LOGINOn a whim, I try to roll him over, not expecting the iron cage of his arms to so much as shift. But he flips easily with a soft noise of surprise. I pull back, worried.“Apologies.” He smiles ruefully and taps the bandage on his face—on the side I rolled him to. “I think this will take some getting
“Oh.” I glance at Amval. Cirocco waits by his shoulder, clearly about to demand something similar. All the pressures of life suddenly descend back into place. With Kaloni dead, Amval has no rival for the crown. There’s going to be a coronation and then months of cleaning up what happened here. I’m g
Ingrid“The Goddess’ will is often far more complicated than any of us can guess,” Halit says, blood streaked on her cheek from the arrow she took to the shoulder before fleeing the altar.Laughter ripples through the temple. I know, from my second march up here, that the healthy hold up the wounded
And that is his mistake. The heartbeat he wastes on gloating gives me just enough time to slash at his unprotected throat, tearing through fur and old scar tissue.Blood waterfalls onto me, hot and fast. I wriggle out of the way before he crumples. Dead.Or at least it seems so. My halved vision mak
Amval“She will never be ready to marry my brother!” I shout as I storm into the packed temple, a sword lifted high above my head and a trail of allies collected from every corner of the palace behind me.Gasps ripple through the crowd, buoying my name forward. Ingrid turns, her jaw falling slack. T
I suck in a breath through my gritted teeth as Halit intones about the complexities of fate, how perhaps Amval dying was all part of Her cosmic plan for Cirocco and I to end up together. Maybe it was part of Her cosmic plan for me to punch a holy woman in the mouth.No. Joli is counting on me. Light
King Iraj laughs. “It’s a festival for all, son. Please join us.”Amval swallows loudly, audible only to me over the music. “Thank you, Your Majesty.”The reunited Som family—and I—follow the music to the center of the little town.Apparently, Kubilay pulls out all the stops for this festival. Joli
AmvalWhen I wake and breathe in a lungful of violet-and-ink scented air, everything seems right with the world for just a moment. There are a thousand pains to face once I open my eyes, funerals, murderers, and my siblings looking past me, but at least I have her.I reach across the tiny bed, hopin
“But nothing.” I loop my other arm through Cirocco’s and gesture for Joli to do the same. Amval clings to me like a life raft. “I promised I needed a set of hands to carry my prizes—I have to compete!”Roseapple ale flows freely as we float from one booth to the next. I catapult small sandbags into
“Take all the time you need, brother.”***The whole week of preparations is like that over and over again. Iltas and the other groom are mostly responsible for helping them, but they need additional hands often, and my awful habit of hovering nearby to catch glimpses of my family makes me the quick







