“But why did you believe their words over hers? Did you not consider them your enemies, even then?” I asked. Lady Altaecia had accompanied the Dark asha, had seen all she had. Surely she knew of the elders’ culpability. What could estrange a trusted mentor, cause her to abandon her ward in her hour of need?

The woman turned to me, the grief in her eyes genuine. Pain puckered the skin alongside her crow’s-feet. “Because Tea killed an innocent, my boy.” She spoke softly but with authority. “The darkrot took control, and she slew an innocent, and her brother was there to see it all with his own eyes. I cannot trust a Dark asha on the cusp of darkrot, no matter how deeply I love her. The black has taken hold of her heartsglass, and it is only a matter of time before it corrupts Tea completely, bringing us all down with her. Was not the destruction of Kion—for no other reason than petty vengeance—enough proof?”

6

“The charges are ridiculous,” Zoya complained as we sat down to lunch.

The cell I was provided was the cleanest in the Kion dungeons. Kalen had put two soldiers to work scouring and scrubbing. It was bare of furniture and essentials but comfortable enough to while away time. Zoya had solved the former issue by dragging in tables, pillows, and a softer, wide feather cot (“Needs to be big enough for two people, I reckon,” she quipped wickedly, and I blushed), glaring at the guards, daring them to protest. They did not.

Althy and Kalen were still conducting daily Delvings, and our food was carefully monitored, prepared by either Althy or my mother, the latter soon taking over the kitchens in the Valerian asha-ka and shooing the Valerian’s suspicious maid, Farhi, away.

To ensure my good behavior, the association had uprooted my family from Knightscross while my case was pending. My connection to the azi remained intact, however—a secret I kept. More than once, I was tempted to sic it on the elders for the condescending way they had treated my parents and siblings.

“Bone witches aren’t the only suspects. Druj is still running amok.” Zoya slurped her tea and slammed the cup down on the table. “They have little to stand on, and they know it.”

“The elders are doing everything in their power to restrain Tea’s movements,” Shadi reminded her, setting down her own empty cup. “And despite the flimsiness of the evidence, they remain in charge. They’ve successfully argued to withhold their findings until the trial commences.”

“A witch hunt, then,” her lover grunted.

“They want to humiliate me,” I said shortly. “To have my family on hand to watch.”