After all, the Primal of Peace and Vengeance was identical in appearance to his brother, except his features bore no scar.

Kyn was responsible for Ector’s death and many more. A rush of anger went through me as I tracked his movements.

“Kyn,” Kolis acknowledged, inclining his head.

The Primal bowed. “Your Majesty.”

“I assume you have news for me?”

News? My ears perked right up.

“I do.” Kyn stopped where Uros had ended up as slime on the floor.

“Then have a seat.” Kolis extended a hand toward the chairs and settees as the Primal of Peace and Vengeance finally looked in my direction.

Resentment was evident in his eather-filled eyes and the hard press of his lips.

Kyn did not like me.

I could understand that, even though his feelings were misplaced. Kolis had forced me to kill Thad, one of Kyn’s young draken, as punishment for Ash not seeking his approval for my coronation. I’d brought Thad back to life, but Kyn didn’t know that. Maybe if he did, his raging dislike of me would change.

But my seething anger would not. The embers throbbed in my chest as I held Kyn’s stare, more in tune with the Primal’s vengeance than life. I didn’t care if he had been manipulated or what his orders were. He’d attacked the Shadowlands. Killed those I’d come to care about. Whatever understanding existed in me had ended there.

“Perhaps this conversation is better held elsewhere,” Kyn stated, sending me a scathing glare that lingered. “As it has to do with the Shadowlands.”

A bolt of tension shot through me.

“Of course, it has to do with my least favorite Court at the moment,” Kolis replied dryly. “We can discuss the Shadowlands openly in her presence. She is not going anywhere.”

This was one of those moments when I had to remind myself to keep my mouth shut.

Kyn hesitated for a moment, then nodded. “May I?” He inclined his chin toward the dark cherry-wood credenza.

“Of course,” Kolis murmured, his fingers beginning to tap idly. “Help yourself.”

“Thank you.” Kyn went to the sideboard, his long legs eating up the distance. “I spoke with one of Nyktos’s commanders regarding their presence along the Bonelands’ coast.”

I racked my brain, thinking about who he could be speaking of. It had to be one of those close to Ash.

“They are unwilling to heed commands,” Kyn continued, pulling the glass stopper from a large decanter full of amber-hued liquid. “They refuse to move their forces until Nyktos is released.”

Pride surged through me, and I had to fight not to show it because I could feel Kolis’s gaze on me.

“I expected that,” Kolis said. “Are the draken still with them?”

Pouring himself a glass of whiskey, Kyn nodded. “Yes. Three of them.”

“Nektas?”

“Yes.” Kyn replaced the stopper.

My heart began thumping as I waited for him to say the others’ names.

The Primal took a drink, his lips peeling back, I had to assume from the bite of the liquor. Even from where he stood, I saw the size of his fangs. They were massive.

“Nektas being there and them refusing to leave the Bonelands does not bode well for negotiations,” Kyn said, turning. His gaze flickered over me. “You know how the draken are with lands they believe sacred.”

Kolis hadn’t mentioned that.

The false King sighed. “If they thought of every land containing the remains of those fallen in past battles thus, every piece of land would be sacred.”

“Yes, but the lands west of the mountains bleed into the mortal realm,” Kyn said. Was he speaking of the Skotos? “Where the Ancients—”

“I know what is in that land,” Kolis interrupted. “There is no risk of them encountering a mortal there. None have crossed the Skotos and entered the Bonelands in eons.”

So, this land existing between the Skotos and another mountain range was actually in the mortal realm? It made more sense than what the mortals believed, which was that the realm simply ended east of the Skotos.

Kyn made his way back to the sitting area and took a seat. “They use the sea and skirt the mountains, which puts them within range to attack Dalos.”

“I’m also well aware of that.”

“We must make sure Phanos can assist if such a situation arises.”

“That won’t be a problem.”

The fact that Kyn, a Primal of Vengeance, would even ask meant it could be a problem.

“That is a relief to hear.” Kyn’s stare moved over me and then darted away, leaving my skin prickling. “Only half their forces are in the Bonelands. The other half is at my border.”

“You mean your and your brother’s,” Kolis corrected, his fingers still tapping. His gaze slid to the other Primal. “Unless they are positioned to the north of the Black Bay, where I believe your encampment lays.”

As far as I knew, they were east of Lethe, and that was Vathi—the brothers’ Court.

“They are at our border and have been,” Kyn said, not elaborating beyond that. “That is all that matters.”

“Have they attacked?”

“Not yet, but I imagine it is only a matter of time before they seek their vengeance.”

Part of me hoped they did. The other understood what that would lead to: an escalation of violence. War. Death.

Kyn’s gaze swept over me again, his upper lip curling slightly before he refocused on the false King. “Something must be done.”

A faint smile played on Kolis’s lips. “I’m sure you have suggestions.”

“I do.” Kyn leaned forward. “Let me take my forces and remove the threat to our east. I will destroy them, leaving their bones to rot with those who came before.”

Kolis laughed softly. “You said Nektas is with them. If you attempt that, you and your forces will do nothing but burn.”

Tension poured into Kyn’s body, charging the air. “Then allow me to finish what I started.” Silver eyes drilled into me, causing my muscles to coil like a spring. “Let me take the Shadowlands.”

“You had your chance to do that,” Kolis retorted, the reminder of how close the Shadowlands had come to destruction sending a whisper of cold dread over the nape of my neck.

“All I need is permission to take the chance again,” Kyn insisted. “I will not waste the opportunity a second time.”

My stomach hollowed as my gaze bounced between the two. Attes claimed Kolis had forced his brother to turn on the Shadowlands, but Kyn sounded far too eager to have another go at it for his actions to be rooted solely in the recent loss of one of his young draken. Either Attes didn’t realize this, or he didn’t want to acknowledge it.

“You wanted a clear message sent. It can still be done.” Again, Kyn’s stare drifted over me. “And right now, a message is likely needed due to that.”

An ache began settling into my fingers because of how tightly I clenched my glass.

“And what does your brother think?” Kolis queried after a moment. “Does he feel a message should be sent?”

“My brother favors accord over war—that and fucking.”

“As if you are any different when it comes to the last part,” Kolis pointed out. My brows rose, and I…

I thought about why Attes had killed his brother’s guards. He said they’d been taking the young, those years away from their Culling, and bringing them back to their encampments. And as Attes had said, it wasn’t to protect them.

“With Nektas in the Bonelands, my draken and men will be able to make quick work of what forces remain in the Shadowlands,” Kyn reasoned.

Tangles of dread spread through my stomach as my tenuous hold on my tongue slipped and then disappeared altogether. “Then what?”

Two pairs of eather-filled eyes settled on me. Kyn’s were wide with surprise. I could detect nothing from Kolis’s stare nor tone when he asked, “What do you mean?”

My heart was somewhere in my throat as I repeatedly slapped myself in my mind. “If orders are given to destroy the Shadowlands,” I said, knowing I needed to proceed with caution given this was not my mother I was speaking to, “then what comes next? The forces in the Bonelands, including Nektas, will be even more motivated to strike Vathi.”