“Yet,” I said. “We don’t kill him yet.”
“Thank you.”
I reached out and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, stroking her cheek after. There wasn’t anything I wouldn’t do for this woman, and I didn’t like feeling restrained.
She leaned into my touch before stepping back, her expression shifting from vulnerable to determined.
“I need you to look at my memory of when my mother died.” She met my gaze despite the tension in her shoulders. “I need to know what really happened.”
I’d done this many times before when I needed to verify truth or extract information, but this was different. This was Isi asking me to invade one of her most traumatic memories, to witness her grief through her own eyes.
“Isi—”
“Please.” Her voice didn’t waver. “Mae said someone pushed her. She mentioned someone named Eva. I found my mother dead at the base of the stairs, but I was young. I could’ve missed something or blocked the memory. You might see details I didn’t notice, details that could make a difference now.”
I gripped her shoulders, needing her to understand what she was asking. “Entering someone’s memories and sorting through them is intimate and invasive. I’ll see everything you felt in that moment, every detail your mind imprinted. And other memories might surface, things you’ve buried, things you’d rather I didn’t see.”
“There isn’t anything in my mind I wouldn’t want you to see.”
“There could be. This won’t be pleasant for either of us. It’ll be uncomfortable. You might feel pressure, disorientation, maybe nausea, though it won’t hurt. I’ll experience everything through your eyes, and you’ll feel me in your mind, sifting through moments that caused you great pain.”
Pherin landed on Isi’s shoulder. The bird’s head swiveled between us, sensing the tension.
“I need to know the truth,” Isi said. “Please, Trew. I want you to do this.”
I searched her face, looking for any hesitation or doubt, but I found none. Just fierce determination and desperate hope.
“Alright.” I released her shoulders. “But not here. There are too many guards in the corridor, too many potential interruptions. We need somewhere more secure.”
“My bedroom.”
We left the parlor, her father’s guards following us up the stairs to her suite, where I stepped inside with her. The guard from last night wasn’t working, and these must not have received the same directive, because they allowed us to shut the door in their faces without protest.
It wouldn’t last, however. We had to act fast.
I followed her through the sitting room into her private chambers. Isi closed the door and turned to face me.
I moved to the window first, checking the courtyard below that was empty except for a few servants going about their duties. Gavelle perched on a branch on the opposite side of the garden, keeping watch, and I told him what I was going to do.
Turning back to Isi, I wove fresh wards, layering them thick and tight. This type of magic drained energy. I was tired from maintaining my magical disguise and from the constant vigilance required in this cursed castle. But I didn’t stop until I was satisfied no one would overhear us.
“Sit.” I gestured to the bed.
Isi settled on the edge of the mattress, her hands folded in her lap. Pherin hopped from her shoulder to the headboard, chittering.
I knelt in front of Isi, positioning myself between her legs, close enough that I felt her warmth and smelled the scented oil her ladies had used in her hair.
“Look at me,” I said softly.
She lifted her gaze, and the trust I saw there made my chest crack wide open. She was giving me access to her most vulnerable self, inviting me into spaces she’d protected for years.
I raised my hands slowly, giving her time to change her mind. When she didn’t pull away, I placed my palms on either side of her face, my fingers resting on her temples.
“I need you to focus on that day. On the moment before you heard the crash. Close your eyes and let me in.”
She obeyed, her lashes dark against her cheeks.
“Don’t fight me when you feel me enter. Don’t try to hide anything or push memories away. Just let it happen.” I stroked her cheeks. “Lean on me, Minx. I’m here for you. I promise.”