Page 98 of A Court of Thralls and Thorns

Once inside, exhaustion hit full force. We stripped off our gear in silence, too tired to care about modesty. Cordelle slipped into the washroom to change, but the rest of us collapsed into our beds within minutes.

Sleep came fast—but it didn’t last.

Whispers stirred me from the edge of unconsciousness.

“Are you sure?” Naia’s voice was low, careful.

“Yes,” Cordelle answered. “I checked several volumes. Both a Storm Reaper and a Tendon Reaver are powers from a lost bloodline. They shouldn’t exist.”

A pause. Then Naia scoffed. “Well, they do. Are you saying Perin and Ashe could be brother and sister?”

Cordelle was silent for a long moment. “It’s possible. But they’re more likely half-siblings. Or cousins.”

I stiffened, but forced my breathing to remain slow.

Naia’s voice was skeptical. “I find that hard to believe. Those two are polar opposites. Even with my issues with her family, Ashe isn’t a murderer. Perin gets off on other people’s pain.”

Cordelle sighed. “I’ll do more research. Maybe the bloodline was lost in the early years of the Unification. But if a noble—well, you know.”

“Knocked boots with a commoner? Yeah.” Naia let out a humorless laugh. “It’s the reason most of us are here.”

Cordelle hesitated. “There’s something else.”

“What?” Naia asked.

“The full-blooded fae struggled to control this power. I think there is more to it than just controlling the weather,” Cordelle murmured. “It was rare, even among them.”

Naia’s voice was a rough whisper. “Like that isn’t powerful enough. What happened to them?”

Cordelle’s answer sent ice through my veins.

“They died… or turned dark.”

Chapter

Nineteen

Iwoke feeling heavier than I should have, like the weight of yesterday’s trial had seeped into my bones. The memory of glowing veins and burning skin made me shiver. But that wasn’t what bothered me the most—it was the conversation I’d overheard. Cordelle and Naia whispering about me. About my power.

Did they fear me? Was it because I wasn’t anchored? Or was it the power itself—that cursed worddarkhanging in the air like smoke?

Halflings couldn’t turn dark,I reminded myself. We needed dragons to stabilize our power, and no dragon would allow their rider to fall to such an atrocity. Still… the doubt gnawed at me.

Riven stepped up to my bunk, already dressed and grinning. “Let’s go grab some food before Jax eats everything.”

I mustered a smile that didn’t quite reach my eyes. “I’ll meet you there. I just need a minute alone in the washroom. Hard to get more than two minutes in there with this crew.”

She laughed. “No kidding. Ferrula and I will save you a seat.”

I watched her and Ferrula leave, my muscles finally relaxing when I realized I was alone. I reached down to straighten my blanket—and froze.

The corner of my blanket was folded in a precise triangle.

Solei.

I flipped the cover back to its normal position, dread curling tight in my stomach. The wardrobe door creaked softly, and Solei stepped out, her legs stiff as she stretched.

“Took you long enough, Ashe,” she muttered, massaging her calves. “I was starting to cramp.”