“So are we, if we don’t act.”
He blew out a breath and looked away. “You really think Klaus and his people will fight for us?”
“Cat convinced him.”
“Of course she did,” he muttered.
I met his gaze. “I need you, Garrick…Catneeds you.”
He looked back at the gambling den as though weighing what he was leaving behind. Then he shrugged. “Well, I already gave away my winnings. Might as well gamble on something real.”
We clasped hands.
“You’ll have it done in time?”
He nodded. “I’ll work to gather what I need. Tell Klaus to be ready. When the wards drop, he’ll have his freedom… and so will we.” He began to turn, but paused. “And Damien?”
“What?”
He met my gaze, his expression solemn. “Don’t get yourself killed before I get back. You’re the only one she’d burn the world for.”
I gave him a grim smile. “Then let’s make sure there’s still a world left to burn.”
As we disappeared into the winding streets of the Southern District, a plan etched itself into motion.
I was one step closer to freeing Cat.
And one step closer to war.
The wind shiftedthe instant I reached the edge of Faelight Forest.
The air here always carried a hint of something strange. Earthier. Older. Heavier. Not like the rest of Elaria, which buzzed with life and flame and steel. No, this place whispered. It breathed. It remembered. Moss clung to the bark like it had grown sentient, and the trees stretched taller than any tower in Dragon Valley with gnarled limbs twisting like dancers mid-pose. Fog clung low to the forest floor, curling around my boots with an eerie gentleness.
The shadows felt alive here. If you weren’t careful, I was half-convinced they would remember your name.
I pulled my cloak tighter around me as I strode forward with deliberate steps. Faelight Forest wasn’t a place you rushed through; it was a place that demanded respect, or it would eat you whole.
Cat had warned me of that.
She’d told me about the first time she came here—how she became hopelessly lost and was found by Klaus. How she struck a bargain, one that bound them together, however briefly. She said he was charming in that insufferably smug way only a fae could master. But more than that, he was dangerous. Unpredictable. A creature caged by ancient magic and endless time. I’d only met him once.
And today, I came to rattle his cage.
“I was beginning to wonder if you'd show.”
His voice came from nowhere and everywhere. Smooth as honeyed wine, sharp as a dagger between the ribs. A figure emerged from the trees, not walking so much as gliding.
Klaus.
He looked the same as I’d last seen him—tall and lithe, lavender eyes gleaming with mischief beneath a curtain of silky white hair that shimmered like light had been spun through it. He wore no crown, but his bearing screamed royalty. His presence warped the space around him like a heatwave on a summer field.
“You’re late,” he added.
“I wasn’t aware you were expecting me.”
“Oh, I always expect trouble. Especially when Kitten is involved.”
I didn’t rise to the bait.
