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S HOCK AND RUMORS RIPPLED THROUGH U XLAY DURING THE FIRST rainfall of the year. Koril Qaros was taken into questioning by campus authorities. Evidence of him physically restraining a distressed Ramyn from leaving his house had leaked onto the campus’s website. The public nature of the evidence left no room for debate as Slen’s father became the primary suspect in Ramyn’s death.

Understandably, Slen was missing from their study group meeting. There were no books opened as they sat in silence. The only sound came from the video that GK played on his phone.

“Finally.” He sighed, brows furrowed. “Ramyn will get justice.”

Kidan couldn’t muster any pity for Koril Qaros. But this raised more questions than it answered. Who threw Ramyn from the tower? They all knew it was a vampire that delivered the final blow, coloring Ramyn’s lips and biting into her neck, so which vampire did it? And how did it connect to June?

At the next gathering of the 13th, the absence of Koril Qaros was the topic of conversation. Kidan stuck to the shadows, listening.

“Throwing a person from a tower feels a little performative, no?” a gorgeous dranaic with black lipstick said. “It seems like Qaros wanted the entire world to see. Quite odd for as private an act as murder.”

Her thin, mustached partner said, “Why would he want that?”

She shrugged a delicate shoulder. “Perhaps he loves the art of it, or he’s redirecting attention like a masterful play.”

“Redirecting attention?” Kidan said suddenly. “To what?”

The woman blinked her thick lashes. “To the tower, of course. A spotlight shone so every head would look up while the mastermind hid in the shadows.”

Another dranaic in an impressive burgundy suit responded, “But that’s what made Koril a suspect. He had no one to corroborate his whereabouts at the time of the girl’s death. It would have been more intelligent to neither hide in the shadows nor take up too much light.”

The woman flashed a beautiful set of teeth. “I do love your reasoning, Sacro.”

Sacro gave a little bow.

Kidan frowned. She didn’t like how they spoke about the matter without any empathy, but the cold assessment did raise a good question for her: Why did Koril make Ramyn’s death so public? Kidan saw no benefit in this.

At the front of the room, Tamol Ajtaf stood and fastened his golden button. “May I have your attention. I know this is a shock to all of us. Koril Qaros was a beloved member of our group. I assure you the proper investigations will be carried out. If any of you have personal concerns, please come see me.”

Kidan regarded his cool green eyes. He didn’t mourn Ramyn, not openly at least. Here he was again, calm and collected, without even a wrinkle in his suit, announcing that his sister’s murderer had been found.

Rufeal Makary came to stand near her. “They must really like you,” he said. “No one gets in here this quickly. Then again, you have it easy. Being the only heiress and all.”

Kidan fought not to move away. “Getting in doesn’t seem hard.”

His smile strained. “The rest of us born with fourteen cousins have always had to prove ourselves.”

“What do you mean?”

“Do you think the 13th found my sister a life exchange out of the goodness of their hearts? I had many tasks to complete, including ours.”

Kidan’s neck prickled. “You don’t need to worry about Yusef. I got it.”

He raised a doubtful brow. “If he passes Quadrantism, I’ll have to deal with it. And you might not get your life exchange.”

He had a sickly determination to his eyes, a predator hunting for prey. She forced a nod.

On the other side of the room, Tamol slipped through a side door with a new member Kidan hadn’t seen before. House Delarus, for sure. Their sigil was red silk stitched into a rose, appropriate for the Fashion House.

“Out with the old, in with the new, as they say,” Rufeal continued. “The 13th love trading up. Members here change as quick as Sacro’s suits. You always have to be useful. When Umil lost his mind, Makary joined. When Qaros stumbles, Delarus is ready—”

“Wait, Umil? As in Omar Umil?”

“Who else?”

Kidan’s temples hurt. How did she not know that Omar Umil was in the 13th? Because he was imprisoned and an outcast, she had assumed he was excluded.

“I need to go.”

Rufeal held up his glass of liquor. “You do whatever you want, Founding Heiress. Let us fight among scraps while you eat your lion.”

Kidan’s shoulders relaxed as she put distance between them. She knew what to include in her letter to get Omar Umil’s attention. Swiping a pen, she mentioned the number 13 twice. Once about her biological mother’s birthday and another mentioning a random date. She hoped it was enough.

After delivering the letter, she returned to an empty home.

She considered getting some work done on Quadrantism, but her stomach cramped. The kitchen stove held a pot of siga wot and a platter of injera flatbread. Kidan opened the lid and inhaled the soft-cooked meat and rosemary. She sent a silent thank-you to Etete and heated the stew. A note on the marble countertop caught her eye.

Suseynos, I’m visiting my children. Don’t go into the observatory alone.

Kidan set down the note. The house was unusually quiet. She wandered through the hallways, bracing against the wave of knives that tore at her, and reached the observatory. Carefully, she opened the door, letting the stream of blue light fall over her feet.

Susenyos was slumped on the floor, utterly still.

“Susenyos,” she whispered.

He didn’t move. She took a step forward and froze. He’d warned her multiple times— my bloodlust is uncontrollable in that room.

She spotted a mantel to her side and reached over to gather the fake fruit sitting on it. A few cherries rolled into her palms. Without thinking, she started throwing them at him, hoping to wake him up. They bounced off him, his dark skin glowing like obsidian under stained glass.

“Hey!” Once the cherries were done, she grabbed the apples and grapefruits, hitting harder.

Three made contact, but he remained unresponsive.

June’s voice swept over her, a hurricane of fury.

“ Leave him to suffer!”

Kidan’s feet staggered back.

“ He deserves it ,” June whispered, growing stronger. “You have him vulnerable. What are you waiting for?”

Kidan trembled. How did she sound so real? “I need his help. I’m still searching for you.… I know I’m close.”

“He must die. Kill all evil.”

Kidan stared at his body while her mind warred with itself. She recalled the night he’d pulled her from the hallway. The pain unbearable after a few minutes. How long had he been in here? All day?

Susenyos had to die… and yet, she couldn’t help but see a boy king losing his court and the people he loved, with only their artifacts to keep him company. A key to which he kept around his neck. His story softened him against her will, the outline of his profile shifting from an assailant to victim.

And his chest was so still.

Oh, fuck it.

“ Don’t! ” June screamed.

Kidan rushed inside the coldest room of the house, goose bumps rising along her neck despite her sweater. June’s thunderous eyes faded into smoke by the door, so angry at Kidan that Kidan forgot to breathe.

She shook the image and knelt before him, tapping his cheek and startling away when his icy skin burned her.

“Hey!” She shook him by the shoulders. Hard. “Snap out of it!”

His eyes flew open.

He scrambled away from her like she was a spider, a film of terror over his eyes. Kidan’s heartbeat jumped to her throat.

She held up her hands and got to her feet slowly.

He stood as well, moving into a fighting stance.

“I’ll leave now,” she said.

She took a step back, but he rushed at her, pushing her against the window so her back cracked. A sharp corner dug into her wrist, cutting her slightly. Pain pulsed from her hand to her spine.

“It’s Kidan!” she shouted. “You’re seeing things!”

His deliriousness cleared a little. “Kidan? What are you doing here?”

Relief broke through her ribs. “Helping you.”

She hid her bleeding wrist, but it would be no use. He’d smell it and, in this room, attack her. Panic beat in her chest as blood trickled down her palm.

Shit.

Instead, he stepped back, touching his veined temple, voice thicker than thunder.

“I told you not to come in here.”

“You’re welcome—”

“Out.”

“Excuse me?”

“Get out!” he roared, and the glass window splintered behind her.

Kidan’s cheeks burned with fury. She clutched her wrist and stormed out, checking her hand once she was outside the observatory. The cut was small, but a few drops of blood coated the blue floor. Yet Susenyos still hadn’t noticed. He hadn’t knelt down to taste it like that first time. He hadn’t reached for his blood flask. It wouldn’t be so jarring if the one thing consistent about vampires wasn’t their reaction to blood.