Razel gave me a considering look. “How I punish my servants isn’t your business. Tell your Korovi friend the same. I heard the two of them had dinner this evening, and I don’t appreciate her distracting the girl from her work.”

“You hit her, didn’t you?”

A smile ripped across Razel’s face like a jagged cut. “I won’t repeat myself. Now, I assume that’s not what you came for?”

I scowled. “You ordered my guards sent home. I want to know why, and then I want them returned.”

“Whatever for? Do you feel unsafe?”

Something about her faltering smile, about the wild look to her gaze, made me pause. I’d felt unsafe from the moment I left Rhodaire, for the months before it since Ronoch—now? Now, I felt threatened.

“You have my guards to protect you, my servants to look after you, and your friend remains. I don’t see any need for your people to stay.” Razel swept toward the fire, and the light danced across the moonblades strapped to her back. She stopped before the flames, looking back at me.

The orange light played tricks across her pale skin, creating shadows that turned her face hollow and gaunt, like a skull lit by a candle. I gritted my teeth and stepped closer to her and the fire.

“I’m not afraid of you,” I said. “And I won’t let you control me either.”

Razel’s eyes flashed, and she grinned like a hungry jungle cat. “Let’s be honest with each other, Thia dear. This is your home now, and it’s my territory. If I wanted to hurt you, a few of your soldiers wouldn’t be able to protect you.”

A chill straightened my spine, and I took a step back.

She advanced. “I’ve been gracious with you, and I see no reason why that can’t continue. I’ve given you free rein of the castle, promised warm clothes for you, and allowed you to keep you dearest friend at your side. But make no mistake.” She seized my scarred wrist, dragging me toward her with surprising strength. “I’m not my son, who I hear has been more than tolerant of you, the spineless fool. Continue testing me, and I’ll happily treat you like the crow-loving dog you are.”

She stepped back, hauling me a step closer toward the hearth and wrenching my hand toward the flames. The warmth of the fire taunted my skin. I gasped, pulling back, but her hold only tightened. Something feral and distant gleamed in her eyes, as if she stared into a different world.