The castle had gone silent. Below, Kaine thrashed once more against the reinforced trapdoor of the makeshift cellar, before another surge of Riven’s energy reminded him resistance was useless. Upstairs, the others drifted to their rooms, heavy with everything left unspoken. But Mae wasn’t alone. Ashar lay on one side of her bed, sitting upright, back against the carved headboard. Riven stretched out on the other side, one arm resting behind his head, eyes open even in the dark. Neither said a word. Neither slept.
Mae curled between them, breathing soft but uneven. When her eyes fluttered closed, her mind opened. It didn’t begin with Kaine. It began with fire. Mae stood in a place that looked like the castle, but warped, half-melted, dripping with shadows and light. Screaming echoed in the
