She gives me the dosage, and I accept the vial wordlessly.

Kellyn ties Kymora to the other side of the uncovered cart. She’s bound with what looks like no less than a hundred ropes, from her neck to her ankles. A gag keeps her from talking.

When he has her situated, I look away from the woman while we make our way to the edge of town. The three of us sit on the driver’s bench in silence.

Kellyn offers his hand to me, and I don’t accept it.

Kymora may be directly responsible for injuring my sister, but Kellyn could have stopped it.

If he’d just listened. My sister is more important to me than my own life. He knew that. But he came after me instead.

I would feel guilty to accept his hand or any other comfort he tried to offer, knowing that Temra is hurt.

It isn’t long before I can’t stand not to be near my sister. I hate that Kymora is in the back with Temra. If I hadn’t broken the warlord’s knee, she could have walked alongside the horses.

I climb into the bed of the cart and position myself between Kymora and my unconscious sister.

It’s a week to the capital, and that’s exactly how long the healer expected Temra had to live.

We’re cutting it too close, but this is the only option I have.

With the last of my family on one side of me and the woman who murdered my parents on the other, I close my eyes, hoping this journey will be smoother than the last one.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Book number five is here, and I can barely believe it’s time to write another one of these.

As always, I like to start off by thanking the two amazing ladies who make what I do possible. Rachel and Holly: You guys are the best! Thank you for championing my novels. Thank you for continuing to believe in me and support me. Thank you for taking a chance on a feisty pirate named Alosa.

Thank you to everyone on the Macmillan team who works on my books! Special thanks to Brittany, Allegra, Jordin, Jacqueline, Starr, and Liz. And thanks so much, Sasha Vinogradova, for the beautiful cover art! I’m simply blown away by it. And thanks as well to Noverantale for the gorgeous map of Ghadra!

I appreciate everyone else who gave this book a read and offered feedback: Dillon West, Cale Dietrich, Charlie N. Holmberg, Haley Gibson, Bridget Howard, and Caitlin Lochner.

Special thank-you to Alisa for brainstorming with me when it was crunch time and I needed ideas fast for revisions. I’ve never come out of one of our sessions empty-handed.

Thank you to all of my family for your continued support, even those of you who won’t buy my books because they’re too racy.

Mom and Tara, thanks so much for answering my medical questions. I’m so glad I have you to call up when I need to brutally maim my characters.