“Your timing is dreadful,” Tristan said.

“Sorry, my lord,” the guard said, hazarding a peek at me. “She really isn’t supposed to be down here.”

“And you really weren’t supposed to interrupt,” Tristan said, the corners of his mouth turning up. “I’m willing to forgive the latter, if you pretend you never saw the former.”

“Yes, my lord!”

“Now how about you start walking back up the tunnel, and we’ll be along shortly.”

The guard shot an anxious look at me. “She won’t leave, will she?”

“No,” Tristan replied. “She is coming back with me.”

“Anaïs won’t be happy about this,” I said after the guard had departed, examining the torn gown.

“Likely not,” Tristan agreed, pulling his shirt back on and eyeing the dying glow of the setting sun. “We need to get back.”

I put the torn dress on as best I could, and with one hand gripping Anaïs’s shoes and the other Tristan’s hand, we started back up the River Road.

Despite being uphill, the journey back to Trollus was much pleasanter than the descent towards the beach. An enormous weight had been lifted off Tristan’s shoulders and his happiness mirrored mine. Everything was going to be all right now that he knew I wasn’t secretly searching for a way out. He trusts me now, I thought, and I found that I valued this gain as much as his love.

When I saw the glowing orbs of the guards ahead, I only felt a little bit nervous. “They won’t be terribly angry, will they?” I asked Tristan.

He frowned. “Hard to say.”

The lights started towards us. The young troll guard was waving his hands about as he explained what was going on to his fellows.

“Sorry about the bit of deception, boys,” Tristan said, throwing a companionable arm around the shoulders of two of them. “No need for anyone other than the six of us to know about this little adventure, is there?”

The older trolls grumbled a bit, but agreed to keep silent.

The younger was staring at me hard. “But if you’re here, then…” His gaze drifted back to the gate. “Then that’s…” He grimaced. “I don’t think it’s us you need to be worrying about.”

We stepped through the gate and I saw Anaïs-as-me waiting only a few paces beyond, her face anxious. The anxiety fled when she saw us, as did my features. Red hair became black; round cheeks sharpened; and blue eyes became silver ones, filled with rage. I watched her take in my disheveled appearance, and the realization of what that meant dawned on her. “I take it you decided to stay.” Her voice was harsh.

“I decided to stay,” I agreed, but as I reached for Tristan’s hand, my feet flew out from beneath me and I toppled to the ground. My first thought was that she’d hit me with her magic, but then I realized everything around me was shaking. The trolls were on the ground, too, falling bits of rock and dust bouncing off magical shields.