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“Rainier requested that we travel to Palgia with Erol,” Mom said.
“What?” I repeated. My stomach twisted at the thought of going back.
“The only way you can work with the Conjurites that need to be saved is to be where they are.”
That made sense. “Where will we stay?”
“You’ll be Erol’s guests of honor,” Ellie said. “You’ll stay at the castle with him, and he’ll take good care of you.”
My stomach twisted again, and I felt sick. “We’re going back to the castle?” My voice was thin, and I felt shaky.
“You have a choice, Hazel,” Ellie confirmed. “I understand the trauma that you had to endure. If you don’t want to go back to Palgia, you do not have to. It is completely your choice.”
I exhaled, trying to gather my thoughts. “I want to help those that want to come back to the light, but the thought of being back in Palgia terrifies me.”
“We’ll be there as guests,” Mom said carefully, but she looked as pale as I felt.
We’d spent a year and a half as Falx’s prisoners in the dungeon below the castle. To go back there felt wrong. We had escaped, and it had been a struggle to get back to Jasfin, to win back our freedom. How could we choose to go back there, now?
Mom reached for me and squeezed my hand.
“I feel it, too, sweetheart. It won’t be the same. There’s no one else who can do this job, and we owe it to them to help, to show them the way back to the light.”
I swallowed hard. Of course, Mom was right. That didn’t mean I liked it.
“You’ll be perfectly safe,” Ellie said. “We’ll check in with you daily, and make sure we have trackers on you. You’ll have everything you could possibly need to ensure that this stay will be a lot more pleasant than the last.” Her features darkened as she thought about the time she’d spent in the dungeon with us.
It was where I’d found my long-lost sister, where my mom had found her daughter. It was where our family had become whole again.
“You keep saying ‘you,’” I said. “You’re not coming with us?”
Ellie shook her head. “I can’t, not now that I’m with child.”
Of course, she had to stay here while she was pregnant.
“And Nylah?” I asked, looking at the High Priestess. I hoped she would come with us, too. I knew the answer to the question before she shook her head.
The High Priestess of Jasfin wouldn’t go with us to Palgia. Her place was here, to look after the royal family, to do her duties as the one person with a direct link to the goddess Terra.
“Does Palgia have a high priestess yet?” I questioned.
“Not yet. Erol will choose someone as soon as we take care of the Conjurite magic. Right now, the only person who could fill the position—since everyone is Conjurite—would be a Conjurite priestess, and we don’t want that.”
I shook my head. We definitely didn’t want that.
“We still have a few things to figure out,” Ellie said. “We’re taking this one step at a time. If you need time to think about your decision—”
“I’ll go,” I interrupted.
Ellie smiled—an expression that conveyed her relief.
I understood what they were doing. It made sense to send me and my mom, since we were the ones who could heal the Conjurites. The idea of going back still terrified me, no matter how much everyone told me that it would be okay.
“I’ve asked Ren to send a personal guard with you two,” Ellie added. “I know how tough this will be on you, and I think it’s only right.”
“Who?” Mom asked.
“I asked Zita,” Ellie said. “She’s an incredible warrior, and she’s a very good friend. She has a newfound skill—it turns out she can predict a warrior’s moves before they make it, so she can prepare, block, fight back in ways no other warrior can. I think she’ll be the best person for the job.”
