“And the threat was House Maris? Then why did you dispose of House Vivek?” Amara bit her lip. She should have worded her questions in a less accusatory way, but her mother didn’t seem to notice.

“The only information I had was that the threat was from the north. So I took House Vivek and Selene was assigned to House Maris. And the rest you know.”

Yes. Instead of killing Lord Damien, Selene had gone and married him. “So this threat still exists?”

“Yes. The Dark Lady confirmed it.”

Amara frowned. Then why hadn’t the Dark Lady specified which house was the threat in the first place? But she wasn’t about to ask Mother that, as she was sensitive to matters where the Dark Lady was concerned. “So my mission will be to kill Lord Damien Maris.”

“Yes. When the water-wall goes down, you will need to be prepared to go, whether that will be traveling to the capital city of Nor Esen or elsewhere.”

Amara crossed her arms. “And what about Selene?”

“What about Selene?” her mother said in a low, dangerous voice.

“If I go after Lord Damien, surely I will meet up with Selene. Should I kill her as well?” Although how she would do that she wasn’t sure. She could barely keep up with her mother in the dreamscape; going against Selene would be suicide. Perhaps she could use poison or her sword. If Selene didn’t know she was coming, she couldn’t protect herself.

“You will do nothing to Selene.”

Amara’s nostrils flared, and she gripped her forearms. “Why? Are you hoping to bring that traitor back?”

Lady Ragna stood still, so still that she seemed as though she were a statue. Except for the cold rage that burned in her eyes. Amara quivered inside, but she didn’t show it on her face. To show Mother fear was to invite verbal abuse.

“No,” she finally answered, “because I want to take care of Selene myself. A Ravenwood has never killed another Ravenwood. But there are other ways to deal with her. Selene is a traitor—a traitor to our house. So I will be the one to take care of her. Not you.” There was finality in her voice.

Amara narrowed her eyes and stared at her mother. Was this her final test to see if she was worthy to be Grand Lady Ravenwood?

“This mission will not be easy. Lord Damien has a deep and influential mind that will be difficult to maneuver. You will need to practice and hone your gift every night until the time comes for you to leave.”

Amara straightened up and uncrossed her arms. Was that why Selene had failed? Had Lord Damien somehow influenced her? Maybe Mother had overestimated Selene’s power.

“I will have the Vanguard Garrison alert us when the wall goes down,” her mother continued. “Then it will be up to you to trail Lord Damien and finish your sister’s task. Do you think you can do that?”