Page 30

Chapter Thirty

Jasce

I sink to the marble floor and pull Annora down with me until she settles in my lap.

She shifts enough to wrap her arms around my shoulders. “Tell me more about Sharhavva.”

“We’re fortifying the city walls, doubling the guard rotations, and sending out more scouts.

” I pull Annora closer as I continue. “The armory is working day and night, forging weapons and armor. We’re stockpiling provisions, ensuring our people will have enough to endure a siege if it comes to that. ”

I ramble on, hoping the mundane details will provide some distraction from everything she’s endured.

“Will’s been asking about you. He’s taken to drawing pictures of you. They’re not bad. Though, he keeps complaining that he can’t get your eyes quite right.”

“I miss him. I miss all of them.”

“And they miss their chieftainess.” The word snag in my throat. Chieftainess. My chieftainess, who should be ruling beside me, not trapped in Bakva with my bastard of a brother.

“Tell me more about the defenses,” Annora says. “What else are you doing?”

I stroke her hair, letting the silken strands slip through my fingers. “Hector’s mobilizing forces in the north. And I’ve got teams patrolling the Giiana Desert, watching for any movement from House of Silver.”

But it’s not enough. None of it’s enough when Annora’s not there. When I have to wake up each morning knowing she’s in danger, knowing Aleksander could force her to do the gods know what else.

“The gardens miss you too. Those little blue flowers you planted? They’ve spread everywhere. The gardeners keep trying to contain them, but they’re stubborn—like someone else I know.”

She lets out a small laugh against my chest, and for a moment, everything feels right. Like we’re back home, just us, no war looming, no magical bonds, no brothers who deserve far worse than death.

“I should be there with you.” Annora’s words mirror my thoughts. “We shouldn’t be apart like this.”

“No.” I tighten my arms around her. “We shouldn’t.”

Soon, she’ll have to return to Bakva, to Aleksander’s control. And I’ll have to let her go, knowing what he’s already forced her to do. The fury rises again, but I push it down. There will be time for rage later.

For now, I hold her close and try to make this moment last as long as possible.