She took Arkav through the castle via a secret passage, one that Rochant has showed her years ago to allow her to visit him discreetly. The passage was just as low and winding as she remembered, but this time her knees were more than up to the challenge.

When they’d crawled to the end she slid aside the panel – that was covered by a picture of a surprised young man – to admit them directly into Rochant’s bedchamber.

She saw him sit up in surprise and spoke quickly. ‘Well, you didn’t expect me to use the door like everyone else?’

He recovered quickly. ‘Of course not.’

It was strange to be in Rochant’s room again. Familiar paintings covered the walls, each one was a portrait, and most were by different artists. Over the years, Rochant had told her about all of them, and she had forgotten almost every word. This was because she didn’t really care about the subjects, she just enjoyed watching his face when it was moved by passion. In the weak gemslight, Pari has the horrible feeling they were all staring at her. Rochant himself was definitely staring at her. Or, at least, the one pretending to be Rochant. Unlike them, he had been prepared for sleep, the paint stripped from his face, and only a thin sleeping robe covered his slender shoulders. His new body, assuming it is his body, was smaller than the last one but he had that familiar poise and sense of calm she’d grown so fond of. And yet something was off. Her heart did not lift as quickly at the sight of him.

She climbed out of the passage and held out her hand to her brother as he did the same.

‘Lady Pari Tanzanite,’ said Rochant, rising. ‘Lord Arkav Tanzanite. I must say, this is … unexpected.’

‘Well, you know me, I hate to be predictable.’

‘Of course.’ He gave the slightest of smiles. ‘No one could ever accuse you of being boring.’

‘I wanted to see you.’

‘We’ve just been at a feast together.’

‘Hardly, you were at the other end of the room with your High Lord. I couldn’t even get close.’

He tilted his head. ‘Is that why you’re here? To get close?’

‘Maybe.’

He came forward and took her hand, bringing it to his lips. ‘It is a pleasure to see you again, Lady Pari.’

Suns! Is he flirting with me? If so, he’s out of practice. She wasn’t sure how she’d been expecting Rochant to react to her. Anger, perhaps. After all, the last time she’d seen him, she’d abandoned him to Nidra’s mercy. But if this was Rochant, that meant he’d escaped Nidra, escaped the Wild, and outsmarted them all. This meeting could just be another part of his plan, but I can’t shake the feeling that this man before me isn’t Rochant.