Then, to Kerrigan’s shock, Valia burst into tears. Kerrigan gaped at the stoic girl who had been nothing but fierce the entire time she’d known her.

“Valia, what is it?”

Valia shook her head. “I can’t tell you. They’ll… they’ll kill me.” She hiccupped.

“Who?”

“The Red Masks,” she whispered.

Kerrigan swore she hadn’t heard her. “Who?”

“Please don’t make me repeat it.”

Kerrigan stepped away from the girl in horror. “Who are you?”

“I’m so sorry, Kerrigan. I was placed here. I was supposed to… I was supposed to gain your trust. Then, I was going to kill you.” She said it so matter-of-fact and somehow, without malice.

Then, it came back to her. That night in her room during the tournament. A vision had warned about a person with honey-wheat hair in her room. Kerrigan had thought nothing of it, because it had only been Valia. She’d been worried for no reason. But the warning had been real, and Valia was a threat. “That night during the tournament.”

“Yes,” she croaked. “I lost my nerve. I couldn’t do it.”

“You’ve been spying on me all this time,” Kerrigan said with a dawning realization.

“Please, I didn’t want to. They’ll kill me before letting me go.”

With the force of her magic, Kerrigan yanked the girl off of her feet and threw her backward into the tree. Vali cried out, fresh tears coming to her eyes. Kerrigan pushed her hand against Valia’s throat and held fire in the other hand. “Tell me why I should not do the same?”

“You should,” Valia whispered. “I deserve death.”

“Who are they? Who sent you? What do they want?”

“I’m sorry. I was raised in the organization. I was just a child. A daughter of the Father. They want… they want to wipe out humans and half-Fae.”

“I know what the Red Masks are,” she hissed. “But if you are truly one of theirs, then let’s go to the council right now and tell them all you know.”

“No! No, we can’t do that. They’ll kill everyone I know. They’re so deep, so insidious, that it won’t hurt them. But you won’t have me any longer.”

“That sounds good as far as I’m concerned.”

“But you need me.”

“I don’t think that I do.”

“I can help you,” she gasped. “And… I understand why you’d hate me.”

“Do you?”

Valia nodded and started crying again.

“How can you help me?” Kerrigan demanded. Then she thought for a second. “Do you know Isa?”

Valia gulped. “Yes. She’s another daughter of the Father. She failed at killing you. So, I was supposed to do it. We were both punished for our failure.”

“And who is the Father?”