CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

Violet finally begins channeling after months of struggle, experiencing an overwhelming flood of power in her room. However, the sensation is quickly complicated by Tairn's mating activities with Sgaeyl, which flood her with uncontrollable lust. She flees to the foundation walls where she encounters Xaden, who teaches her to shield and ground herself mentally—a lesson that culminates in an intense kiss before he forces her to leave, insisting the desire isn't truly hers.

The chapter opens with Violet frustrated by her inability to channel while most of her year can. During squad hand-to-hand training, she struggles to concentrate, distracted by watching Xaden spar shirtless. Jack Barlowe taunts her about her lack of channeling ability and challenges her directly, but Liam, Garrick, and Xaden intervene, with Xaden locking him out of the gym using his power. After a confrontation with Xaden about her missing armor and inadequate protection, Violet returns to her room. Suddenly, a massive surge of power floods through her—she is finally channeling. The sensation is overwhelming and comes with intense physical heat and desire. She realizes Tairn is experiencing mating with Sgaeyl, and his emotions are bleeding into hers, creating uncontrollable lust. Desperate to escape and avoid making a mistake with Liam, she flees into the stairwell. She finds Xaden at the foundation walls smoking churam, and he offers to teach her to shield. Through guided meditation—grounding herself mentally in the Archives—she learns to close a mental door against Tairn's emotions, regaining some control. As the shielding works, Xaden and Violet's proximity and the residual desire create unbearable tension. They kiss intensely against the wall in the falling snow, but Xaden abruptly stops, realizing the desire driving her is still primarily Tairn's, not her own. He sends her away despite both wanting more, insisting she leave before he acts on emotions that aren't authentically hers. Violet returns to the citadel confused and conflicted, uncertain whether her attraction to Xaden is real or borrowed from her dragon.