The artwork above is not mine.

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"Your next assignment might prove difficult," the High Lord said. Evren waited for him to continue. "The Loyalist you're hunting down is Ivah Dacian. She's of the same profession as you. She is a Lesser Fae. A Wraith, specifically, like your namesake. What do you know about them?"

"They are nothing but shadow and mist. Humans would call them ghosts. They can pass through walls, stone, and other such things."

"Do you know how to kill a Wraith?"

"In their physical form, blades work. When they retain their shadowy form, fire is the only way to kill them." The High Lord nodded approvingly. "Where can I find her?" Evren asked.

"She's hiding out in the northwest part of the forest. My scouts think she might be trying to escape to the Winter Court. I think she's going to double back this way." The High Lord snapped his fingers.

Evren patted her hips as Mortem and Vita appeared. Her bracelet hung from her wrist once more. The High Lord held out a set of flint and steel. Evren pocketed them and tied her hair back.

"What does she look like?" Evren asked. "Does she have any traits or features that distinguish her from other Wraiths?"

"She has three scars running through her left eye."

"Is she blind on that side?"

"Yes."

Evren started towards the door. "Shall I make this one quiet?"

"No." She paused, hearing the dark tone in the High Lord's voice. "Kill her and leave her body in the closest village you can find. She's been heading the raids on villages in that area. Make sure her body sends an undeniable message."

Evren dipped her head and left the room. She found Asper already saddled and waiting for her. His saddlebags were filled with enough provisions to last her a few days at least. Evren clicked her tongue and Asper broke into a trot.

When she was safely out of sight of the Forest House, Evren let go of the reins and laid back over the saddle. She let her arms hang over Asper's sides. Evren stared up at the sky. It was impossibly blue, a beautiful contrast against the trees.

Evren gazed at the treetops. They gave off the appearance of living flames. She breathed in deeply. As horrific as their deaths had been, she was grateful that her parents had died in such a beautiful place. At least they hadn't perished in the Mortal Lands, with all of its plague, famine, and despair.

Briefly, her thoughts drifted back to the events at dinner two days ago. Why had her choice to go hungry affected the High Lord so much? And how had he known what she planned to do when she was done working for him?

If you want to die when you've finished here, be my guest, but you will not begin that process while you're under this roof. I will not watch another female let herself decay before my eyes.

How many times before had he seen such a thing? Who had he seen? He'd seen it often enough for it to stir up some form of compassion in his heart. Evren sat up, another thought occurring to her. He had been watching her eyes. No matter how well she could mask her expressions, her eyes had always been her weakness. She'd never been able to keep her emotions from showing through them.

Maybe he knew because he saw the look in my eyes and recognized it, Evren thought. Maybe...he understood it. Maybe he's known someone who has looked the same way, or maybe, he's shared that look himself.

She shook the thought aside a moment later. What does it matter? He doesn't care if I plan on killing myself, just so long as I don't do it while I'm living in his house. She picked up the reins and urged Asper on.

By the end of the day, she'd reached the northwestern part of the forest. Evren dismounted and swapped out Asper's bridle for a halter and lead rope. She secured him and removed his saddle while he grazed. Evren listened, but only sounds of the forest greeted her while she arranged her camp.

She didn't start a fire, in case it attracted unwanted attention. Evren grabbed a canteen of water and poured some into her hand. She pressed her palm to Asper's whiskered lips, letting him drink. She did that several times until he turned his head away and went back to grazing. Evren settled back against a tree, closing her eyes. In no time at all, she was lost to sleep.

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Eris stood in the lowest level of the Forest House. There was a doorway at the end of the stairwell. If he opened it, he would see nothing but rows of cells ending in a torture chamber. Eris gripped the doorknob and shoved the door open.

The damp scent of mold and decay greeted
him. Eris stepped into the vast chamber. He opened the cell doors one by one. All were empty of living creatures. Only bones and corpses remained.

Eris closed his eyes, casting a wave of fire into one cell. The fire purged the ground of dirt and muck. The body draped against the far wall was consumed as well. He repeated the process for each cell, wiping away the evidence of what his father had done down here.

He'd put this off for so long. The thought of coming down here always made his stomach churn. Eris opened cell after cell. His fire cleansed them all. He opened another cell and saw a pile of bloody shifts in one corner. They were little more than decomposing rags by now.

This was where Beron had kept Seren Marzena, a spy who had betrayed him. She had been betrothed to Eris and sent to the Night Court to spy on Rhysand and his allies, but instead, she discovered her mate, Azriel, Rhysand's Spymaster and Shadowsinger. Seren betrayed Beron, refusing to give up information about her mate and his family. In return, Beron had tortured her for an extended period of time before trying to drown her in a lake not far from the house.

She had only survived with Eris' help. He made a deal with Azriel and kept her alive in captivity, then helped Azriel rescue her during her execution. Now, she lived safely in the Night Court with her mate and their young daughter, Estelle.

Sometimes, Eris wondered why he had bothered to help her. She had never mattered to him. He told himself he only helped because he knew he would receive something in turn, but that wasn't entirely true. He helped her because his mother had.

The first blow of Seren's torture had been gruesome. Two of Eris' late brothers forced her hands over open flames, letting them burn and blister until they were permanently scarred. Beron forbade anyone from helping her, but Eris' mother had ignored that order. She'd treated Seren's hands and when Beron found out, he'd brought her down to the torture chamber and cut off the tips of her fingers himself.

Eris burned the room swiftly and moved on, trying to push down the memory of his mother's screams. Of Seren's. Jesminda's. Lucien's. His own. Eris entered the torture chamber. The table was stained with centuries worth of blood. Chains and straps hung from the sides of it. Dozens of cruel tools lined the walls of the room.

Eris stepped inside, trying to ignore the way his heart raced. He touched the table, then rubbed his wrist. The marks were still there. Eris rolled his sleeves up partially, eyeing the scars. They were faded after so many years, and were hardly noticeable unless you felt the dull ridges or knew what you were looking at.

Eris crossed to another wall. Several sets of manacles were bolted into the wall. Only twelve years old and he had hung from one of those sets for two weeks. His mother had snuck into the room every night to feed him and wipe away the blood that coated his wrists and the shackles. When he'd finally been let down, she was the one who had persuaded Beron to let a healer fix his arms and shoulders.

Eris couldn't remember what he'd done to warrant such treatment. It was possible that he hadn't done anything at all. Beron might have just punished him on a whim. Eris rubbed his wrists again. His flames were already burning. They burned until the old table collapsed into ash. They burned until the tools melted down. They burned and burned until there was nothing left to consume. Eris slammed the door shut and left the chamber.

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Evren lurched awake. There was a soft rustle nearby. She glanced up. The moon was high overhead. The rustle was closer now. Evren gripped Vita's hilt, but didn't move. The rustle was gone.

Evren inhaled sharply, feeling a blade press against her throat. "So the Wraith has come to hunt me, has she?" A voice laughed. "I wondered if the High Lord hadn't hired someone not of our kind. All of these Loyalist deaths and no one to pin them on. I'm impressed. I can't even scent you."

"Unfortunately, your praise means nothing to me," Evren hissed.

"Then I'll slit your throat and be on my way."

Evren wedged her hand between her neck and the blade. A heartbeat later, pain flashed through her palm and blood wet the ground. Evren rolled away from the tree, unsheathing Vita and Mortem. There was no sign of Ivah. Asper was tugging at his lead rope, snorting anxiously.

Wind rushed past her ears. Evren ducked low and swept a leg out around her. There was a muffled thud as something hit the ground. Evren spotted Ivah just as she shifted into shadow and mist. Before she could reach the Wraith, Ivah had vanished.

Evren pulled a branch off the ground and drew her flint and steel. Hurriedly, she tore a portion of her undershirt and wrapped it around the end of the stick. There was a glint of steel. Evren brought Mortem up in time to parry Ivah's blow. She kicked the Wraith back and saw shadows again. Evren struck the flint and steel together, sparking fire to her makeshift torch.

She sheathed Vita and picked up the torch, waving it around the area. She couldn't see Ivah. Evren closed her eyes and listened. Asper was pawing at the ground. Leaves rustled overhead. The flames of her torch snapped. There was a whisper of something else behind her.

Evren whirled and slammed her torch into a shadowy figure. Ivah screamed as her face erupted into flames. She shifted back to her physical form, only for the flames to continue eating at her. Evren drove Mortem through her gut and twisted.

"That was disappointing," Evren whispered. "I was expecting a challenge." She wiped Mortem clean on the grass as Ivah's shrieks faded away. She doused the corpse with water and prepared Asper. When he was saddled, she threw Ivah's body over his back and mounted. They rode in the direction of the nearest village. Stars glistened brightly overhead.