And wake the King of Gods.

Or that Casteel and I were about to become King and Queen.

We’d discussed everything with Kirha and Jasper at length when we arrived. We would need to travel to Iliseeum as soon as we could if we hoped to make it to Oak Ambler before we were expected. A group would travel with us—not a large one as Casteel and Kieran had explained that the tunnels could be narrow and cramped. And then from there? Well, we hoped that one of the Elders knew where Nyktos slumbered and that my blood would help us enter unharmed.

But during dinner, we didn’t talk about any of that, even though everyone present knew what was about to happen. Instead, Kirha and Jasper had entertained us with stories about their children and Casteel when they were younger—much to their annoyance and reluctant amusement. I didn’t think I’d ever laughed as much as I had that night. And later, when Casteel and I were alone, I didn’t think it was possible to be loved more thoroughly than I was.

I held onto those two things as we left Saion’s Cove early the next morning, dressed in buttery-soft black leggings and a matching, quarter-length-sleeve tunic that hugged my chest and then flared at the hips. I’d grinned when I saw that she’d left a slit in the right side for me to easily reach my dagger. Jasper remained behind with Kirha, and I was pleasantly surprised to learn that Vonetta would travel with us to Evaemon. I had expected her to stay with her parents or return to Spessa’s End, but she’d said that she wanted to see Casteel’s and my coronation.

She wasn’t the only one.

Dozens of wolven traveled with us, many that I hadn’t met yet, and a few, like Lyra, that I was just getting to know. Emil and Naill were also with us, and listening to those two bicker about everything from the best-tasting whiskey to whether a sword or an arrow was a better weapon was quite entertaining. All were alert, though, just in case the Unseen made an appearance.

The content feeling kept everything at bay, as did my continuous practice with speaking to the wolven through their imprints. Even the nightmare that, if true, possibly confirmed what Alastir had claimed.

That he hadn’t killed my parents.

I couldn’t focus on that as we traveled north through Atlantia. There would be time later to deal with that possibility, but if I’d learned anything in the last several months, it was how to compartmentalize. Or maybe it was just Casteel’s advice not to borrow tomorrow’s problems.

Either way, it wasn’t all that hard to just exist in the hours it took to reach Evaemon because I got a little lost in the beauty of Atlantia—the limestone homes with their terracotta roofs filling the rolling hills, the small farming villages, and the running streams that split the land, rushing from the cloud-capped Mountains of Nyktos that eventually became visible in the distance. One thing quickly became clear as we traveled.