"Do you really think I would leave my most valuable guest chained to a rock in the freezing dark?"
Thalassa's voice was as smooth as polished sea glass, drifting across the circular suite like an icy draft.
I spun around so fast my boot caught the edge of the woven silk rug. My hand flew to my chest, fingers digging into the hard curve of the jade bird hidden beneath my tunic. Just seconds ago, a sharp, golden flare had ignited in the center of my ribs... a sudden electric jolt screaming that my friends had breached the outer gates. I had felt it in my very marrow. For one wild, desperate heartbeat, I had genuinely believed Orisyl's bloodline beacon had locked onto me.
Thalassa stood beside the bubbling lavender pool, her gown of living water trailing seamless ripples across the iridescent coral floor. She looked utterly pristine, completely unbothered by the fact that mortals had just blasted through her threshold.
