Page 134 of A Curse of Breath and Blood

He kissed my gloved hand. “You are not alone anymore, Aelia.”

A bittersweet taste filled my mouth. I wanted to trust Tharan, but I had been let down so many times before. “Do not make promises you cannot keep, King.”

Amolie and Roderick were waiting for us when we arrived at the Alder Palace, accompanied by Frost and Winter, who came bounding out of the foyer, licking Tharan’s face.

“Well, it’s nice to see you, too,” he said as the pups whined for attention.

A solemn look crossed Amolie’s round face. “Since Baylis is still asleep, I’m assuming you didn’t get the amulet?”

I looked at my feet. “It’s a long story, but we didn’t.”

Amolie bit her lower lip. “I don’t know how much longer I can keep her in her current state. We may not be able to pull her out.”She ran a hand nervously through her wild curls.

I wrung my hands. “I should not have asked you to do this, Amolie. This must be taking a toll on you.”

Amolie straightened. “I will do it for as long as possible, but I am not as skilled as others in my order. I may need to send for help.”

I nodded. “Thank you for everything.”

My heart ached at the thought of my sister wasting away in a bed for the rest of her life.

Tharan put a reassuring hand on my shoulder. “We’ll figure something out.”

Roderick cleared his throat. “Uh, there’s something else.”

“What?” I shot Amolie a panicked look.

“Caiden is here,” she whispered, taking my hand in hers.

Caiden emerged from the shadows, the winter sun illuminating his cold blue eyes.

A rope knotted itself around my heart. Words eluded me. What do you say to someone who has no recollection of your history?

“I’m Caiden Stormweaver. I don’t believe we’ve been formally introduced.” He held out his hand in a sign of greeting.

My heart sank as the shred of hope I held onto disintegrated into nothing. Clearing my throat, I took his hand. “Aelia.”

He gave me a devilish smile, making butterflies dance in my stomach. “Excuse me for saying this, but I can’t help but feel we’ve met before.”

A knife twisted in my heart. I pushed back hot tears. “Perhaps when you came to visit my sister, Baylis, in the Midlands.”

“Oh, you’re Baylis’s sister. That makes sense now. I’d love to chat more about the Highlands and Gideon. You were impressive back there.”

A sob built in my chest, and I nodded. “I’d like that too.” My words, a whisper.

“I’ll see you at dinner.” He headed back into the castle.

A single tear snaked its way down my cheek.

We recapped our adventure in the Highlands over a dinner of roasted lamb stew.

“What about Gideon and Erissa? They still need to stand trial,” Roderick asked.

“Scattered to the wind, laying low, biding their time,” Caiden replied.

Roderick slurped his soup. “What of the Highlands?”

“Ashes, I assume. We may have made them martyrs in the eyes of some. The continent will divide further. But I still need to find them. They need to stand trial.” Tharan took a sip of wine before motioning to Hopper to come closer. “Call the Phantom.”

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