Sera's POV
The camp is burning.
I smell the smoke before I see it—thick and black, carrying the stench of burned flesh. Kade's horse charges forward and I cling to his waist, my medical bag bouncing against my leg. He demanded I ride with him because it's faster than letting me walk.
Now I'm pressed against the War Beast's back, feeling every muscle tense beneath his armor as he surveys the destruction ahead.
"How many?" he shouts to the soldier riding beside us.
"Unknown, sir! The attack came from inside. Someone let the rebels in."
A traitor. There's a traitor in Kade's army.
We thunder through the camp gates. Bodies everywhere. Tents collapsed. Soldiers screaming. My healer instincts take over and I'm off the horse before it fully stops, running toward the nearest wounded man.
"Wait—" Kade starts, but I'm already gone.
The soldier has a sword wound across his chest. Deep. Possibly fatal. I rip open my bag and grab bandages, pressing hard against the bleeding.
"Stay with me," I tell him. "Look at my face. Don't close your eyes."
He's young. Maybe twenty. Someone's son. Someone's brother.
He works for my uncle. He might have killed innocent people on Dorian's orders.
But right now, he's just a boy dying in the dirt.
My hands move automatically—cleaning, stitching, bandaging. I learned this as a child from Master Theron, back when I was a princess who thought healing was a hobby. Now it's the only thing keeping me alive.
And the only thing keeping this soldier alive too.
"You're good at this."
I jerk my head up. Kade is standing over me, covered in soot and blood. None of it seems to be his.
"I've had practice," I say shortly, turning back to my patient.
"Too much practice for someone your age." He crouches beside me. "Where did you really train? The royal physicians' academy? A military hospital?"
My hands freeze for just a second. Then I force them to keep moving.
"I told you. I learned in the Dust Quarter."
"Liar." But he doesn't sound angry. He sounds... curious. "The Dust Quarter doesn't produce healers this skilled. Someone taught you. Someone with real knowledge."
He's too smart. Too observant. Every word I say gives him another piece of the puzzle.
"There!" A soldier points across the camp. "The rebels are escaping through the east wall!"
Kade stands immediately. "Ash! Take fifty men and cut them off. I want prisoners, not corpses. We need information."
"Yes, sir!" Commander Ash—the man I saw earlier—runs off shouting orders.
Kade looks down at me. "How many can you save?"
I glance around the camp. At least thirty wounded. Maybe more hiding in the tents.
"I don't know," I admit. "Some of these wounds are too severe. I'd need—"
"Save as many as you can." He turns to leave, then stops. "And Sera? Don't try to run. I have soldiers watching every exit. You're mine now."
The way he says "mine" makes my stomach flip.
Then he's gone, disappearing into the chaos.
I work for hours. Stitching. Bandaging. Stopping bleeding. Using tiny bits of my magic when no one's looking, just enough to keep hearts beating, to keep lungs breathing.
My hands are covered in blood. My dress is soaked with it. I've lost count of how many soldiers I've saved.
Then I hear a familiar voice.
"Please! I didn't do anything! I swear!"
My blood turns to ice.
I know that voice.
I push through the crowd of soldiers and find them dragging a prisoner toward Kade's command tent. The prisoner is beaten, bloody, barely conscious.
It's Marcus. One of Lyra's network. One of the rebels I've been secretly helping.
And if he talks, if he tells them about me...
"General!" A soldier calls out. "We caught one! He was trying to escape through the supply wagons!"
Kade emerges from his tent. His silver eyes are cold as winter. "Bring him."
They throw Marcus at Kade's feet. Marcus groans, trying to lift his head.
"Please," he gasps. "I'm just a supply worker. I don't know anything about—"
"Stop." Kade's voice cuts like a blade. "I've interrogated a thousand men. I know when someone's lying." He crouches down. "You're going to tell me who planned this attack. You're going to tell me who the traitor in my camp is. And you're going to tell me where the rebellion's hideout is."
"I don't know anything!" Marcus cries.
Kade sighs. "Ash. Bring the irons. We'll do this the hard way."
Torture. They're going to torture him.
And Marcus knows things. He knows about Lyra's network. He knows about the safe houses. He knows about the money I've been sending.
He might even know about me.
"Wait!" I hear myself shout.
Everyone turns to look at me. Including Kade.
What am I doing? I should stay quiet. Stay invisible. But I can't watch them torture Marcus. I can't let him suffer because of me.
"He's injured," I say, walking forward on shaking legs. "Badly injured. If you torture him now, he'll die before he can tell you anything useful."
Kade's eyes narrow. "And?"
"Let me heal him first. Then he'll be strong enough to... to answer your questions."
It's a desperate gamble. If I heal Marcus, I can whisper to him. Warn him. Tell him to stay quiet about me no matter what.
But Kade is studying me with that too-smart gaze again.
"You want to heal a rebel," he says slowly. "A man who just helped kill your soldiers. Why?"
"Because you want information from him. Dead men don't talk."
"True." He stands, moving closer to me. "But healers usually don't volunteer to save the enemy. Unless..." His eyes widen slightly. "Unless you know him."
My heart stops.
"I don't—"
"You do." He looks at Marcus, then back at me. "You recognized his voice. I saw it on your face. Who is he to you?"
"No one! I just—"
"Stop lying!" Kade grabs my arm, pulling me close. "Every time you open your mouth, you dig yourself deeper. So here's what's going to happen. You're going to heal this rebel. And while you work, you're going to tell me exactly how you know him. Or I'll assume you're part of the rebellion yourself."
The camp goes silent. Everyone is watching us.
If I admit I know Marcus, I'm connected to the rebellion.
If I deny it, Kade will know I'm lying and suspect me anyway.
There's no way out.
"He..." I swallow hard. "He bought medicine from me once. That's all. I recognized him from the Dust Quarter."
"Medicine for what?"
"A fever. His daughter was sick."
"His daughter." Kade's voice is flat. "Interesting. Because according to his papers, he doesn't have any children."
Oh no.
I just made it worse.
Kade pulls me closer, until his face is inches from mine. "Last chance, Sera. Tell me the truth. How do you know this man?"
Behind him, Marcus catches my eye. Even beaten and bloody, he's trying to shake his head. Warning me to stay quiet.
But Kade sees everything.
He turns to Marcus. "She's trying to protect you. Which means you're important to her. Which means..." His eyes go cold. "You're going to tell me everything about your relationship with this girl. Starting now."
"I don't know her!" Marcus gasps.
"Liar." Kade pulls a dagger from his belt. "I'm going to count to three. If you don't start talking, I'll start cutting. One."
"Please!" I grab Kade's arm. "Don't hurt him!"
"Two."
"I'll tell you! I'll tell you anything you want to know!"
Kade stops. Slowly, he turns to face me, the dagger still in his hand.
"Anything?" he asks quietly.
I'm shaking. Tears burn my eyes. "Yes. Anything. Just don't hurt him."
"Good." He sheathes the dagger. "Then tell me, Just Sera. Tell me why a simple healer from the Dust Quarter cares so much about saving a rebel that she'd risk her own life. Tell me why your eyes are filled with guilt right now. Tell me—"
"General!" A soldier runs up, breathing hard. "Sir, we found something in the prisoner's pocket. You need to see this."
The soldier hands Kade a piece of paper.
Kade unfolds it. His face goes very still.
Then he looks at me. And the expression in his eyes makes my blood freeze.
"Is this your handwriting?" he asks softly, holding up the paper.
I can't see what it says from here. But from the way Marcus's face has gone white, I can guess.
It's one of my messages. One of the notes I sent through Lyra's network to the rebellion.
And somehow, Marcus had it on him.
"I..." My voice fails.
Kade reads aloud. "The general plans to search the east quarter tomorrow at dawn. Move the supplies before then. Three families need to be relocated to the safe house. The Dust healer will provide funds." He looks up. "The Dust healer. That's you, isn't it?"
The whole camp is staring at me now.
"I can explain—" I start.
"You're one of them." Kade's voice is deadly quiet. "You've been helping the rebellion this whole time. Feeding them information. Protecting them. While pretending to be innocent."
"It's not what you think—"
"Then what is it?" He moves toward me like a wolf stalking prey. "Tell me, Sera. Make me understand why I shouldn't execute you right here for treason."
I back away. "Kade, please—"
"That's General Nightborne to you, rebel."
He signals to his soldiers. "Arrest her. Lock her in the prisoner tent. No visitors. No food. No water. She stays there until she tells me everything."
Hands grab me. I struggle but there are too many of them.
"Wait!" I scream. "You don't understand! I'm not—"
"Save it for interrogation." Kade turns away from me, dismissing me like I'm nothing. "And someone find out where this note came from. I want every person in that network found and arrested. Starting with whoever this girl has been working with."
No. No, no, no.
They're going to find Lyra. They're going to destroy the entire rebellion network.
And it's all my fault.
As soldiers drag me toward the prisoner tent, I catch one last glimpse of Kade.
He's standing alone, reading my note again, his face carved from stone.
Then someone throws a bag over my head, and everything goes dark.