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T his time, Teryn didn’t need all night to make progress. The first hour he lay in the space of his body, he managed to flinch every one of his fingers on both hands. The second hour, he moved his left leg. That had woken Morkai up enough that he’d rolled over and shifted Teryn’s body on its side, but Teryn wasn’t daunted. Instead, he adjusted his ethera to fit the proper bounds, aligning his hands, feet, torso, shoulders, and face, filling his form the way his soul was meant to.

Now it was time to work on the task he’d come to consider his highest priority: forming speech.

He breathed deeply, feeling his lungs expand, the air moving through his nostrils. His heart beat a steady rhythm while his pulse sang with his blood. He lost touch with the passing of time, focusing instead on the perfect harmony between his ethera and vitale. The singular connection that ensured he was—undoubtedly—still alive. That this body was still his.

Once he was fully settled into this awareness, he poured all his focus into repeating the feat he’d only barely accomplished last time. Shifting the course of his breath, he exhaled out of his mouth. His lips parted to release the warm air, and he breathed again. As the air left his lungs, he felt it tingle against the sides of his throat, the roof of his mouth. A hum of energy rose around him, surging through his blood, merging his body and ethera. The energy was as tangible as the vibrations from a string quartet, a beautiful melody that elucidated Teryn’s control. His capabilities. Now all he needed to do was shape that energy into movement and sound.

Teryn .

His name wove through this melody and stitched itself into his consciousness. He didn’t let it break his concentration, even as he searched his mind to identify the voice. Was Emylia talking to him? No, she’d returned to the bounds of the crystal and had left him to practice alone. Besides, this voice filled him with warmth. With purpose.

It was Cora.

At the door again.

“Teryn, I know it’s the middle of the night but…but that also means you’re in there. I know you are.”

I am , he thought, but it wasn’t enough to think it. He had to speak it.

A new sense of urgency—of need—filled him. Cora was right there, on the other side of his bedroom door. All he had to do was tell her.

“I’m not leaving until you open this door. I’ll get Master Arther to unlock it if you won’t do so yourself.”

Teryn directed his attention to the inside of his mouth, the placement of his tongue. Slowly, his tongue lifted, the back of it connecting with flesh at the roof of his mouth, and his lips formed an O shape.

“I don’t even know how badly you were hurt.” Her voice came out with a quaver, a sound that nearly cleaved Teryn’s heart in two. But instead of breaking, he used it as fuel, gathering his pain, his desperation, and sending it out in a surge of energy through his vocal cords.

“Please. I need you right now.”

“Cora!” The word left Teryn’s mouth in a shout. A bit uneven, perhaps, but it was clear.

He’d done it.

But in that same moment, Teryn’s body bolted out of bed, and Teryn was no longer in control of it. No matter how he tried not to feel disappointed after such a success—even one so short-lived—it was impossible not to. Especially when Morkai’s eyes slid to the door.

“Teryn, I heard you,” came Cora’s voice. It was oddly more muted now that he was out of his meditation. Somehow, she had sounded so much closer before. Like she’d been speaking directly to his soul. “Please let me in.”

Morkai glanced around the room, eyes wild, then stormed over to the door. He gripped the handle…but halted. Doubling back, he retrieved a discarded black jacket from the foot of the bed and hastily shoved his arms through it. He secured the jacket’s buttons as well as the laces of his ruffled shirt collar, hiding not only the thin cut at the base of his throat but any sign of the crystal he wore. Only then did Morkai return to the door and fling it open.

Teryn finally moved from the bed. A sense of loss fell over him. In the wake of having regained temporary control of his body, being nothing more than his ethera felt wrong. Broken. How had he forgotten everything he’d been missing as a body?

Those worries fled his mind as soon as he saw Cora’s face. She blinked up at Morkai from the doorway, dressed in only a white chemise draped in a floor-length velvet robe of violet and gold. Her expression alternated between relief and anger.

The latter gained dominance over her features. “Where have you been? I looked for you all day. Have you any clue how many times I’ve knocked on your door? You didn’t attend dinner. You forbade servants from entering?—”

“I was resting,” Morkai said, voice hoarse from sleep but still so much like Teryn’s own.

“From your injuries?” Cora’s eyes widened as they searched his face. Teryn knew what she saw—the dark circles, his gaunt cheeks. Her expression turned to one of panic. “Teryn, are you all right?”

“I’m fine.”

She shook her head. “No, you look…unwell.” Stepping in close, she lifted a hand to his cheek?—

Morkai caught her wrist so abruptly, Cora froze. Teryn, however, found himself suddenly at Cora’s side. Whether he’d run, floated, or simply transported his ethera from one space to another, he knew not. All he knew was the rage that coursed through him at the sight of Morkai’s fingers clenched around her wrist like that. He hated that he could do nothing. That he could only watch, only feel his heart race as fear raked claws through him.

Morkai’s expression hardened with startled anger, but it lasted only a split second. In the next moment, the look was gone. Had Cora noticed it at all? Her eyes were locked on Morkai’s fingers.

With a too-convincing smile, Morkai loosened his grip and brought the back of her hand to his lips. After a brief kiss, he dropped her wrist and took a subtle step back. “I told you I’m fine. Please don’t worry about me. We have much bigger things to face in the morning.”

Cora narrowed her eyes, her hand still lifted halfway between them. Then she took a deep breath and brushed past him into the room. The breeze she carried vibrated against the edges of Teryn’s ethera. She planted herself in the middle of the room, facing away from him. Crossing her arms, she said, “That’s what I’m here for. We need to talk.”

Morkai’s jaw tensed as he glared at her back. Then, with an aggrieved sigh, he closed the door with more force than necessary.

Cora jumped at the sound and whirled toward him. As soon as her eyes landed on his face, Morkai’s smile returned.

Teryn’s incorporeal form rippled with tension.

“Breathe, Teryn.” Emylia appeared at his side. It was the first time he’d seen her since she’d left him to practice. “He won’t hurt her. He needs her alive, remember? You need to stay calm.”

Teryn couldn’t bring himself to reply. Instead, he focused on keeping his breaths steady, his awareness of his vitale strong. Now that he understood the repercussions of overtaxing his vitale, it was more important than ever to take her reminders to heart.

Morkai closed some of the distance between himself and Cora but left ample space, hands clasped behind his back. “I’ve already agreed to everything the council has asked of me. You don’t need to worry. We’ll marry in the morning. The peace pact is safe, as is your kingdom.”

Cora’s brows lowered. “That’s not what I mean. There’s something else I need to tell you.”

“Whatever it is, it can wait,” he said, his tone so gentle it made a dismissive mockery of Cora’s clearly flustered state.

Her cheeks flushed with restrained anger. “No, it can’t. This is important.”

“What could be more important than the safety of your kingdom? Is this about us ? Don’t you remember the promise I made? I won’t go back on my word. I’ll woo you as I said I would. Court you as you deserve. Our marriage contract need not matter when it comes to our hearts. We’ll take things slow?—”

“I can’t have children.” The words burst from Cora’s lips in an angry shout.

The only movement Morkai made was a mild narrowing of his eyes.

Teryn, on the other hand, felt as if he were being ripped to shreds. Less from the words she’d said and more from the pain behind them.

“That’s all right,” Morkai said, voice soft. “Truly.”

“It’s not all right.” Tears welled in Cora’s eyes, and her voice carried a tremor. “Morkai placed a curse on me. He bound my fate to Queen Linette’s using our blood, ensuring I’d die childless like she did.”

Morkai’s face fell with false sympathy. He took a step forward, and Cora’s shoulders sagged. She lifted her hands from her sides as if she expected him to embrace her.

But he didn’t. He simply…stopped. His hands remained clasped behind his back.

Teryn’s eyes settled on Cora, giving her the attention his body couldn’t. Was this what she’d been struggling with the night he’d found her crying in the tower? This…this curse? Grief and rage tore through him. His breaths grew sharp and shallow, threatening him with a wave of panic, but he refused to lose his connection to his vitale.

Morkai tilted his head slightly to the side. “That’s what you found so pressing to say? Were you worried I’d reject you?”

“It involves you. It affects the future of my kingdom.”

He stepped closer again, slower this time. Still, he made no move to touch her.

She had to know this wasn’t him. That Teryn would never act so coldly. Would never withhold affection when she so clearly wanted it. Needed it.

“There’s nothing to worry about, Aveline. I’m here for you. We’ll work through this later. Naming an heir isn’t something we need to concern ourselves with tonight. Let us get some sleep. Tomorrow is an important day for us.” Morkai extended his hand toward the door.

Cora remained rooted in place. Her eyes locked on his face. “Why did you call me Aveline?”

Morkai’s expression went blank, but he quickly donned an easy smile. “You’re going to be queen. It’s time I get used to calling you by your true name.”

Fingers curled into fists, Cora strode up to him. Morkai’s breath hitched as he took a step back, but Cora closed that space too. Despite their height difference, Cora kept her eyes on his. “What’s really going on? This isn’t you.”

Teryn’s heart raced. No, Cora. It isn’t me. Please see that. Please see the truth.

A tic formed at the corners of Morkai’s jaw, but he said nothing.

“You’re acting strange,” Cora said. “What are you hiding? What is happening to you?”

“Nothing,” Morkai said, finally stepping in to fill the space between them. Then, after an agonizing beat of hesitation, he lifted his hands and settled them on Cora’s shoulders. It would appear like a gesture of comfort if it wasn’t for how stiff Morkai was, as if he were waiting, dreading, poised for the inevitable…

Teryn waited too, waited for Cora to know, to realize, to feel what was missing…

She shook her head, lips curving into a frown. “I can’t read you.”

Morkai’s fingers curled ever so slightly on her shoulders. “Why are you trying to read me?”

“Because something isn’t right. I can feel that much, but I…I can’t feel you . Not even when we’re close. Not even when you touch me. It’s like…it’s like you’re not really here.”

Teryn wanted to believe this was a good thing. Cora could tell something was wrong. But her confession meant Morkai knew that touching her gave her no additional insight. Revealed none of the secrets he was hiding.

Dread wound deep inside Teryn.

Morkai’s smile widened with a note of triumph. His posture relaxed as he smoothed out his hands and began running them down her shoulders. “I’m sorry things aren’t going the way you hoped. I know we were supposed to have a full year together?—”

“That’s not it.”

“Then what is it? What’s wrong?”

“This still doesn’t…feel right. Something between us has changed, and I don’t understand what it is.”

“What can I do to prove everything is going to be all right?”

She stared at him, eyes drifting over his face as if desperate to read the truth written over it. Then her gaze stilled, deepened, locked on Morkai’s eyes. Her expression hardened. Lifting her chin, she said, “Kiss me.”

Teryn’s heart rioted in his chest. No .

She stepped in closer, and this time Morkai didn’t try to step away. “Kiss me like you did under the tree. Kiss me like you want to be my husband.”

Teryn’s eyes darted between Cora and Morkai, blood boiling as he saw the smirk twisting Morkai’s face, the tilt of his head as he began to lower it toward her uptilted chin. Teryn felt a strange pull, as strong as Cora’s voice had been both times he’d heard it on the other side of the bedroom door. This time it was her body, the warmth of her presence calling to his soul, drawing him forward on an invisible tether that seemed to grow straight from the center of his chest. Without another thought, he gave in to the pull and settled into the space of his body.

“Teryn, no!” Emylia’s warning barely made it past his awareness, for in the next moment, he felt his flesh against the sleeves of Cora’s velvet robe, breathed in the familiar scent of her hair, her skin, felt her with his body, his mind, and his ethera. There was no part of him that wasn’t aware of her. So when her lips crushed into his, it was he who kissed back. He who folded into the embrace of the woman he loved.