The words hung in the freezing air, sharp and jagged as the icicles clinging to the obsidian parapets. *Caleb.* The name alone was enough to make Lyra’s stomach churn, a toxic mixture of old heartbreak and fresh, blazing anger rising in her throat.

"It seems," Vane repeated, his voice dropping an

"Maps?" Lyra repeated, the word tasting like ash on her tongue. She stared at Caleb, her mind struggling to process the sheer audacity of his demand. "You want me to steal Vane’s border patrol maps?"

"Keep your voice down!" Caleb hissed, his eyes darting frantically toward the heavy wooden door. He

The roar that shook the obsidian walls of the ice fortress did not sound like it came from a living creature. It sounded like a mountain tearing itself apart.

Lyra slammed her fists against the heavy iron-wrought door of her tower prison, the unforgiving metal bruising her knuckles. She didn't car