I rolled my eyes.

“And he’s the only thing keeping this realm together.”

“For fuck’s sake,” I muttered. Callum had likely been decent before his unfortunate run-in with Kolis, but now he was… “You’re just as delusional as he is.”

His nostrils flared. “I’ll make sure he’s aware of that, too.”

My head jerked up, sending a frenzy of pain across my shoulders and down my spine. “And I’ll make sure he knows that his precious first creation is the idiot who told my mother how a Primal could be killed. I bet he’ll be real…disappointed to learn that.”

Callum’s mouth snapped shut.

“Yeah.” I smiled through the pain, baring my teeth. “I haven’t forgotten that. Though I wish you would explain why you would do something so…reckless.”

“I wasn’t being reckless, you insignificant gnat.” He snapped forward, clutching the bars. They didn’t seem to affect him. “I was—” He sucked in a deep breath, then peeled his hands away, one finger at a time. “Do you want to know why you are being punished? Because, deep down, Kolis knows you’re not Sotoria.”

A kernel of unease unfurled. “Do you know how repetitive you are? It’s exhausting.”

His smile returned. “He would never treat Sotoria this way.”

Another dry, aching laugh left me.

“I’m not sure what I said that would cause you to find humor.”

“I’m not laughing at what you said,” I told him. “I’m laughing at you.”

Callum’s eyes narrowed.

“You’re an idiot if you think that. He killed her—”

“Her?” The painted wings lifted along his forehead.

Shit. I’d slipped up there. “Yes, her. I don’t remember any of that,” I said, recovering as best I could. “And that’s not the point.”

“But that is the point.” His smile returned. “If you were her, you would know.”

“Can you—?”

“You would know that he never killed Sotoria.”

Now it was I who shut their mouth as her presence stirred restlessly in my chest.

“Yes, he scared her the first time, but that was an accident. He didn’t know how easily Sotoria could be startled,” he said, the skin beneath the painted wings softening in a way I hadn’t seen it do before. “And he didn’t kill her the second time either.” His lower lip quivered. “Eythos did, and that was the second and last time I failed her.”

Callum had finally quieted, having decided to sit morosely on the sofa. What he’d shared lingered in my mind.

It was always suspected that either Sotoria died by starving herself or Kolis lost his temper and ended her life. But Eythos? I couldn’t believe it, even though Callum had very little to gain by lying about it.

Then again, what did Eythos have to gain by killing Sotoria? Well, other than revenge. Though, given what I knew of Eythos, he didn’t strike me as the type to seek revenge by harming an innocent.

My thoughts eventually turned to worries as time ticked by. How had Veses escaped? Was anyone harmed? Would Kolis seek to punish me further by refusing to release Ash or turn his attention to Rhain? More concerns preyed upon my mind while I could do nothing but hang in pain.

How much time did I have left? Could I get to Ash? Would I somehow find The Star, and would it even work when it came to Sotoria’s soul?

How could I continue to tolerate Kolis’s presence?

And would Kolis come to realize that Callum was right? That I really wasn’t Sotoria? My thoughts flashed to Veses and the Council Hall. If so, I wouldn’t live long enough for him to make good on his offer to Kyn. He’d take the embers, killing me and effectively dooming Sotoria.

More time passed.

When Kolis finally returned, smelling of some sort of sweet smoke and staleness, my shoulders had gone numb. He said nothing as he took me by the waist and released the shackles.

I couldn’t keep quiet when he freed my arms. I cried out, my sore muscles screaming.

“I’m sorry, so’lis.” Kolis gathered me in his arms. A fiery, pins-and-needles sensation erupted, leaving me panting with discomfort and pain, unable to protest his embrace. “I’m so sorry.”

He repeated those three words as he held me, rocking slightly. The Chosen brought in hot water, and new scents wafted through the cage: chamomile and peppermint.

Kolis rose then, carrying me behind the privacy screen and setting me on my feet. A veiled Chosen remained at the steaming tub, silent with her gloved hands clasped.

“She will assist you with your bath,” Kolis said, speaking to the top of my head. I really couldn’t lift it. “You will rest, and then…everything will be better, I promise.”

I bit the inside of my cheek to stop myself from laughing. If I started, I didn’t think I’d be able to stop. Ever.

He released me, and the Chosen drifted quietly toward me, reaching for the clasps on my gown that I couldn’t even begin to lift my arms to unhook. My legs shook. The bodice slipped, pooling at my waist, and with my skin feeling as if an army of fire ants swarmed it, I could not care less if Kolis saw even an ounce of my nudity.

But he didn’t.

He’d halted at the privacy screen, his back to us. The gown hit the floor at my feet as the Chosen’s gloved hands gently cupped my elbow, helping me step into the tub.

Kolis cleared his throat. “I just want you to know that I ceased Veses’ punishment when I returned to the Hall.”

A laugh spilled out of me as I sank into the hot, minty water.

And the laughter didn’t stop.

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

I slept without dreaming of my lake or Ash. When I woke, things were better. Mostly. I was still sore, but the worst of the pain was gone.

And I was no longer laughing. That alone was a vast improvement.

What wasn’t good was that I wasn’t alone. Callum once more sprawled on the sofa. He’d been there since breakfast, but he was far less talkative as I forced myself to walk the length of the cage. I had to get the soreness out. Sitting wouldn’t help, but I wasn’t sure moving helped with the other pain.

The ache that had taken up residency in my temples.

That was a bad, bad sign.

I quickly shoved what it signified to the back of my mind when Kolis entered the chamber. I stopped, immediately emptying myself of everything that made me who I was.

Because I knew what I had to do.

It was something I’d thought about while forcing myself to eat and as I walked.

After everything, it was harder than before, but I had to. I needed to convince him to free Ash, which meant I had to behave as if nothing had happened the day before. That he hadn’t manipulated me into killing Evander. Or forced Veses to do who knew what before finally putting an end to it—an act I’d bet he believed erased everything that came before it. Like all abusers and users.

But that was okay.

Because I would be smarter than before.

As the false King approached the cage, Kolis’s smile told me I’d won the wager I’d made with myself. “How are you feeling, so’lis?”

I clasped my hands like the Chosen often did, ignoring the tightness in my arms. “Rested.”

“I’m relieved to hear that.” His gaze swept over the golden gown I wore as he unlocked the cage. “You look lovely.”

“Thank you,” I said, my tongue withering as I recalled the Mistresses’ lessons. Become what they desire. With Kolis, it was more than being meek and submissive. I knew that now. It was all about making him feel justified in his actions. Most of all, it meant becoming what Callum had: a loyal lapdog whose sole purpose was to shower their owner with affection and gratitude. “There is something I wanted to say.”

He halted at the open cage door. “Yes?”

“I…I wanted to apologize for yesterday.”

Kolis stared.