At three in the morning, goodbyes are said, and I go to change, and then I take one of the cars from the garage underneath the castle, and I head toward the airport with Alivia and Ian.

“I feel like I should be staying to help you deal with everything going on,” Alivia says when we’re only ten minutes from the airport. “I know how stressful dealing with everything can be, and I had a House to help me.”

I shake my head. “I’ll be fine. I have Dorian and Malachi. And Mina and Fredrick. And Cyrus.”

Which isn’t exactly true, but still.

“You need to get back to your own life,” I say. “I appreciate you coming to help me identify Lorenzo.”

“I still think you should be careful with him,” she says, looking out into the dark night. “Something about him and what he says happened doesn’t sit right with me.”

I nod in agreement. “I will.”

I turn off the main road and cut down the narrow drive that leads to the small airport. We drive past hangars, most of which belong to Cyrus or the members at Court. We roll past them, and I aim the car for the jet waiting on the tarmac.

The pilot and staff are waiting for them, standing straight and ready just to the side of the stairs.

“Enjoy your peaceful time back in Mississippi,” I say with a smile, standing awkwardly in front of them while the attendants load their luggage.

Alivia laughs. She shakes her head, stepping forward. She wraps her arms around me in a tight embrace. “I know this might take some time to resolve. But I hope we get some more time together in the near future. I really want to get to know you better, Logan. Under circumstances that aren’t so dire.”

I do tense up. The thought makes me nervous. But still, I do nod. “I’d like that. Someday.”

She backs up just a bit, and places her hands on either side of my face, staring into my golden green eyes. “There’s no one in the world who can handle all of this like you can. I believe in you, Logan.”

My throat tightens a bit at her words. But I give her an appreciative smile.

She releases me, and Ian steps up. He offers an awkward smile, and to my surprise, he actually hugs me.

“I might still be just a little bitter, about a lot of things,” he says. “But I guess I just forget what responsibility and stress does to a person. You’re not so bad, Logan.”

I huff a laugh. “Thanks, I guess. You’re not too terrible, either.”

He releases me, and I offer a little wave as they both walk up the stairs to enter the jet.

Alivia looks over her shoulder one last time, and I smile at the woman who looks just like me. The woman who carried me for nine months. The woman whose name I didn’t even know for twenty years.

But a woman who’s been through a lot, and came out as an incredibly kind person. Someone who is a good leader.

Someone I now respect.

The pilot follows them inside, and then the door closes.

I don’t know when I’ll ever see Alivia again. But even if I never get to see her again, I’m happy with the time we got. It wasn’t sweet and tender. But it was real and raw.

I feel the air warming as the sun rounds the globe, heading our way, but still an hour and a half off. Standing on the tarmac, I wrap my arms around myself and watch the jet taxi out onto the runway.

Through the dark, I hear the engines roar. The jet slowly inches forward, and gains speed with each second. And then it lifts off, bound on a journey halfway around the world.

It’s weird, but I feel a small sense of relief as I climb into the car, alone, like having Alivia and Ian here was this weight in the back of my brain, constantly putting pressure on me.

Now I can just focus on the problems at hand.

Alone, I point the car back in the direction of Roter Himmel.

Traffic heading through this canyon is nonexistent. There is nothing through it besides Roter Himmel. So when I see taillights up ahead, two sets of them, my brows furrow. For ten minutes, I follow them through the dark and winding canyon, wondering if maybe they have a cabin off a side road up here somewhere.

But they never turn off anywhere. Straight and sure they drive toward my home, sending my heartbeat racing.

When we’re only one mile from the crest of the canyon, where the view opens up to the valley, I know I can’t wait any longer.

They’ll see Roter Himmel in just minutes.

I lay my foot on the gas, switching to the opposite lane. I rocket down the road, driving side by side with the first car, and then surpassing it. And then I pull up alongside the front car.

Pressing a little harder on the gas, risking the sharp turns and curves of the road, I shoot ahead of the front car.

Recklessly, I angle my car across both lanes and instantly slow the car. I watch over my shoulder, making sure the cars behind me slow.

They do, but the nose of the front car only misses me by inches when I slam to a stop.

Looking down the road again, I barely see a break in the trees. Out across the way, I see mountains, and just barely in the dark, I see a spire—the castle, and one single light glowing dimly.

I get out of the car, slamming the door closed behind me.

But not before I slipped two stakes up my pant legs.

The window rolls down on the driver’s side of the front car. And I slow as I walk up to her. Because even in this dark, nearly nonexistent light, I can see her eyes.

Golden jade, just like mine.

“Is something wrong?” she asks with a thick Italian accent. “Do I have a taillight out?”

Don’t let her eyes distract you, I internally hiss at myself.

I straighten my shoulders, stopping beside her car. “I wanted to ask where you’re headed.”

I take a deep breath as I lean down, looking into the car. There are four others inside with her. They’re all vampires. I can smell it.

“We’re in the area, going to visit family,” she says with a wary smile.

“And where does this family live?” I continue interrogating the woman.

“Do you treat all Royals who come to visit Roter Himmel with this much wariness?”

Holy shit. There it is.

No more beating around the bush.

“If you were Royals, I would think you would have heard the news by now,” I say. I place my hands on the ledge of her window, staring her down with no fear. “Roter Himmel is on lockdown. No visitors in, no residents out.”

I see something flash across her face, but it’s difficult to identify. Relief. Fear. Surprise. “Well, that explains why we haven’t been able to reach him.” There’s grit in her voice. It’s angry, frustrated. But I can tell she’s trying hard to control it. “We’ve traveled a long way to see our father. He asked us to come visit him. It was not easy to coordinate a visit involving this many family members.”

Something twists in my stomach. A little warning bell sounds in the back of my brain.

I know the answer to the question I’m about to ask.

“And who is your father?”

She stares back at me with the same eyes as my own. “Lorenzo St. Claire.”

Looking in the car again, I see the same yellow-green eyes staring back at me from the other four people in the car. And something tells me that the others in the car behind this one will be the same.

Shit.

Shit.

I don’t know what this means.

I force myself to wear a poker face. It has to be a good one. But no matter what, I can’t hide my eyes.

“I’m afraid that the lockdown hasn’t been lifted,” I say. “So I cannot allow you into the city yet. But there is a nice little inn about twenty miles back. You can stay there until all of this is over, on my bill.”

The woman’s eyes narrow, and there’s just the faintest hint of red that ignites in them. But she keeps it under control. Good, for her safety. “And under what authority do you command us to stay outside of the city of our father?”

My eyes narrow. “That of the crown.”

There’s a faint little smirk that ignites in her eyes at that. “From what I hear, the King is dead. It seems to me the crown no longer has any authority if he is dead.”

My hand darts forward and I feel my eyes light brilliant red. “It is under the authority of the crown of Queen Sevan, my crown, backed by King Cyrus, who is alive and well and will end any who dare trespass while we sort out Court business.”

She stares at me with wide eyes and the others in the car hiss. One of the back doors opens and a man gets out.

I shove the woman back against her seat. I stalk around the car, coming nose to nose with the man. “As Royals, I know that you know what happens when you go against the crown.” He backs up one step as I stand as tall as I can, channeling every ounce of rage and authority in me into my burning eyes. “The King and I will be happy to speak to you all, but not until the time is right. Not on Roter Himmel soil. So you either turn these cars around, go back to the inn, or I will have an army chasing you down in exactly one minute, and they will tear you limb from limb and will crucify your remaining trunk on the trees that guard the city. Do you understand?”

The man backs up one more step, and I do actually see fear creeping into his eyes.

With a wary look, he nods.

I turn to the others, glaring darkly at them all. “Go to the inn. I will be there soon to speak to you. But I warn you, if any of you steps one foot inside the borders of Roter Himmel, you won’t survive, and the process won’t be quick.”

The woman in the driver’s seat glares at me with hatred, but also fear. I stare her down, wishing I could crush her, until she gives me what I want. A nod.

The man gets back in the car. It’s apparent the people in the car at the rear could hear us, because it backs up and flips around. And then they both head back down the road.

I stand on the road, watching their taillights head back in the direction we came from.

A terrified sigh quivers its way out of my lungs.

This is bad. This means something.

I don’t believe for one second that Lorenzo just asked his other undisclosed Royal children out in the world to come visit him, and so conveniently soon after word of Cyrus’ “death” began to spread around the globe.

I don’t trust an inch of it.

I fish my phone out of my pocket and hit a name, holding it to my ear.

“Malachi,” I bark the second he answers. “There’s been some developments. I need twenty Court members you’re certain we can trust. I know we haven’t finished vetting like I want to, but there isn’t time right now. I need twenty bodies at the mouth of the canyon. Now.”

With an affirmative noise from him, I hang up.

I pace the road, looking every direction, straining my ears. Listening for any signs that the group of Lorenzo’s descendants tries to sneak through the woods and into the city borders.

Six minutes later, I hear darting feet down the road in the city, and then just seconds later, a herd of blurs stops at my side.

“I do not have time to explain everything that has been going on,” I say, standing before the twenty men and women my grandsons deemed trustworthy. “You’ll be given all the answers in time, but for now, your Queen needs your help.”

I explain what just happened, in small detail. I do name names, that of Lorenzo, and telling them they can identify his children by their eyes, the same of the man each of them already knows.

“I don’t want a single one of them setting foot in our city,” I say. “Not until we have answers as to why they’re here, and why now. Is that understood?”

“Yes, your majesty,” they each say, offering a humble bow.

“I’ll be back to the inn in a few hours,” I say. “Keep watch over them for now. Stay in the dark. I want to know what they’re up to. What they talk about.”

I turn, angling toward the car once more. But I turn back. “I cannot thank you enough, for your loyalty to this family. To our kind.”

I bow to them. Eyes grow wide and surprised in the dark.

Trusting them is all I can do. So I get in the car, and I race down the road, back into Roter Himmel.