The Shadow Witches returned the favour. An elemental was found strung up among the trees, eyes missing. In his blood was written: an eye for an eye.

Another.

Shadows plague the days now. They are inescapable, haunting, merciless as they rip through the streets. I knew of the witches’ power … but never this. I never knew they could steal the light and consume the world.

They are almost … godlike. Able to do things I thought impossible. My fear grows with each day – but not for myself. For the future. We cannot go on like this.

Sapphire continued to read.

The council is advising vigilance. To lock doors and practise protective magic. The Shadow Witches have moved to the forest, dwelling among the trees. I hear whispers of their evil as I walk the streets.

But what of us who know differently?

What of those who know the hearts of Shadow Witches?

Mikel … She tore through pages until she found what she was seeking.

His love for a Shadow Witch.

And the loss of that love as the tension in the world swelled to an unbearable height.

I love her. I love her earnestly, and they demand its end. They can control our money, our home, even the land we stand on – but even Gods cannot control our hearts.

But the uncertainty of what will happen next still burns vicious and deep within me.

What will happen if I refuse to abide by the new laws? If I say no? If I make a choice for myself for all to see?

What then?

She is worth it. She is always worth it.

She is my heart. My soul. The entirety of my being. Without her, there is nothing.

Destiny is all.

The words were too heavy – the taste of bile rising in her throat.

Mikel never wrote what happened. In fact, the journal ended abruptly, which unnerved Sapphire to her core.

She couldn’t shake the swelling dread. War. Death. Loss. Heartbreak. Mourning. Mikel’s words haunted her.

And then nothing.

How could all of that end in nothing?

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

‘We’re changing your schedule today,’ Araxia told her abruptly. ‘I think it’s far past time we got out of this castle.’

Sapphire looked up from her plate, relief washing over her. Her body still ached from her long swim the previous night.

‘I’ve committed to visiting Ciliria – the Princeps have extended an invitation for lunch.’

‘Oh.’ For a moment, Sapphire wondered how Araxia would take a refusal. What if Sapphire begged?

The idea of being on their territory, in their home, made her throat tighten.