SERA'S POV
"That's impossible," Cassian whispered, staring out the window. "She's dead. I watched her die."
I scrambled to my feet and looked outside. An army filled the street, and Duke Malachai stood at the front. But Cassian wasn't looking at him.
He was staring at a young woman with dark hair and kind eyes. She wore a black dress and stood perfectly still, like a statue.
"Who is that?" I asked.
"My sister. Lydia." His voice cracked. "She died seven years ago. Poisoned by nobles who wanted to silence her. I held her while she—"
He stopped, hands shaking.
"It's a trick," Mnemora said firmly. "Malachai is trying to mess with your head."
But Cassian wasn't listening. He was already moving toward the door.
Ferris blocked his path. "My lord, you cannot go out there. It's clearly a trap."
"I know." Cassian's usual smile was completely gone. "But if there's even the smallest chance she's really alive, I have to know."
"Then I'm going with you," I said.
Everyone stared at me.
"Are you insane?" Mnemora grabbed my arm. "They want to capture you! You'll be walking right into their hands!"
"I know. But I need answers too." I pulled free. "Evangeline is out there. My best friend who betrayed me. I need to look her in the eye and understand why."
"Revenge won't bring your family back," Ferris said gently.
"I'm not looking for revenge right now. I'm looking for truth." I met Cassian's eyes. "Let's go together. If it's a trap, at least we'll face it knowing what we're walking into."
He studied me for a long moment, then nodded. "Mnemora, if we're not back in ten minutes, take Ferris and run. Don't try to rescue us."
"Like hell I won't," she muttered.
Cassian smiled—small and sad, but real. "I know. But please try to be smart about it."
Then he opened the door and walked out.
I followed.
The moment we stepped outside, soldiers raised their weapons. But Malachai held up a hand, stopping them.
"Lord Vyredge," he said smoothly. "How kind of you to join us."
"Duke Malachai." Cassian's voice was light again, back to playing the fool. "What a lovely evening for an army to visit. Should I prepare tea?"
Malachai's eyes were cold. "Drop the act. I know you've been working against the Noble Council. Stealing evidence. Sabotaging our operations." His gaze shifted to me. "And now you're harboring a dangerous criminal. The last Flameheart."
"Dangerous?" Cassian laughed. "She's seventeen and terrified. Hardly a threat to your empire."
"She killed three of my guards tonight with uncontrolled fire magic. She destroyed Lord Voss's study. She's exactly the kind of magical threat we've spent decades eliminating." Malachai stepped forward. "Surrender her now, and I'll consider your involvement a momentary lapse in judgment."
"And if I refuse?"
"Then you're a traitor to the Noble Council. We'll arrest you both."
Cassian pretended to think about it. "Tempting offer. But I have a counter-proposal."
He snapped his fingers.
The street erupted in chaos.
Hidden devices I hadn't noticed suddenly activated. Smoke bombs exploded. Mechanical birds launched from Cassian's roof, diving at soldiers and tangling them in nets. The ground beneath the army trembled as underground mechanisms triggered.
"Run!" Cassian grabbed my hand.
But I wasn't looking at him. I was staring at the woman who was supposed to be his dead sister.
She stood perfectly still while chaos swirled around her. Our eyes met.
And she mouthed two words: "Help me."
Then Evangeline appeared beside her, grabbed her arm, and dragged her away.
"Sera, move!" Cassian yanked me backward just as a soldier's sword sliced through the air where I'd been standing.
We ran. Soldiers chased us, but Cassian's defenses kept triggering—walls rising from the ground, mechanical arms grabbing at attackers, smoke obscuring everything.
We made it back inside the manor. Ferris slammed the door shut and barricaded it with a heavy metal beam.
"They'll break through eventually," Mnemora said. "We need to leave. Now."
"Agreed." Cassian was already moving, pulling books off shelves. "There's a secret passage behind this wall. Leads to the underground tunnels beneath the city. We can escape through—"
An explosion rocked the manor.
The front door blew inward. Soldiers poured through, and this time they weren't alone.
Walking through the smoke was a woman I'd never seen before. She was old, with silver hair and eyes that burned with familiar fire.
My fire.
"Hello, child," she said, looking directly at me. "I've been searching for you for a very long time."
Power radiated from her—ancient and terrifying. The air shimmered with heat.
"Who are you?" I demanded.
She smiled. "I'm your grandmother. Lady Cordelia Ashford. And you, my dear Seraphina, are coming with me whether you like it or not."
My grandmother? But she died when I was little. Everyone said so.
"You're lying," I whispered.
"Am I?" Fire danced across her fingertips—silver flames, not red like mine. "Your parents told you I was dead to protect you from the truth. But I'm very much alive. And unlike you, I've had decades to master the Flameheart power."
She raised her hand, and silver fire shot toward me.
I threw up my hands instinctively. Red flames burst from my palms, meeting her silver fire in mid-air.
The two fires collided.
Everything went white.
When my vision cleared, I was on my knees, gasping. Cassian stood in front of me, shielding me with his body. Mnemora's hands glowed as she held back soldiers. Ferris fought three guards at once.
And my grandmother—if she really was my grandmother—stood untouched, smiling.
"Strong," she said approvingly. "But untrained. You'll burn yourself out if you keep fighting like that."
"Why are you doing this?" I asked. "If you're really my grandmother, why are you working with the people who killed my family?"
"Killed them?" She laughed, and the sound was cruel. "Child, I didn't work with them. I ordered it. Your parents were weak, hiding you away instead of helping me reclaim what's rightfully ours. They had to be eliminated."
The world stopped.
My grandmother—my own blood—ordered the fire that killed my parents.
"No," I whispered.
"Yes." She stepped closer. "And now you'll join me, or you'll burn like they did. Your choice."