Silence smothered the forest. No insects chittered in the brush, and the wind no longer dared to howl through the leaves.

  A low chuckle broke the stillness, followed by a sharp, mocking exclamation. "Heh!" Mearith’s laughter rang out, a jagged sound that set Violet’s teeth on edge.

  "You’re your mother’s child," Mearith hissed. "Well then, go ahead! Go get yourselves killed and see if I care!"

  The projection flickered and died, plunging them back into the quiet.

  Now, Violet and Astrid sat in the cramped belly of a boat bound for Morrow Town, an isolated island settlement situated far to the east of Viremont and the kingdom’s borders. They were below deck in their room; Astrid stood staring out the window while Violet sat over a map on the table, drawing lines over a region on the Valorian Sea with a bunch of islands in it, the Morrow being one of them.

  It had been two months since they had last been in contact with their aunt. Violet’s chest ached with the weight of her unspoken apologies; she wished she could take back the things she’d said, but reaching out would give Mearith the chance to track them. That was a risk she couldn't take. Not yet, not until she knew Astrid was finally okay.

  Some moments passed before Astrid finally turned from the window.

  “What do you plan to do if we find they already took everything?”

  Violet flinched slightly. She hadn’t expected Astrid to speak. For days now, most of what she’d received was silence—thin, brittle silence born from the forest and the words thrown at their aunt.

  She took a moment before answering.

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  “Then I’ll steal it from them.”

  Astrid turned fully now.

  “This isn’t a game, Violet. They’ll kill us.”

  “I know,” Violet replied quietly. “But I’ll make sure we get out safely.”

  “How can you guarantee that, Vi?”

  Violet’s fingers tightened around the edge of the map.

  “I can’t,” she admitted. “But I’ll do everything I can to make it work.”

  Her voice was smaller than before.

  “Aunt was right,” Astrid said after a pause. “We should’ve gone home.”

  Violet’s head snapped up.

  “After what she did?”

  “Yes. After what she did.” Astrid’s voice didn’t rise—it hardened. “We both know she probably had a reason. And you’re being reckless. Suicidal, even. We don’t even know what we’re walking into, Violet. We don’t know who we’re facing.”

  The boat creaked around them, waves striking the hull in slow, rhythmic thuds.

  “We could actually die.”

  The words settled between them.

  Violet didn’t argue immediately.

  Instead, she looked back down at the map.

  Violet stood slowly and walked over to Astrid. She took both of her hands in hers.

  “Asi… I can’t pretend to know how much this has affected you. But I’ve seen it.”

  Her grip tightened slightly.

  “I’ve seen the weakness. The paralysis. The shaking. The nights you could barely breathe. The times we thought you wouldn’t make it.”

  Astrid’s fingers twitched in hers.

  “I’ve seen all of it,” Violet continued, her voice unsteady but controlled. “And I don’t want to watch you suffer anymore. Not even a little.”

  She swallowed.

  “You’re the smartest person I know. You deserve better than this. The world owes you better.”

  The lantern above them swayed gently with the motion of the boat, light shifting across their faces.

  Violet didn’t look away.

  “And if there’s even a chance that what’s out there can fix this… I have to try.”