Chapter 1

Feyre, now secretly the High Lady of the Night Court, maintains a carefully constructed facade of recovery while staying at Tamlin's manor. She paints a false idyllic scene while seething with rage over her sisters' fate. She meets with Ianthe, the High Priestess who betrayed them to Hybern, and learns that Jurian will arrive the next day as part of Hybern's first delegation.

Feyre is in Tamlin's manor, painting a deliberately misleading image of the rose garden while concealing her true feelings behind a calculated demeanor. She has been glamouring the High Lady tattoo on her hand and using her magic in secret—summoning fire and wind to destroy a broken paintbrush without leaving evidence. When Tamlin and Lucien arrive, she pretends to be a nervous, recovering girl, though internally she seethes with rage at them for not realizing that Rhysand never harmed her and for believing false implications about her treatment. Lucien presses her for information about Elain's location, but Feyre maintains her cover, using memories of past horrors to generate genuine fear that convinces him she was victimized. She learns that Ianthe, the High Priestess responsible for throwing her sisters into the Cauldron, has arrived and will meet with them. At dinner, Ianthe offers apologies framed as misguided attempts to grant Feyre's supposed wishes and keep Hybern's alliance stable. Lucien is visibly angry; Tamlin remains naive to Ianthe's true nature and her crimes. Feyre performs concerned surprise and issues a hollow warning. She probes Tamlin about the safety of his people and learns that he has already moved vulnerable families east in preparation for Hybern's arrival. The meeting concludes with the revelation that Jurian will arrive the next day as part of Hybern's first delegation, shocking Lucien.