“You have an ulterior motive for coming here, Princess,” the Dark asha said. “You aren’t here to ask me to stop my work. You’re here to plead for my brother’s life.”

Princess Inessa stiffened. “I will not deny that. If you die—”

“Then so will he. Every action I do against the kingdoms and the elder asha will increase the likelihood of retaliation against him. He knew the risks. You knew the risks.”

The noblewoman trembled. “I don’t care.”

The Dark asha smiled and took the princess’s hands in her own. “You trusted me enough to walk past the daeva guarding the palace, knowing you would not be harmed. Trust me for a little bit longer.”

“Is there no way for me to change your mind?”

“If I succeed, then you will have everything you want. No more wars, no more daeva.” She turned back to the window. “No more magic,” she added softly. “How is he?”

The princess hesitated. “Worried about you.”

I watched the asha’s lips move, sounding each word carefully, afraid that they might take the shape of other emotions she did not want to voice aloud. “Tell Fox I am sorry for everything. But there is no turning back now.”

“Apologize to him yourself, Tea!” The princess rose from her seat, trembling with anger. “He’s been waiting for you for all these months! He can no longer sense your thoughts through your bond, but he refuses to believe you’ve abandoned him! Even now, he waits!”

The bone witch folded her hands behind her back. “I did it with his best interests in mind.”

“Then come with me to see him!”

“What would you have me say, Inessa?” The Dark asha’s voice hinted of winter. “Would you have me return to Kion to be tried and executed for crimes I did not commit? For my brother to die with me? You told me of your grandmother’s dalliance with a familiar. Did she regret it? Will you regret loving a dead body given a semblance of life? In time, you will resent him for not being human. Will you spend the rest of your life loving a corpse, Inessa?”

The princess was pale. “You have no right to speak to me that way.”

“My brother lives because of me. I have every right.”

“If you are innocent, then my mother will—”

“Do nothing. The Willows’ influence is far too ingrained in Kion’s psyche to grant me a fair trial.”

“But you killed her, Tea. Fox saw you.”

The bone witch’s hands clenched. I heard the rumblings of the daeva outside, the aeshma’s hiss.

“You killed so many people, Tea. They were your friends—”

“Enough!” The daeva’s howling grew. Then came the sound of stones shattering; one of the beasts had struck a column, destroying it with a violent sweep of its tail.

And then Lord Kalen appeared, his hand on her shoulder. The Dark asha closed her eyes and took long, steady breaths. The daeva quieted but was still uneasy. “If I cannot convince you of my innocence, Your Highness, then there is no hope for me, and we do nothing now but waste time. You have my word that I will do everything in my power to save Fox. I make no promises for everything else.”

The bone witch’s hands unfurled. Her nails had scored deep, painful-looking grooves into her skin, red blood dripping down the floor.