A few minutes later, everyone I’d asked for was gathered in Caliza’s office. Kiva leaned against the wall beside the desk, Caliza behind it with Captain Mirkova a rigid force at her side. In one of the chairs across from them, Lady Kerova, head of House Kerova, sat poised like a swift bird, her hands folded in her lap. Tama, delicate tattoos of the Jin guilds, curled up her neck and along her jaw in red and gold ink that shifted when she smiled.

I hadn’t stood face-to-face with one of the house leaders in weeks. Seeing her, memories flashed: her gentle smile whenever I tried and failed to sneak up on her, she and Estrel playing games of dice at the patio table late into the night, her shadow crow materializing suddenly from the darkness to startle me in an endless game, Caliza peering at her around corners, her childhood crush obvious to everyone except her.

Next to Estrel, she’d been my mother’s most trusted friend, as well as her war advisor.

I didn’t sit. The last few days had awoken something inside me once smothered by ash and grief, and a wild energy coursed through me.

“I have an idea,” I began. “And it’s a little absurd.”

Four pairs of eyes rested on me, and for the first time in a long time, I felt what Caliza had been talking about that morning. I felt the storm in my veins.

“I want to ally with the other kingdoms against Illucia.” I looked at each of them in turn.

Caliza and Captain Mirkova exchanged looks. Lady Kerova’s expression remained serene as ever.

Kiva grinned. “I like it, but there’s no chance Korovi will help. They’ve got their heads too far up their—”

“Sakiva!” Captain Mirkova hissed.

Kiva scowled. “What? Am I wrong?” she asked.

The captain looked as if someone had carved her from stone. Arms crossed, jaw set, every muscle honed by years of training drawn taut.

“They won’t give a damn about another kingdom,” Kiva spat. “They don’t even care about their own people.”

Captain Mirkova said something low and furious to Kiva in Korovi, and Kiva shot something twice as hot back, leaving both women red-faced and white-knuckled.

“It’s worth a try,” I pressed, my tone turning desperate. “Snow and mountains won’t keep them safe from Razel forever.”

Captain Mirkova quickly regained her composure, leaving her daughter fuming silently. She regarded me with pale eyes, considering.

“It’s an interesting idea,” Lady Kerova said in her silken voice. “Something I once considered. But Jindae and the Ambriels have been beaten down and torn apart. What remains of them likely resents Rhodaire for not aiding them when they needed us most. Their faith in us is broken.”