He’s yelling at Gabriel now. Pleading for mercy and for himself, but I don’t know how he can stand there and look anyone in the eye.

He’s dragged away into the palace as thunder booms overhead and the rain starts to fall in thick sheets. Now that the show is over, everyone scatters. We make a break for the palace, where we find Gabriel standing with some of his brothers, all of them murmuring soft words to each other.

Gabriel leans against the wall, pressing his arm to the surface and then dropping his forehead. We all watch him as he drags in several long breaths. Hylene walks over and runs a hand down his back, stretching onto her tiptoes to whisper something in his ear.

I exchange a curious glance with Nadir. Seems these two have gotten close.

Suddenly, he looks up, and his gaze finds me.

“You want answers from Atlas?” he asks, and I nod. “Then come.”

He doesn’t wait for my response before he pushes off the wall and stalks down the hallway, his footsteps ringing in the silence. I look at Nadir, who nods, and then I take off after Gabriel, running to catch up.

His gaze remains forward as we march through the halls. I resist the urge to fill the silence for once, sensing he needs me to shut up.

We finally approach a wide archway and then enter through a set of fortified doors flanked by six guards wearing the livery of Aphelion. They both acknowledge Gabriel as he yanks on one of the handles before we head down the spiraling stone staircase.

Fire-lit torches guide us down through the gloom and into the dungeon, where I enjoyed a brief stay myself. Many of the cell doors stand open, and Gabriel catches my stare.

“Low fae broke into the palace and released their friends and family from the cells during the riots,” he tells me.

“Good,” I say. “That’s good.”

“Yeah,” Gabriel agrees as we proceed past more guards and to the end, where four warders flank the locked door of a cell. They greet Gabriel and then bow to me, their eyebrows climbing.

“Aren’t you the Final Tribute?” one of them asks, eyeing me up and down. I remember his name was Rhyle.

“She’s the Heart Queen,” Gabriel says. “Show her the proper respect.”

I glare at Gabriel. Some might argue the Heart Queen deserves little from Ouranos, but he’s giving me a look that suggests maybe he’s a little proud.

Rhyle stutters and then bends at the waist. “I’m sorry, Your Majesty,” he says, standing back up. “If it’s not impertinent to ask, then what were you doing in the Trials?”

“That’s what I’m hoping to find out,” I answer, gesturing to the bars. He and the other warders step out of the way, revealing Atlas kneeling in his cell.