Chapter Forty-Six

Violet, Xaden, Brennan, and Mira arrive at Viscount Tecarus's palace in Poromiel to negotiate for a luminary. Tension erupts over Xaden's prior visits and his relationship with Catriona, a flier with emotion-heightening powers who deliberately inflames Violet's jealousy. At dinner, Tecarus proposes Violet demonstrate her lightning signet by striking a chest—revealed to be an heirloom from Xaden's father symbolic of a broken alliance—while archers aim at her. When Violet opens the chest, a venin emerges instead of an explosion.

The group lands at the palace and Violet discovers Xaden has visited repeatedly, knows the layout, and has a room there. Catriona, Tecarus's niece and Xaden's former alliance, greets them with subtle hostility. After being dressed in a stunning black silk gown by a lady's maid, Violet encounters Catriona, who uses her gift to heighten Violet's emotions, triggering intense jealousy and insecurity. Mira sharply challenges Catriona's rudeness. They proceed to dinner where Xaden kisses Violet openly in front of the assembled fliers, shielding them in shadow and revealing Catriona's emotional manipulation. Tecarus then leads them to an amphitheater carved into the hillside and demands Violet strike a metal chest with her lightning—the Rybestad chest, once Xaden's father's property, representing a failed alliance. Xaden is forbidden from entering the arena; archers surround them as insurance. When Violet opens the chest instead of striking it, a venin with bloodshot eyes and distended red veins emerges, causing Xaden to roar a warning.