Han closed his eyes, but that sent his head spinning, so he opened them again, slitting his eyes to shut out as much of the view as possible.

Crow’s words came back to him. I had so many plans, and then—nothing.

“Welcome to the deeps, Alister,” Gavan Bayar said, his lips twisting into a cold smile. “How…fortuitous that we happened to be here to greet you. We were just on our way back from a meeting at the Council House. You were the topic of discussion, and now here you are.”

Bayar paused, and then, as if Han had asked a question, said, “Oh, yes, we’ve known about these tunnels for a long time. There is an entrance directly into our quarters in the Council House, which allows us to travel from Aerie House to the council chambers without being seen. We realized there must be another way in when you began mysteriously appearing and disappearing from Gray Lady. It seems there are portions of these tunnels that we have not yet explored.”

Fiona held up Han’s dagger by its point. “Planning to murder somebody? Is that why you’re here?” Not waiting for an answer, she lifted Han’s carry bag and dumped the contents onto the floor.

“Father!” She knelt and lifted the Crimson Crown in both hands. “Blood of the Demon! Where did you get this? Who did you steal this from?” She looked from the crown to Han and back again, tracing the flame design with her fingers.

“Let me see that,” Gavan Bayar said, thrusting out his hand.

Fiona handed it over. Lord Bayar turned the crown, examining it from all sides, tilting it under the torchlight, scanning the inside for the maker’s mark. Then he looked down at Han, his blue eyes glittering like winter sunlight on ice. “Well, now,” he said. “We are ambitious, aren’t we?”

“Is that what it appears to be?” Fiona asked. “Is it authentic?”

Lord Bayar nodded. “It’s the crown of the gifted kings—something that by rights belongs to us. A treasure that’s been missing for a thousand years.” He handed it back to Fiona. “It was kept with the armory, and stolen by the Demon King just before the Breaking.”

“The Crimson Crown?” Fiona weighed it in her hands. “But how would he possibly—”

“It seems that Alister has ferreted out the secret of the Demon King’s amulet and found the armory,” Gavan Bayar said, with immense satisfaction. “And now all we have to do is ferret it out of him.”

C H A P T E R  T H I R T Y - T W O

BETRAYAL

Hope is a dangerous thing, Raisa thought. Once kindled, it’s hard to put out. It makes wise people into fools.