Then I found that my real siblings were the amnesiac Eliana, her evil twin Illaria, and the unusual, wild Prince Furston.

And I was still digesting my parentage confirmation.

Something about all that left me feeling sorta numb and disconnected from Eliana. But I hoped once I had absorbed this all and gotten all the Älvolk/Lost Month mess behind me, I’d be able to really embrace Eliana as my sister.

That’s why it was so important that I remembered what happened during the Lost Month. So I could deal with it and move on with my life. Until I understood fully what Indu had used me for, it would all feel like unfinished business to me.

Well, that and Jem and Sumi seemed to think it would be mighty bad for everyone if the Älvolk got the bridge open.

The Mimirin was quiet because it was Sunday, and Elof was alone in the lab when we got there. He’d forgone his usual kaftan-style lab coat, and he just wore a burgundy dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up and the top buttons of his collar undone.

“Are you ready for all this, Ulla?” he asked, and his tight smile did little to ease the anxiety bubbling in my stomach.

“Yeah, of course!” I forced myself to sound confident and upbeat because Pan was looking at me, and he already had serious safety concerns about this. I knew his fears weren’t exactly unwarranted, but I thought (hoped) I was strong enough to handle them.

“Wait, what is that?” Pan asked. We’d been walking toward where Elof sat at the island, but Pan stopped short.

He pointed to a big metal tub sitting nearby, filled with slowly melting ice cubes.

I winced because I distinctly remembered Tove Kroner dumping me in a cold shower in the Trylle palace bathroom. His sister had been helping to recover memories when I overheated.

“It’s only a precaution,” Elof said. “Because of how things went with Dagny.”

“Are you sure this is safe?” Pan asked.

“No,” he admitted with a rough exhale. “But I’ve made it as safe as I can.” He’d been holding on to a small jar of sky-blue liquid, and he slid it across the island toward me. “This is an elixir to help prevent inflammation and keep your body temperature down. You should drink it before the Ögonen arrives, so it has time to take effect.”

“Inflammation?” Pan sounded alarmed, and I grabbed the jar and gulped down the bitter, milky liquid before he could talk me out of it.

“Dagny had some mild brain swelling, and I hope to avoid that this time around,” Elof said, keeping his tone as matter-of-fact as possible.