The guards both nodded, approaching us.

“Keep it cool, Rudy,” I said, going for the shorter version of his name. “Take your time. We’ll be free soon enough. For now, however, let them think they have you.”

Rudolph growled a little, but he didn’t object when one of the guards took over his leash. I stayed by his side, while Zoltan went farther down the hall, doing whatever it was he did when he came down here.

We’d gotten over the first threshold. We’d gained a lick of confidence from Zoltan Shatal, and that allowed us to plan our next move. Once the guards got slightly more comfortable around Rudolph, he could pick a scythe off one of them. If he were to get friendly too fast, it would raise red flags. We needed patience for this operation, even though there wasn’t much time left for Seeley.

Once Rudolph was settled in his new, more spacious cell, I left him for a bit so I could update Seeley on everything that had happened. He, too, agreed.

“We’ll get out of this hellhole eventually,” he said.

I sat on the floor in front of him. There was a sense of peace coming off him. No matter what I’d been through since I’d died, I always found a sliver of comfort in his presence. Seeley was likely part of the reason why I’d retained my sanity until now. Maybe there was truth in his words.

Maybe we’d get out of here.

But then what? I wondered. Then what?

Tristan

“How many of you are there?” Valaine asked, relentless in her interrogation.

One of the Red Threads we’d captured back in the southern district of the city had finally come to. Like all the others, he’d been tied to the bed, and nurses made sure he was fed and properly hydrated. His wounds were treated with droplets of Aeternae blood, and he was looking a lot better than the day he’d first arrived in the prison.

Given the low crime rate, most of the cells in the building had been empty, allowing the nurses to bring in beds for the Rimians’ care. Much like the others who’d woken up before him, however, this guy wasn’t willing to talk much.

We’d been in his cell for the better part of an hour, trying to get some answers out of him. But he was determined to keep quiet, even though Valaine clearly terrified him. He jumped whenever she moved around his bed, as if she might poke him full of holes.

She repeated the question. “How many of you are there?”

I, for one, was in awe of Valaine. Usually timid and reserved, she’d unleashed the darker side of herself since the square incident. Even during the first attempt on her life she had not been as fierce as she was now. It probably had something to do with the Red Threads trying to hurt people she cared about, like Kalon, and maybe even Esme, whom I knew Valaine was genuinely fond of.

“I would sooner die than tell you anything, fanger,” the Red Thread replied, without so much as looking at her.

“Don’t say that twice. I might make it happen,” Valaine muttered.

“You will spend the rest of your life in prison, or worse,” I said to the Rimian. He seemed young enough to be worried about the prospect of growing old behind bars. Maybe that thought would persuade him to say something—it hadn’t worked on the others, though. What were the odds it would work on him? “You should do yourself a favor and cut a deal. I’m sure the Aeternae will consider leniency, perhaps a shorter sentence, if you cooperate.”

“Our mission is greater than whatever life I shall lead in prison,” the Rimian replied.

“Ah, what a poet this guy is,” I muttered, somewhat bored of the similar remarks I’d received so far from his colleagues. It was as if they’d all been trained according to the same manual, which included phrases to say in case of capture and interrogation. They were all reciting the same stuff, more or less. And I was losing my patience.

“He’s not going to talk.” Valaine sighed. “Let him meet the gallows, then. The empire does not take kindly to traitors who don’t cooperate.”

She walked out and made her way down the hallway. I followed her, while the guards locked the Rimian’s cell. Valaine was not just more assertive, she was also increasingly angry. At times, it seemed like she had trouble controlling her own reactions, especially where the Red Threads and the Darklings were concerned. I figured her patience was running thin, too, but I had a feeling that there was something else bothering her, somewhere beneath the surface.

“What can I do to help?” I asked as we walked toward the main exit. The double doors were open, held back with heavy brass stoppers. Officers of the law moved in and out, some carrying the occasional disorderly character—usually an Aeternae who’d gotten into a street fight somewhere in the city’s western slums.

The law was particularly harsh on the non-Aeternae, from what I’d learned so far. The Rimians and the Naloreans got longer sentences, even though their lifespans were significantly shorter. The wily Aeternae got slaps on the wrist, for the most part, or a couple of nights in jail. Granted, in some serious cases, they were also stripped of their lands and fortunes.

“I don’t know what more you could do.” Valaine sighed. “You’re already doing so much.”

“Tell me. I want to help.”

“I’m aware.”

She glided down the steps and hurried up the main street. Vision-drawn carriages clicked and clacked along, carrying the elites to their various destinations. The shops were beginning to close for the day, as the evening stretched in dark blue across the city. Shutters rattled as they were pulled shut.

“Valaine, hold on,” I said, catching her wrist. It forced her to stop. When she turned around to face me, I saw tears in her eyes. It tore me apart to see her like this, and I knew it had to do with the Darklings and the attempts on her life. “Talk to me.”

“What else is there to say?” she replied, her voice trembling. “These Darklings want me dead, and they will stop at nothing until they get the job done. And I don’t want to die, Tristan. I don’t. I enjoy living too much…”

“You’re afraid,” I murmured, without letting go of her hand. She didn’t seem to mind.

“I’m afraid, yes. And I am tired. I don’t understand why they picked me, out of all the Aeternae in this world. Why me? Do I not deserve a chance at a long and happy life? Do I not deserve a shred of happiness and the opportunity to stop the Black Fever before it claims more lives?”

I moved closer, the distance between us shrinking, the air thickening with emotion. “They’re a cult, Valaine. Their motivations are skewed. It is no use asking for an explanation from these people. But I promise you, we will not let them win.”

“Easy to say…”

“Yet doable,” I replied, smiling gently. “I’ve been here for what, a week? A little more than that?” She nodded once, peering into my very soul with those beautiful black eyes. “They’ve tried to kill you three times, and we stopped them. We will keep fighting until we take down their ringleaders.”

Esme had told me about Trev and his Darkling infiltration, having asked me not to share it with anyone—not even Valaine. But I could no longer hold the information from her. I needed her to have a little bit of hope. Clearly, she didn’t have faith in her father’s armed forces, not that I could blame her. The Darklings had infiltrated every layer of Visio’s society, and they were even working with the Red Threads, unbeknownst to the lower-level grunts.

Valaine needed some encouragement, and the thought of Trev Blayne soon leading us to the Darklings’ ringleaders easily counted at such.

“You should know… Trev has likely infiltrated the Darklings by now,” I said, careful in my choice of words as I analyzed her expression. It morphed from dismay to sheer surprise in a matter of seconds. But there was also hope. I could see it in her eyes.

“What are you talking about?” Valaine asked, her voice suddenly low.

“Kalon turned him, as his award for winning the Blood Arena tournament,” I replied. “Trev has been forging ties with the Red Threads, and he got one of their leaders to put him in touch with the Darklings. Now that he’s an Aeternae, he wants to pretend to join them.”

A thousand thoughts rushed through her mind—it was all there on her face, as her gaze wandered across the street and all over me. “Kalon didn’t tell me any of this. How did you learn?”

“Esme. She was with Kalon when they spoke to Trev about all this,” I said. “I’m sorry… I should’ve told you sooner, but I was asked to keep quiet. I deeply regret it.”

“Kalon should’ve told me,” Valaine murmured, her brows drawn in an angry frown. “I cannot fault you for this, though I would’ve appreciated the information sooner. Ideally before wasting my time asking the Red Threads about their leaders, when Trev was already talking to them. But I cannot be mad at you. I’ll kick Kalon’s ass, for sure.”

“I think they didn’t want you to know so you would do the interrogations, nonetheless,” I said after a long and heavy pause. “Otherwise, the Red Threads might’ve caught on that we were up to something.”

“I’ll still kick Kalon’s ass, if that’s what you’re trying to avoid,” Valaine replied dryly. “How did Trev get mixed up in all of this?”

I told her about him following my sister and Kalon the other day, along with the rest of their discussion, including Luna, Kalon’s dead cousin and the reason behind Trev’s determination to sink the Darklings, once and for all.

Valaine scoffed, shaking her head slowly. “I should’ve realized this myself. Trev was so in love with Luna. It almost killed him when she died. It took Kalon and me months to get him out of the house again. At least now we know why they killed her. Why they’re trying to kill me.” She paused, then looked at me. “So, he’s going for the leader of the Darklings.”

I nodded. “And he’s going to send us a message with all the Red Thread leaders’ names once he’s made it inside the Darklings. He didn’t want to risk getting himself exposed by serving them up to the Aeternae too soon.”

“That makes sense. Dammit, I wish Kalon had told me.”