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Chapters (53)
  1. Map of Kingdom of Finfalla and Surrounding Area- Western Half
  2. Map of Kingdom of Finfalla and Surrounding Area - Eastern Half
  3. Map of Kingdom of Finfalla and Surrounding Area - Full Map
  4. Important Trigger Warning
  5. Prologue
  6. PART I
  7. One
  8. Two
  9. Three
  10. Four
  11. Five
  12. Six
  13. Seven
  14. Eight
  15. Nine
  16. Ten
  17. Eleven
  18. Twelve
  19. Interlude: The River of Life
  20. PART II
  21. Thirteen
  22. Fourteen
  23. Fifteen
  24. Sixteen
  25. Seventeen
  26. Eighteen
  27. Nineteen
  28. Interlude: Fallow Fields
  29. PART III
  30. Twenty
  31. Twenty-One
  32. Twenty-Two
  33. Twenty-Three
  34. Twenty-Four
  35. Twenty-Five
  36. Interlude: Of Man and Monster
  37. PART IV
  38. Twenty-Six
  39. Twenty-Seven
  40. Twenty-Eight
  41. Twenty-Nine
  42. Thirty
  43. Thirty-One
  44. Thirty-Two
  45. Thirty-Three
  46. Thirty-Four
  47. POSTLUDES
  48. Postlude 1: Lana Vica
  49. Postlude 2: Ludo Vica
  50. Postlude 3: Cainan
  51. Acknowledgments
  52. An excerpt from Heartsworn, Volume II in The Forsworn Oath, available for preorder now!
  53. PART I

He’d recognized the assassin’s voice as he’d said, A life for a life.

It had been the same voice he’d heard when his mother was murdered. The same assassin had killed both his parents. And, Tomas knew, he was a member of the Crimson Daggers Guild of Assassins.

Twenty-Three

Perfidy

New Dawn, Lostwood, Finfalla

Perfidy stepped out of the sleeping quarters with a yawn. Apparently, she was the last one up, the others sitting in a semicircle, eating small pieces of something she couldn’t recognize. Dark flashes of sleek fur slashing through the forest appeared before her eyes. She blinked and the memories vanished, just as the beast had the night before.

Why had the golden-eyed creature reminded her of her mama? In the light of day, such a notion was almost ridiculous. And yet she couldn’t deny that every time she thought of the panther, thoughts of her mother weren’t far behind. And what was with the gold leaves? How had her second one appeared at the exact same moment as the panther’s? She’d already checked a dozen times to ensure she hadn’t dreamt the whole thing, but no, there was no mistaking the slightly raised forms beside each of her eyes.

Clemmy was the first to notice her standing there. She was looking much better than yesterday, when she’d been struck by one of Aliza’s poison quills. Her gaze slipped away but then returned just as swiftly, eyes widening. “What?” was all she said, as though more comprehensive words escaped her.

All heads turned, but Perfidy avoided meeting any of their gazes directly. In the corner of her eye, she saw Jereb’s lips bobbing open and then closed without saying anything. Aliza, on the other hand, had no loss of words. “Fantastic,” she murmured. “A second leaf already? What have you been doing? How did you manage it so fast? Tell us everything.”

“I, er, tried to jump from a tree last night.”

“And your Ability manifested itself again?” Jereb asked, finally finding his voice. Though he was clearly trying to restrain it, she could hear the excitement bleeding through every word as he leaned forward.

Images of the black panther flashing toward her strobed through her mind. She swore she could feel its soft fur beneath her, could see the gleam in those mesmerizing eyes, could feel the heat of her new marking on her cheek. She didn’t say any of that. Instead, she panicked and whipped up a quick but somewhat believable lie. “No. I slammed into the ground. I thought I was dead, but I guess the effects o’ the godsblood was still in me, cuz I felt better a few moments later. Then I got the new leaf.”

“Incredible,” Aliza said.