If her sense of danger wasn’t so heightened, Roa might have rolled her eyes. She’d sooner trust a cobra.
Rebekah must have realized this. Because she looked wordlessly to Garnet, who left the room. Heartbeats later, when smoke began to curl up toward the hole in the roof, Rebekah stepped toward the wide window overlooking the grounds.
“Come and see.”
Roa joined her, peering out through the glass. In the courtyard below, the door of the house opened and out steppedTorwin, rubbing his wrists, which were no longer bound. At the far end of the brightly lit court, Lirabel, Safire, and Dax stood deep in conversation, surrounded by the king and queen’s guards. The moment they spotted Torwin, their conversation halted and they broke apart, staring at their friend.
Safire ran for Torwin first, nearly barreling him over, squeezing him in a hug. Behind her, Dax’s lips moved. As Safire let go, Torwin shook his head, answering Dax’s question. Dax looked to the house briefly, his brow furrowed.
“You see?” said Rebekah, returning to the basin, stacking logs onto the flames. “He’s safe.”
Roa felt trapped, suddenly. As if Torwin going free was the key turning, locking her into the cage.
On her shoulder, Essie ruffled her feathers and shifted nervously from claw to claw.
Garnet returned a heartbeat later, shutting the door behind him.
Rebekah looked up from the fire, to the white hawk perched on Roa’s shoulder. “So. You need to kill the king in order to save your sister.”
Roa went rigid.
Rebekah knew the hawk was her sister? Was there anything Theo hadn’t told her?
Roa pressed her palms to the window glass, letting it bear her up. Essie’s claws dug into her shoulder, steadying her.
“How, exactly, is that going to work?” Rebekah pressed.
Roa swallowed. Steeling herself, she turned to face the girl at the fire basin.
“It must be done on the Relinquishing, with the Skyweaver’s knife.” The same day Essie would resume her true form. “On that night, with that blade”—she nodded to the weapon tucked into Rebekah’s sash—“the Skyweaver will accept the exchange of Dax’s soul for Essie’s, because she died when he should have.”
Rebekah studied her. From the look in her eyes, she didn’t believe in things like souls or the Skyweaver. But she kept this to herself. “By taking his life, yours will be forfeit.”
“That’s what we need your help with,” said Theo from behind Roa, who hardened at the sound of his voice.
Rebekah nodded. “As I said, my father and I have a great deal of influence in Firgaard. The court was unhappy with Dax’s revolt. They are even less happy now that he sits on the throne. If my father and I support the queen, they will too.”
The words chafed Roa. She didn’t trust Rebekah or the court. But there was nothing she could do: she was in league with this creature now, no matter how much she hated it. This was the cost of Torwin’s freedom.
“There will be twice as many people in the city for the Relinquishing,” Roa said. “Most of them will be masked. It will be chaos, which means Safire’s attention will be divided. You and Theo will need to use the chaos to your advantage while I...”
When she couldn’t finish the sentence, Rebekah finished for her, watching Roa carefully. “While you kill Dax with the knife.”
Roa looked away, thinking of Dax in the dining hall. Of theway he reached for her trembling hands. Of his pure rage at the sight of Torwin in the clutches of the enemy.
And yet, just last night, she’d found his seal in the pocket of a man who’d tried to kill her.
She pushed the confusion out of her mind, thinking instead of what she must do: cut Dax’s soul free with the Skyweaver’s knife in order to save her sister.
Theo spoke up then. “I have fifty men on their way here. But in order to take the palace—which we’ll have to do if we stand any chance against Safire and her army—we need a way in. The front gate will be too heavily defended.”
Rebekah’s eyes lit up. “Has Dax shown you any of the secret passageways?”
Roa glanced up.Secret passageways?“No.”
Rebekah tilted her head, as if this were an interesting fact she was tucking away for later. “He used to tell my father about them. There’s at least one that leads out into the city.” She lifted her hands to the fire, warming herself. “And since you’re the only one of us with unrestricted access within the palace, you’ll need to be the one to find it.”
Roa’s grip on the iron edge of the basin tightened.
