“Tegan cannot open the tunnels.” He shook his head, his face an unreadable mask. “Only a royal of Seelie can open the tunnels. Only Thorne, Sage, Saraphina, and I can. Or the angels tied to the realm. You are none of those things.”

“What about Saber?”

He arched one eyebrow. “She is not here either. Nor is she allowed, until her bloodline is revealed.”

I nodded. “So, no matter how I tried I was not going to start this quest without you⁠—”

“Why are you running like this? You had time still, time to prepare. Valathame’s message did not say to do this⁠—”

“I almost died last night.”

“I know,” he growled, emotion causing his cheeks to flush.

“You saved me.”

His face fell. “I will always try to save you.”

I took a step forward then stopped. If he was close enough to touch me, I would lose steam. “This is the part you’ve been waiting for, isn’t it? The reason you can’t tell me anything . . . because it would mess up my time travel.”

He stared at me for a long moment before he nodded once.

My stomach tightened into knots. I knew it. Ask him the other question, Frankie. Ask him. “The prophecy says, ‘When in doubt head back to him.’ That means you, doesn’t it?”

He nodded. His mouth was pressed in a firm line like he was trying to force himself not to say more. But his eyes were blazing with emotion.

I nodded and gripped the notebook harder to anchor myself in place. “I’m going to see you, past you, wherever I end up, aren’t I?”

He nodded.

I exhaled in a rush, and it rattled my bones. “But telling me anything risks changing the future.”

He nodded again though I saw words he wanted to say screaming through his eyes at me.

“Then you see, I don’t have time at all.” I shoved the notebook back into my magic back and tightened it, then I looked back up to him. “If I die, which your mother and Sweyn are hell bent on seeing through, then I can’t go back in time. I can’t find the missing page and we can’t win this war let alone the next one. All those people injured downstairs will die. Jackson and Mona will lose their soulmates forever. We cannot let any of this happen. I have to go. Now. I will never, ever be prepared enough for time travel. So, I’m going now before I lose my nerve. I’m sorry I tried to leave without waking you. I just . . . thought it would hurt less.”