I sat by the window and looked at the gardens with my siblings and read them stories. Nori, Dom…Billy. They loved the library.
And Day—we made love on that couch, surrounded by the smell of woodsmoke and the sea. I thought I was going to die of happiness.
And I fell in love with Rosalina between the pages of these books where we first saw each other’s souls, our twin flames of curiosity.
“I can’t lose this place,” I sob. “This is our home.”
There’s a flicker of magic, and my arms are grasping cold armor. Dayton sits as a fae before me.
He gasps, surprised, and looks down at himself. “What happened? I didn’t mean to change.”
We stare at each other.
Dayton’s teal eyes widen. “Fare… I can’t feel my magic anymore. Or my wolf.”
A hollowness echoes through me, like a piece of my very being has been stripped away. I hold out my palm, but the idea of a flame forming there feels as impossible as flying.
“Our roses,” Dayton gasps.
“They’re dying,” I say. “Like Castletree.”
82
Rosalina
It’s over.
I’ve failed.
What else can I do?
Castletree will fall. Our home, destroyed.
I wasn’t strong enough to stop Sira.
Beams of wood break around me. Stones skitter over my skin. The air shakes with the sound of creatures roaring and screaming. But I can’t even raise my head off the floor.
We were prepared to protect the realms. All our armies wait at the ready. But there’s no one to protect Castletree. No one except me.
How stupid they all were to put their faith in me.
“We have to get out of here!” Ezryn roars. “The entrance hall’s about to collapse!”
I’m yanked to my feet, Ezryn’s grip bruising. There’s panic in his voice, unlike anything I’ve ever heard.
My father wraps his arms around my shoulder. “Steady now, Rosalina. We’re going to have to move quickly. I’ve got you.”
But who’s got Papa?
What will happen to him if Castletree is nothing but debris? His life is tethered to its magic. Without it…
His hands tremble, and there’s a raspy quality to his breath.I have to save you…
Caspian backs up until he’s standing near us. He looks up at my mother, and it’s as if a silent conversation passes between them. “Fine,” my mother whispers. “We go.”
A crash explodes through the air, and I’m only kept on my feet by Papa. Slivers of wood and stone shower over us. I blink through the dust to see a hole in the wall. Standing in the wreckage is a massive ogre, twelve feet tall and snarling. His body appears to be made of boulders, skin meshed with rock, eyes red with grit. In his hands, he’s holding a club. To my horror, it’s one of Castletree’s branches. He might as well be wielding one of my limbs.
Ezryn makes a low growl and steps in front of us. “My wolf will see to this.”
