Jae hoped the Closest had heard the rumors about her and her magic, and realized she would save them. But if she were in Gali’s place, she wouldn’t believe anything like that. It seemed impossible that even magic could stand up against the Highest. But Jae could and would.

To her surprise, Elthis left the estate almost as soon as he arrived, with only Shirrad, Desinn, and Elan accompanying him. She followed their path around the reservoir and back to Aredann slowly. Elan and Shirrad walked off together, finding other Avowed and sending them scurrying, while Desinn and Elthis made their way toward the largest hall.

People began to gather there quickly, Shirrad and Elan joining them after a few minutes. Jae decided she’d been stuck in this room long enough. If Elthis was going to make Aredann’s abandonment official, she was going to hear it for herself. She made her way downstairs and gave Firran a wry look as she walked past him into the hall. He flinched and darted to another corner, farther from her. She didn’t push her way through the crowd, though, just stood at the back and waited.

Elan stood at his father’s side at the front of the room, facing the crowd. Jae knew the moment when he spotted her by the way his eyes widened, but she just stared him down. His expression smoothed quickly, morphing into the same polite, bored smile he’d worn throughout the first days of his visit.

“My friends, my beloved Avowed,” Elthis finally began. He was a large man, and Jae could see how much Elan resembled him. They were both handsome, with warm brown skin and loose dark curls, but Elthis’s eyes were darker and more narrow, his chin not quite as square. And he was more commanding. He stood as if he owned the room, because he did. The room, and everyone in it. Except Jae.

“My advisor has written to me about Aredann again and again over the past weeks. He and my son have told me how much the drought has affected you all—how much you’ve suffered, how hard you’ve all worked. But I did not understand the enormity of it until I saw it with my own eyes.

“I’ve been told of your earthquake. I can see the evidence of it around me, from the patched walls to the chaos of the streets outside. And I know what it means.” His gaze swept across the crowd. Jae waited for it to stop on her, but it didn’t—he didn’t seem to notice her at all. “The more people in our world, the less water for each. So we have begun changing the way the Well flows—moving people away from outlying estates, and then sending the water itself to other reservoirs. We must do this with Aredann now. It has been a hard decision to reach, and changing the Well’s flow takes a great deal of magic. The process has begun—and unfortunately, you experienced the results as an earthquake. But don’t fear. We will all leave Aredann within a few days. With any luck, none of you will suffer such a fright again.”

He smiled at them, calm and paternal. People around her murmured in relief, but Jae stepped forward. Elthis had lied to them. It was a grain of sand compared to the desert of the Highest’s lies, but Jae knew better now. And she could prove it.

“That is not true,” Jae said, already reaching for the magic around her.

Elthis’s gaze swept down her frame. He glanced at Elan, and Elan gave him a slight, tiny nod. When he looked back at her, he smiled again.

“You must all forgive this girl. My son granted her permission to speak on behalf of her people—but now you hear for yourselves why we keep the Closest in silence. They are, as they always have been, mad—and traitorous.” He shook his head a little, as if he was bemused. “We’ll discuss this in private.”

“There is nothing to discuss,” Jae said, but it was obvious from the smirks and stifled amusement of the Avowed around her that none of them believed her. Elthis’s explanation for the earthquake was so much more comfortable. They would never believe anything else, not unless she made them.

Elthis began walking toward her—toward the door. Shirrad, Elan, and Desinn followed in his wake.

“You know it’s a lie, Elan. You know it,” she said, but it was hard to speak loudly enough to be heard over the crowd, and he wouldn’t meet her gaze. He just gestured her toward the door.

She had no choice but to follow, the moment lost. Not that it mattered. Maybe the Avowed believed Elthis—but of course they would. What they thought didn’t matter. Elthis knew the truth, that magic made her as powerful and dangerous as he was. So fine, she’d discuss this in private. She would inform Lord Elthis that even his power had limits—and tell him what she was prepared to do if he forced her hand.

They made their way to Lady Shirrad’s private study, a smaller room where one of the mosaics had been pried off the wall. The table had been pushed back into position after the quake, but the missing bricks in the wall hadn’t been replaced, and the cracks in the ceiling hadn’t been repaired. Elthis threw it all a disdainful look, but gestured Shirrad down onto one of the cushions.

“Desinn, have someone fetch us water,” he said calmly. Desinn nodded and hurried out. Elthis turned to Jae and added, “So this is the Closest who has caused so much trouble. What is her name?”

“Jae, Highest,” Lady Shirrad said quickly.

“Jae,” he repeated. “I have to admit, I’m fascinated by everything I’ve heard about you. A Closest who is not a Closest, who dares speak in front of me. Who, I’m told, has magic. I’d accuse my son of making it all up, but even Desinn seems to believe it.”

“Because it’s true.” Jae stood up as tall as she could.

“You shook Aredann to its foundation,” he continued. “Nearly knocked the whole place down. And Lord Rannith, you killed him in cold blood.”

“No,” she said. “There was nothing cold about it. I killed him to protect myself.”

“But you admit that you killed him.”

“Yes,” she said. There was no point in lying, and she wasn’t ashamed, or sorry, or afraid.

Desinn came back into the room, Tal trailing behind him, carrying mugs and a water jug. He placed them on the table and poured, but before he could leave, Desinn grabbed him by the sleeve.

“If you are free from the Curse,” Elthis said, his tone almost entertained, “then you are nothing but a pesky Twill and should be dealt with as one. You murdered one of Lady Shirrad’s Avowed, and have confessed to it. That’s a crime, and it’s punishable by death. Why shouldn’t I simply see you hanged?”