I stopped at the bed, my gaze straying to the nightstand, to the little wooden horse. My heart squeezed. I hurried over to it, taking the toy in my hands. In the chest by the doorway, I found a pouch. Placing the horse in it, I left the bedchamber and then the quarters as I tied the bag to my waist.

I checked on Tawny, finding her the way I’d left her—asleep and far too still. The dark veins had traveled to the curve of her chin. Eloana sat at her side. “I summoned Willa,” she said, and the breath I took was painful. “She will bring one of the oldest Healers. He will know how to treat her.”

“Thank you,” I said, inhaling and exhaling slowly.

She nodded. “Be careful, Penellaphe.”

“Always,” I whispered and then left the room, my chest aching.

Kieran waited for me in the foyer, and from there, we joined Hisa in the Temple of Nyktos. It would only be the two of us who made the trip this time. Vonetta would remain as their parents were en route to Evaemon with their new sibling. I’d told Kieran that he should stay, but that had gone in one ear and out the other, even when I pulled the Queen card and then the I-am-a-god-obey-me line. He insisted on accompanying me, claiming that none of the others would remember the path we’d taken last time. Maybe he was right. Maybe he just couldn’t sleep or stay still either, his thoughts swirling from one horrific possibility to another. What if my plan failed? What if the draken refused? What if she hurt Casteel? What if he needed to feed? What if I needed…to feed? What would I do? I couldn’t even think about drinking another’s blood. What if I lost him? What if he lost himself again?

And I knew this wasn’t easy for Kieran. Before, he had been able to tell how Casteel was doing because of the bond. He didn’t have that now. He just had all the what-ifs I had.

“Kieran?” I asked as we made our way down the narrow tunnel.

“Poppy?”

I swallowed, my throat dry. “Are you…are you doing okay?”

He didn’t answer right away, and I thought the hand he held the torch with trembled. “No.”

I briefly closed my eyes.

“Are you?”

“No,” I whispered.

We traveled the windy underground tunnels, mostly in silence after that. There were no jokes, no real conversation at all. We passed the area of the partial collapse hours before we had the first time, and I moved ahead of him when we saw the pinprick of light. I worked my way out, and then we crossed the barren land. Making our way, I made sure it was I who stepped under the shadow of the winged women. The ground didn’t tremble. What I believed were the Consort’s guards remained under our feet. The city of Dalos shimmered in the distance as we walked toward the shadowstone Temple.