Finally, Cintra took a seat directly across from him. She made even such a mundane act look utterly graceful. She crossed one leg over the other, her crystalline dress shifting, and then one bare foot emerged, each toe ending in a small purple leaf rather than a toenail. “The last Blood Tide was…traumatic for Narcissi. No matter how hard She fought, it wasn’t enough. Retreating was the most difficult challenge She’d ever faced. It sent Her into a period of melancholy no human could ever hope to comprehend. She didn’t move, didn’t speak, didn’t breathe. But a goddess can never stop growing, not truly, so She manifested that growth in the roots She burrowed into the earth, in the trunk that armored Her as She stretched skyward, in the branches and leaves that sprouted like a giant canopy. And through it all Her godsblood runs, like a river system.

“I have tried to contain Her. For Her own Sake, and for Finfalla’s. But the power offered by Her blood was never meant to be contained, or offered to only a select few. That has always scared me, even as I knew I was fighting the inevitable. Even now, my Forsworn and I continue to fight, though it’s as futile as your own battles.”

Artemus was rapt, as focused as he’d ever been on anything in his life. “Then why do you fight?”

She shrugged, and the gesture felt so casual compared to the jarring seriousness of the conversation. “If I don’t fight, who will?”

Artemus had the urge to scream. Everything he’d built over his reign was supposed to be for his heirs. But Edward had been lost to him long ago, leaving only Tomas. The boy—no, he’s a grown man now, he corrected in his head—was bright, but he was also kind and fair. And this world had a tendency to chew up and spit out those of his nature. Which was why he needed to harden him, prepare him. He needed to force his son to change his softhearted nature or else Artemus would have failed him as a father.

The first lesson would happen soon. It would be brutal. A brutal necessity.

“Why did you come after all these years? To talk about the Fire Eater? If so, you’ve wasted your time. I am well-aware of his escape. I’ve already sent the King’s Blade after him.”

She stared at him pointedly. “We both know the Fire Eater is no threat.”

“Tell that to the families destroyed during the Nightdawn.”

“Not by his hand. Also, are you referring to your own family?”

Anger seethed within him, as though the Fire Eater’s flames continued to burn. “How dare you?”

“How dare I? Need I remind you that you wouldn’t have any sons without me?”

His anger vanished. “I—I know.”