The dog stayed close to my heels as we trailed Josette through the castle. She continually cast furtive glances over her shoulder, confirming my suspicion she was up to no good. Exiting through a door in the kitchen, she meandered through the outbuildings in the direction of the wall, which Marc and Fred appeared to have manned with half the soldiers at their disposal.

She paused next to the narrow stairs leading to the battlements, but instead of going up, scurried beneath them. The space was full of building material – blocks of stone and sacks of sand – that, judging from the layer of dust coating them, had languished there for some time. Josette squeezed between them, her feet briefly sticking out, and then she disappeared from sight.

Curious, I ducked under the stairs, shifting the materials slightly to reveal a small opening that had been eroded under the wall, probably by the river flooding. Even if I’d been inclined to do so, it was too small for me to fit through. But Josette’s slender frame had clearly managed the task. “The rat has found a hole,” I said. Or more accurately, had been told where to find the hole, given that, to my knowledge, she’d never been to this place.

Souris growled and wove between my feet, lips pulled back to reveal his fangs.

Dropping to my hands and knees, I lowered my head into the opening – careful not to pass the iron barrier above me – and I listened.

“He’s still under the spell,” Joss whispered, and I motioned Souris to be silent so that I could better hear. “From what I’ve heard, all he does is sit in the council chambers with his game and that dog. He speaks to no one, and that the entire city hasn’t fallen into chaos is all thanks to Marc arriving when he did.”

“It will not last,” a woman said, her voice melodious and soothing. “Magic fades. It is the way of these things.”

“But what if it doesn’t fade in time?” Joss’s voice cracked. “You showed me what Roland’s done so far. All those people dead. How many more will die while we sit around waiting?”

“A valid fear.” The Winter Queen’s voice was morose. “Mortal lives are already brief – to see them cut short is no doubt heart-wrenching.”

I shook my head at Joss’s inability to see through the fairy’s false sentiments.

“Isn’t there anything you can do to stop Roland?” Joss asked. “You’re a queen, an immortal. Surely…”

A heavy sigh. “Not alone, I’m afraid. The trolls are an abomination, Josette. An unintended outcome that should never have been allowed to live. They are too powerful, and far, far too dangerous. I fear humanity is in grave danger.”

“All because of my sister.”