CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
I n the dwindling light, Dian and I head to the pond, watching the dragonflies dart over the gleaming water, alighting on the feathery reeds. The flowers have all wilted, in place are their withered stems.
She hands me a pouch of green cloth. “Take this with you.”
I thank her, opening it to sift through dried herbs and flowers, many I’ve never seen before. A few small lumps and coils of incense are nestled among them. “Will you teach me about these?”
Dian shakes a handful onto her palm, prodding at a cluster of bell-shaped flowers.
“When set alight, these flare as bright as fireworks. The reddish strands are night-root, as you know, while the yellow flowers can induce confusion, though its effects are short-lived.” She holds up a piece of ink-dark incense coiled around a crystal shard.
“This forges connections in dreams—but only if the incense blend used by both sides is identical. It’s rare, and I have only one matched set left for us.
Use it sparingly, only when you urgently need to reach me. ”
Its sweetness is startlingly familiar. “Is this what you used on Jin and me in the tower?”
“Did you enjoy it?” As she smirks, I resist the urge to toss the pouch at her. It’s a priceless hoard, as powerful as the sharpest weapon.
“It was just a dream.”
“Dreams can be shaped from your thoughts and emotions, your desires—even those you might not be aware of. Whatever happened then, it was real in a way.” A frown lines her brow as her gaze slides to Jin. “He is not for you, Sister.”
“What do you mean?” I ask carefully.
She bends to pluck a wild chrysanthemum, just as I used to.
The flower quivers, its petals seeming to brighten in her hand as she tucks it into her sash.
“Be careful with those from Thorn Valley; they want our magic too. Our island used to sustain their forests and crops, our waters were a key source of their food. In return, they helped keep us safe.”
Something jars me. “You said ‘used to.’ What about now?”
“After the Iron Mountains invaded, relations between our kingdoms have grown tense. They aren’t allowed to visit our island anymore, nor do we share the magic that helps their valley thrive.”
“Then the Iron Mountains has weakened us by driving this wedge deeper.”
“Some of our people question how the tragedy of the Sun Dragon, of you and Mother, unfolded, if it was allowed on purpose to give Thorn Valley greater dominance.”
“Jin’s father died to protect us,” I say slowly, piecing together what I know. And Jin had looked out for me before knowing who I was, even when he thought I’d betrayed him.
“Mother died too.” Her voice grows cold. “Lord Jin-Yong is not someone you should grow close to. The moment he learned who you are, everything between you was rewritten. He wants your power, what you can give him. His keen mind has been turning to how he can use you to help his kingdom.”
“You forget, I have no magic.” My tone hardens to match hers. “I can even touch the iron of these cursed mountains.”
“It lies inside you—buried but not lost,” she replies adamantly. “Once we’re home, we’ll find a way to restore your magic.”
“I just have to stay alive,” I say wryly.
I glance at the pond, at my reflection. Since I left, the waters have grown murky again, yet that is not why I look different from before. All I’ve undergone is etched in my face, a new gravity to their lines.
“When we return home, you should end your association with the heir of Thorn Valley,” Dian tells me. “Don’t give anyone a chance to doubt your loyalties.”
My lips press together. “I don’t like being told what to do.” Not even by a newfound sister.
“I’m the same.” She grins, but then it fades. “There are many rules on our island, but we just want to protect our home. Get to know us first, and then decide for yourself which rules you’ll break. I don’t want you to close the door before it was even opened.”
Jin and Ruilin are coming toward us, bringing the horses to drink from the pond. He’s watching me intently like he knows we’re speaking of him. At once, I look down at the pouch in my hand like I’m inspecting its contents.
“There are so many herbs here. What if I use the wrong one?” I ask Dian.
She shrugs. “Fortunately, for whomever you poison, you’ll possess the remedy too.”
“What do you mean?”
“Because our people are descended from flower spirits, our magic comes from nature, from plants and trees. It’s said that a kiss from a flower spirit can cure any poison of the earth—as long as it’s freely given.
” Dian rubs her ring, and this makes me wish I had mine too.
“I’ve never tested this; those I want to poison stay dead. ”
Jin approaches us, his expression grave. “You don’t have to go back to the Palace of Nine Hills. Stay with Dian. I’ll tell His Highness you were injured, that you needed to recover before traveling. I will get your ring back, even if I have to pry it from His Highness’s grasp.”
I’m tempted. Yet Prince Zixin keeps the seal with the dragon by his waist and my ring in his room. “I have to go. I have the best chance of getting close enough to him to take what we need.”
Jin’s face darkens. “If they learn who you are, they will never let you leave.”
Fear pools in my gut, but I’d rather hold my life in my own hands than entrust it to another. “Let’s hope they don’t find out.” I look from Jin to my sister. “They’ve stolen my past; I won’t give them my future.”
He is silent for a long while. At last, he nods. “Tell us what you need—how we can help.”
I lift Dian’s pouch of herbs. “What can I use to render Prince Zixin unconscious without him remembering anything? Something that can’t be traced back to me.”
Dian pulls out the strands of night-root and another plant with spiked leaves.
As we watch, she grinds them with her pestle.
Light flickers from her fingers, the mashed elements drying into a crimson powder.
“Scatter this over an incense burner—it’s safer than putting it into food that can be more easily traced. This will put him into a deep sleep.”
When I think of my mother suffering at the hands of the king, of Prince Zixin imprisoning the dragon in the seal, hate suffuses me until I can almost taste its bitterness. “He doesn’t deserve to sleep well; he deserves nightmares—all of them do.”
“I’ll give them to him.” Dian smiles viciously as she picks up a pink flower, shaking its pollen over the powder. Then she pulls off a ring from her finger, a square amethyst set on a thick gold band. A deft twist of the stone reveals a tiny compartment that she sifts the powder into.
“Use it carefully.” She slides the ring on my finger, covering the mark on the underside—then hands me a glossy white leaf. “Don’t forget to eat this before you use the incense. It will protect you from the effects.”
Jin’s eyes curve to crescents. “I don’t like this plan. I don’t want you to get close to him.”
The abruptness of his tone… right now, he doesn’t sound like the astute advisor, moving the pawns with ruthless indifference. If it’s an act as Dian believes, it’s a good one.
“It’s the best plan we have,” I tell him flatly.
“She’s right,” Dian snaps. “I loathe this as much as you do, but it’s our best chance. Unlike you, I can’t get into the palace, so you need to keep it together in case my sister or Ruilin need help. Use that brain you’re so famed for, Lord Jin-Yong—it seems to have stopped working of late.”
As Jin glares at her, Ruilin adds, “I’ll be there too. Prince Zixin won’t hurt me; he needs my father’s support.”
“You must still be careful,” Dian cautions her.
“I’m good at looking out for myself.” Her fingers thread between Dian’s, pulling her closer. “I don’t risk myself for just anyone.”
She leans her head against Dian’s shoulder, my sister’s arm going around her. As they walk away, Jin comes to stand beside me.
“What did Dian tell you about me?” he asks bluntly, with his usual perception.
I don’t want to lie to him, not anymore. “Just how things stand between Thorn Valley and Mist Island, that you need our magic for your kingdom.”
“Do you think that’s why I care?”
“I know you’ll say anything, that you’ll do anything to get what you want.”
“Just like you?” he asks coolly.
I don’t reply; I don’t like that he’s right.
“Do you know, I searched for you every chance I got, even when they thought you were dead?” Jin says quietly.
“Every time we crossed the border to the Iron Mountains, I sought news of you, any trace or lead. Your loss weighed on me. I didn’t know you back then, but I didn’t like thinking you were lost and alone, among our enemies. ”
Will I find what I’m looking for? he asked when we first met.
As it turned out, I was a better fortune teller than either of us thought.
His admission softens the barrier around my heart—but then I recall how terrifying he’d looked when he caught me stealing the starfire.
How quickly he might turn, should I cross him again.
“Why are you telling me this?” I ask.
“Because there is a lot you don’t know about me.” His eyes flash as he speaks. “Don’t just listen to others; judge for yourself. You don’t know me, but you think you do, which is worse.”
He leans away from me, his expression shuttering. “What will you tell Prince Zixin? You’ll need a good story to convince him you want to be back when you fought his general to get away.”
“He offered me a deal before I left. He thinks I’m afraid to be with him, that I don’t feel worthy of the ‘great honor.’” I grimace as I say this, needing more practice to give it the ring of truth.
“He’s arrogant enough to believe all that.” His face is somber. “Remember, you defeated his general, you rescued the duke’s daughter. He’ll have to treat you with respect.”
“I will, and I’ll tell him everything he wants to hear.”
He pauses. “I don’t want to see you smiling at him, to let him touch you.”
“I don’t want that either.” His honesty pries mine loose. “But he may not even want me that way anymore—”
“He’ll want you.”
“Then it will be easier to play him. I know how to read people; I made my living off it,” I remind him.
“Telling a bunch of lies?” The thinnest thread of humor in his voice, one abruptly snapped. “If he forces you—”
“He won’t; he’ll want me willing.” Somehow that aggravates Jin more, his jaw clenching. “Promise me, you won’t interfere.”
“No,” he says fiercely. “If you’re in danger, I will intervene, and His Highness will not like it.”
“I won’t let it get to that,” I try to assure him. “I’ll send for you if I need help.”
“Send for me even if you don’t.”
He pulls me into his arms roughly, almost as roughly as when he seized me when I tried to flee—except this time, it feels good.
I push aside Dian’s suspicions, her warnings and my caution, leaning against him, my face pressed to his chest as I inhale his clean scent of rain, grass, and pine.
His arms tighten, his touch making me want things I can’t have—that probably aren’t good for me.
But just for this moment, I let myself fall… because I know this can’t last.