Lyrani froze. She must have misheard Lord Dundor. He can't have said that he wanted her to kill Elvenland's king.

Even Trelle was shocked into silence beside her, staring at the director of ECISI in disbelief.

"Actually, that's not quite true," said Lord Dundor. "King Nash is causing chaos and conflict across the realm. Everyone wants him dead."

Lyrani blinked. So, she had heard correctly.

When she first joined ECISI as a new recruit, dreaming of protecting the realm and defending her people from threats they couldn't even know about, she never imagined there would come a day when she sat across from the director of ECISI while they planned the elf king's assassination, yet here they were.

"But...the curse...what if we can break it?" Lyrani's fingers fidgeted in her lap.

She may be an assassin, but to her, killing was a last resort, a weapon used only when the situation became too dire and the criminal couldn't be defeated any other way.

The spells in stories could always be undone, usually by something as simple as true love's kiss, never by anything as messy as murder. Surely there was another way to fight the curse that plagued the king.

"It's not a curse. It's a madness." Lord Dundor shook his head. "Every day, King Nash drives us closer to war with the other clans. Nothing he does makes sense, and he listens to no one. We must stop him before he overthrows the balance in the realm."

"This isn't—"

"Lyrani, the only thing keeping the fairies away from our throats right now is our assurance that we are handling the situation. He is our king and our responsibility. This is the only way."

Lyrani sat back in her chair.

That couldn't be true. There was never only one way, just many that Lord Dundor wasn't seeing.

Or didn't want to see. The thought sent a shudder through Lyrani.

Trelle leaned forward. "What makes you think our mission will be more successful than the previous ones?"

Previous ones? Lyrani frowned. Trelle spoke of other attempts on the king's life as if they were common knowledge, but it was the first Lyrani was hearing of them.

Secret agents were excellent at keeping secrets, even from each other.

Lyrani's eyes flitted between the other two elves. "What is she talking about?"

Lord Dundor shifted in his chair. "Over the last year, Rosel and Keehege secret intelligence services have both attempted this mission."

"And?" Lyrani didn't like the heaviness in his gaze that rested on the table, the implication behind his silence.

"Both failed."

Lyrani's eyes widened.

Rosel and Keehege were equally matched with Irylen in resources and skill of their secret agents. If they couldn't remove the king, that didn't bid well for ECISI.

"Now, it's Irylen's turn," said Lord Dundor.

"Won't they be expecting us?" Lyrani's mouth went dry. Her mysterious mission was taking shape in her mind, and she didn't like the look of it. "If Rosel and Keehege were caught, surely the palace will be on their guard against anyone from Irylen."

That's what Lyrani would do if she was King Nash.

She would run background checks on everyone she let into her palace and search their luggage for weapons. She'd keep a special eye on every guest from Irylen, the only elf state that had yet to send their finest assassin her way.

If King Nash was smart enough to attack the other clans while preventing it from being traced back to him with any evidence more solid than hearsay, he was smart enough to stay ahead of any assailant.

"No doubt the palace is watching their guests," said Lord Dundor, "but they have no way of knowing when we'll strike. Security at the palace is at its maximum during the king's birthday, seeing as he has many attendees from all over the kingdom. Attempting anything during the celebration is a bold move."

"And a suicidal one," said Lyrani.

She couldn't see this mission ending in any other way but death. If King Nash had outplayed the agents from Rosel and Keehege, what chance did Lyrani have as an out-of-practice assassin?

"Lyrani is right." Trelle leaned back in her chair.

The insanity of Lord Dundor's plan had made her and Lyrani agree on something for once, but the significance of that was lost on the director.

"Nonsense," said Lord Dundor. "Rosel and Keehege sent in elves you could tell were agents from a league away. No one will see you two coming—not in your lovely ball gowns."

Lyrani sighed. So that was what the dresses were for—killing and spying without being seen. She should've trusted her gut on the stardust.

How could she be invisible if she was sparkling?

"You're counting on Omiane's dresses to help us blend in?" Trelle's voice rose an octave. "You're not even sending us in with assumed identities, are you?"

Lyrani frowned. Dundor had said the invitation to the king's birthday celebrations were for Lady Trelle Lore and her maid Lyrani Esch.

Which meant that Trelle was right.

She and Lyrani were supposed to carry out the most dangerous mission they had ever done under their real names. They wouldn't fall out of existence when they left the palace after doing what they had to do. Their actions could be traced back to them and the people they loved.

Lyrani simply shook her head. She had no words for her disappointment. Lord Dundor should know better. He had been working in the secret services for longer than Lyrani had been alive.

There had to be another way.

Lord Dundor had the good grace to look down. "No, you won't be going to the palace under assumed names. The simpler your identities, the simpler the mission."

"We've never used our real names on a mission before." Trelle's voice was sharp.

"That's because you've never been on a mission like this one." Lord Dundor somehow found the courage to face Lyrani and Trelle as he delivered their death sentences. "I couldn't secure invitations to the ball for false names. There is no way to create a guest worthy of an invitation to a royal celebration out of thin air. All the king's men have to do is ask the right people the right questions, and he will know your assumed identities don't exist. If he runs background checks, you will be exposed instantly."

"And our real names will keep us safer?" Lyrani folded her arms across her chest.

"Your real identities are protected. Nobody knows you're ECISI agents."

"And if we do get caught?" asked Trelle. "They will know our real names."

"That's true. As soon as you're compromised, we'll put you in a protection program while my contact at Vlitavia Palace will use a potion to remove the memories of those who can identify you. After that, you will be free to return to your normal life."

Even if it was that simple, it was putting another person, a civilian, at risk. Lyrani didn't like it one bit.

Trelle nodded her satisfaction with Lord Dundor's answer. She and Lyrani were back to disagreeing.

"This is not going to work. Find someone else to do my job." Lyrani stood to leave.

Lord Dundor had said there would be several guests at the celebration. How did he expect them to get close enough to work the king for information, then kill him without anyone suspecting? Even with Trelle's expertise in seduction and Lyrani's power over the darkness, the odds weren't in their favour.

"Lyrani, wait." Trelle stood, reaching for her arm.

Lyrani spun to face her. "Do you have any idea how much chaos Elvenland would fall into if our king was murdered?"

Trelle opened her mouth to respond, but Lyrani cut her off. "No, you don't, because you only ever think about yourself."

"You've got some nerve, Lyrani Esch." Trelle pursed her lips. "You're the selfish one! This is something we must do for the greater good of the realm."

What kind of "greater good" could be achieved with murder? That's what this was, after all.

"Would I be any better than the criminals I killed if I killed without hard evidence linking the perpetrator to their crime? The only proof we have of the king's involvement in the fairy village fire, the nixie massacre, and the duke's murder is their claim that it was him." Lyrani held Trelle's stone-like gaze, not intimidated by the other agent towering at least a head above her. "Even as ECISI agents, we are not above Elvenland's laws."

Trelle's mouth twisted in that ugly way only few people ever got to see, and even then, one had to look twice. "That's rich coming from a woman who makes a living from killing people."

Lyrani's stare turned cold. "At least I don't warm strangers' beds in return for information."

Trelle glared at her. "How dare you!"

"No disrespect." Lyrani forced a sweet smile, another skill sharpened by her undercover experience. "All I'm saying is that we use different methods, and both are effective in their own ways."

Trelle glowered. "Oh, I'm sure that's what you—"

Lord Dundor stood and set his hands on his desk with a resounding smack. "That is enough!"

Trelle's grey eyes sharpened into daggers, but not even she would dare to disobey Lord Dundor.

"I've never had such a scene in my office." The director looked between them. "You are grown women and professional agents, and I expect you to act like it. The fate of the realm is at stake, and instead of doing something about it, you two bicker like children. I will not have it!"

"Yes, Lord Dundor," Lyrani murmured. She returned to her seat without another word.

She kept her eyes on her lap, too aware of the shame burning on her cheeks. She had been acting like a child. Even two years after their last mission, Trelle infuriated her like no one else did.

Lyrani took a deep breath. She was done letting the senior agent get a rise out of her.

Trelle took her place beside Lyrani, crossing her arms and staring ahead in an unspoken invitation for Lord Dundor to continue.

The director's tone was gentler when he spoke. "You've killed in ECISI's name before, Lyrani, sometimes at risk of death, sometimes with minimal evidence. What makes this time any different?"

Lord Dundor's tone, so relaxed, almost conversational, made Lyrani want to lean closer to confide in him, but she didn't. She sat straight and looked him in the eye. She needed to make sure he heard and understood her.

"I haven't performed an assassination in years, Lord Dundor. Given how important this mission is, I don't think I'm the best choice for the task."

Lord Dundor leaned forward. "How many assassins are in ECISI's service, Lyrani?"

Lyrani could count them all on one hand. The abilities that allowed assassins to merge into the shadows, to disappear and take their footprints with them, were rare.

"Only a handful," she said.

"Exactly." Lord Dundor nodded. "Even out of practice, you're the best we have, Lyrani. You have the highest success rate and the cleanest kills. Trust your instincts, and your skills will follow. With a criminal of the king's calibre, I wouldn't trust any assassin but you."

Lyrani clenched her fists at the way he spoke of this mission as if it was like any other. It wasn't.

"This isn't assassinating any criminal and toppling his scheme, Lord Dundor. This is killing a king, perhaps bringing a kingdom, our kingdom, to its knees. Who knows how many other clans in the realm will take advantage of Elvenland in the vulnerable time following the king's demise? This is not what I signed up for!" Lyrani's voice shook. She had joined ECISI to protect Elvenland, not bring about its downfall. "A kingless kingdom is a kingdom in chaos. The fairies want war with us. The humans revel in bloodbaths. What better way for them to get what they want than for them to trick us into killing our own king?"

"This not a trick," said Lord Dundor. "The other elven council secret intelligence agencies have reported to me on King Nash's activities, as has my source at Vlitavia Palace. She's close to the king, and I have faith in her word."

Lyrani stood to leave for certain this time. "Corruption runs deeper than you think, Lord Dundor. If you look closer, you may find that your trusted sources aren't quite so trustworthy."

Nobody knew that better than Lyrani did. She'd had her fair share of betrayals from those she thought she could trust; beings even Lord Dundor had vouched for.

"Lyrani, hold on—" said Trelle.

"That's Agent Esch to you," Lyrani snapped. "And I want no part of this mission."

Trelle closed her mouth and turned away.

"Lyrani, do you remember why you joined ECISI?"

Lyrani stopped with her hand on the doorknob as Lord Dundor's question struck her in the heart.

"Do you remember why you left behind your title and your luxuries to pursue this life, even when your father begged you not to?"

Lyrani's eyes hardened. She couldn't move, could barely breathe for the paralysing effect of that consuming moment in time.

She had many memories of her father, but none was clearer than that of him standing in the doorway of her bedroom, his face twisted with fury.

"I won't let you throw your life away, Lyrani!"

"Well, it's my life and my choice, not yours!" she replied, tossing the last of her things into her trunk.

"You told me you wanted this life." Lord Dundor's voice brought Lyrani back to the present. "You told me you wanted to help people and be a force of justice in a world that is falling to depravity. We need you, Lyrani. Not just me or Trelle or ECISI, but the whole realm."

Lyrani looked back at him. She didn't see the imposing director of ECISI but an elf who was like an uncle to her.

Nobody else had supported Lyrani's decision to join ECISI. Lord Dundor should be the first person to understand her refusal of this mission, but with his brow furrowed and his mouth in a hard line after he had tried to use Lyrani's words against her, he didn't look like he understood at all.

"When I was inducted as an agent, I made a vow to act in the best interests of Elvenland always, and I can't, in good conscience, do anything to the contrary. I'm sorry. Find someone else." With that, Lyrani turned back to the door.

"Lyrani, wait," said Lord Dundor. "I don't want to assassinate the king either. He's Livh's only child."

Lyrani's curiosity piqued at the casual mention of the previous queen. She turned to see Lord Dundor standing behind his desk with his hands outstretched, beseeching.

"You're correct. Killing the king could mean war with the other clans, but so could his rule. Is it worse to let a tyrant king reign unchallenged and destroy Elvenland from the inside or get rid of him and handle the fallout? Think on that."

It wasn't an easy choice, but Lyrani knew what was in her heart.

Actions had consequences. If Lyrani succeeded in removing King Nash, Elvenland would crumble, and there were too many greedy hands ready to help themselves to the pieces.

"I can't do this. I'm sorry." With a final nod, Lyrani left Lord Dundor's office.