"Oh, would he?” Lord Sebourne sneered. "You'd like that, wouldn't you? Was arranging for Talisa to be alone here with her lover part of whatever plan you and the Fey were hatching with the king?"

"What in the Seven Hells are you talking about?' Cann exclaimed "Did a week in Old Castle rot your brain?"

"Don't play the innocent. Colum and I know what's been going on here. Don't we, Colum?"

"I..." Colum shook his head and dragged his fingers through his hair.

Lord Sebourne squinted at him and stepped closer. "What's wrong with you, boy?" His brows shot up to his hairline.

Alarmed that Lord Sebourne might discover Adrial had been manipulating Colum's mind, Talisa leapt forward. "Father. Lord Sebourne. Please. There is no need for you to argue." Talisa put her hand on Colum's arm. "Colum has already explained why we must go north with you and the king's army. I was just about to have my maid begin packing when you arrived."

"Talisa!" her father exclaimed. "It's out of the question. War has begun. Every estate on the borders is in danger of being overrun by the Eld. You could be killed."

«Shei'tani, nei! I've already told you, it is too dangerous.»

Adrial's voice was so clear in her head, it shocked her that the others could not hear him. The rich tones shivered up and down her spine like a warm caress, the sound so intoxicatingly sensual it was all she could do not to groan aloud and rush towards the spot where she now knew he was standing.

Her reaction solidified her resolve. Adrial and her father were wrong. The most dangerous place for her wasn't in the north near the battlefront. it was right here in Celieria City— especially if Colum went north with his father and left her behind. Talisa harbored no illusions. If she were left alone with Adrial—honor, marital vows, even duty to the Bright Lord be damned—she would not long withstand the lure of his presence. She would throw away everything to follow him. To be with him.

And that meant she could not stay.

"We're borderfolk, Da. We've lived in the jaws of the beast our whole lives, and we don't run from danger. Colum is my husband, and if he is leaving, then I must accompany him"

"Well." Lord Sebourne regarded her with an expression that flickered between surprise, suspicion, and reluctant approval. "I'm glad to see you're thinking like the wife of a Sebourne. It's about time."

Talisa bit her lip. Shame rode her hard. She wasn't any sort of a proper wife for Colum. She never had been, "Yes, my lord."

"Then see to it my son and you are packed and ready to depart within the bell. We ride out with the king. I’ll send a carriage at half ten to collect you."

"Yes, my lord." Talisa dipped a brief curtsy. "Colum and I will be ready and waiting. Now if you'll please excuse me, I’ll go see to the packing." She turned to exit the room.

At the foot of the stairs, a warm breeze brushed across her face, and Adrial's voice whispered in her ear.

«I won't leave you, shei'tani. No matter your Path, I will walk it beside you.»

Talisa shivered and paused with one foot on the stairs. "You'll do what you must," she whispered in response. "And so will I." And with stoic resolve, she started up the stairs.

Celieria City ~ The Royal Palace

When Jiarine entered the queen's antechambers to prepare Her Majesty for the army's departure celebration, she found Annoura's bedchamber door firmly closed and the space outside filled with Dazzles milling uselessly about.

"What are you doing here?” she cried when she saw them. "Why aren't you helping Her Majesty get dressed?”

The queen has refused to let anyone enter, my lady," one of the Dazzles explained. "She says she's not coming out. She says she will not watch her husband ride to his death,"

Alarmed, Jiarine hurried to the bedchamber door and rapped twice.

"Go away!" a hoarse croak of a voice called from within the room. "I told you, I will not go!"

"Your Majesty, it's Jiarine. Lady Montevero."

Silence. Then she heard the sound of the lock twisting inside. The door swung inward a bare crack. "Only you, Jiarine. No one else."

"Of course, Your Majesty," Jiarine shooed the other courtiers away, then slipped inside. When the door closed behind her and she turned, Jiarine was shocked by the appearance of Celieria's beautiful and rightfully vain queen.

Annoura’s face was blotched and swollen from tears, her blue eyes so badly bloodshot her irises stood out in stark relief. With her silvery blond hair hung in a wild tangle around her race, she was the living picture of despair and inconsolable grief.

"Oh, Your Majesty," Jiarine breathed. Never would she have believed that there was anything or anyone in the world Annoura cared for this much.

Once again, an unexpected flash of sympathy for Celieria's queen welled up inside Jiarine. Poor Annoura. She would never know how hard the Mages of Eld had worked to bring her so low. Nor would she ever know how great a role Jiarine had played in bringing this state of affairs about.

Annoura turned away and lifted shaking hands to cover her face. The queen's shoulders quaked and the sound of a shuddering inhalation told Jiarine a fresh torrent of tears was struggling to break free.

"What should I do?” Annoura wailed softly. "The king's departure is in less than a bell, but I can't let anyone see me like this." In a softer voice, she added, "Least of all him,"