Chapter Twenty-One

Elain announces she will search for the Dread Trove using her powers, prompting a heated confrontation with Nesta who fears for her safety. The tension escalates when Nesta lashes out cruelly at Elain, but the revelation that Feyre is pregnant with Rhys's child shifts the dynamic, as Feyre cannot safely use magic and Nesta becomes the primary candidate to scry for the Trove's location.

The chapter opens with Elain declaring her intention to search for the Dread Trove, causing Nesta to violently object. Amren explains that Nesta, being Made by the Cauldron, is immune to the Trove's power and can track it as Briallyn does, though Nesta protests that her previous attempt nearly killed her. When Elain insists on proceeding, Nesta argues fiercely, dismissing her sister's life choices and eventually delivering a cruel insult about Elain's lack of interest, saying "Maybe you'll become interesting at last." Elain responds by pointing out that Nesta has centered her sister's trauma around her own pain, then leaves the room. The mood shifts dramatically when Feyre reveals she is pregnant and cannot risk using most of her magic. Cassian, Azriel, and Amren celebrate the news, which Rhys has been keeping secret for two months. Feyre shares that Elain had guessed the pregnancy first. When asked about the baby's sex, Feyre privately tells Nesta—before anyone else knows—that the Bone Carver showed her during the Hybern conflict that she would bear a boy. Nesta makes a cutting remark implying Feyre dislikes sisters, but Feyre defends her motivations and acknowledges her own guilt in how she and Nesta have treated Elain's trauma. The chapter ends with Nesta agreeing to scry for the Trove to protect Elain from danger.