Helena ran as smoke chased her from the rooms she’d known all her life. Destroyed, just like everything else. Her mother called to her, desperately trying to find her, but she couldn’t call back as the floor tilted, sending her flying toward the dark abyss.

Helena’s eyes snapped open to find herself in an unfamiliar room, smelling slightly of sweat and salt.

The sweat was probably hers. The dress she wore clung to her body with dampness. She lifted an arm to wipe sticky hair from her face, feeling the exhaustion in every movement.

Weak. She was so weak. Why?

The memories rushed in like a hurricane hurtling toward a ship at sea. And she was utterly lost to them.

“Mother,” she cried.

Tears streamed down her face as if her body was emptying itself of everything she’d seen. Everything she’d done.

Where was she?

Light broke through the cracks between the rotting boards of the door. She lay on a small bed in the corner of a room with little else. Netting hung from the ceiling, dipping down over stacks of crates on the far wall.

The door rattled, and she reached for her knife, but it was no longer hidden in the folds of her skirt. She pushed herself up slowly, her muscles screaming in protest.

Light flooded the room as the door burst open. She shielded her eyes as a figure stepped closer.

Kassander. Her brother didn’t smile in greeting, but the relief was clear in his eyes. “You’re awake.” He hesitated.

Tears welled in her eyes. At least one person hadn’t been taken from her. “And you’re here.”

He stepped toward the bed and she reached out, pulling him the rest of the way. “I can’t believe they got you out.”

“It was Dell,” he said, his voice muffled in her hair.

Dell. He was there too. The room swayed, and Helena pulled back. “Are we on a ship? How long have I been out?”

Kassander wasn’t the one who answered.

“Over a day.” Dell stood in the doorway, his gaze latching onto her face. “It’s good to see you conscious, Princess.”

Why the formality? She shook her head. “I’m not a princess any longer.”

Dell’s smile was tentative.

Helena hugged Kassander again, meeting Dell’s eyes over her brother’s shoulder. Thank you, she mouthed.

She pulled back and gripped Kassander’s shoulders. “You and I now, kid. We’re all that’s left until we find Quinn.” She hated to think of what could have happened to Quinn. The army was in league with Cole. Did they turn on Quinn?

“Stev is still alive, Lenny,” he whispered. “I know he is.”

Helena didn’t want to voice what she thought Cole would do to Stev, so she scooted to the edge of the bed.