the bushes, she fired her magic—it shot straight for them.

His nether magic seeped from him like dark shadows, manifesting into a talon at the tip.

It weaved with hers, seeping the light from her.

Gold and black fought against each other for a moment, until she could feel him.

Feel his power. Nether and astral flowed together, streaming as a single entity towards the bushes.

Power surged through her core, and if she thought fire danced on her skin before, this was another level.

But it wasn’t painful. Her nerve endings tingled with heat, singing with the euphoric sensation of mingled power.

This is how she was supposed to feel. Nether and astral were two halves of the same soul—they were never meant to be apart.

“Feel it,” Filip whispered against her ear, and she was no longer repulsed by his breath. She liked it. “This is how strong you can be. How strong we can be. Don’t you want more of it?”

His chest was pushed against her back, his hands on hers. She turned her chin to look over her shoulder, and her gaze met his. The distraction caused her magic to snap, and with it, the desire for power disintegrated.

She scrambled away from him. Her cheeks flamed. “What did you do?”

“This is what our magic is like when we are together. Imagine the things we can do.” His voice was husky—a fire burned in his eyes. “We’d be unstoppable.”