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At dawn, her parents took her out of the castle, headed for their ht have caused too ested Lady Marion take her, but her parents insisted they go Her uncle approved The King of Adarlan, it see rampant, either

Aedion re he would be sent for when she was settled again But she kneas for his safety Lady Marion ith the her husband and Elide at the palace--­for their safety, too

A monster, that hat she was A monster who had to be contained and hts at theto her, brushing her hair, telling her stories of her home in Perranth Marion had been a laundress in the palace from her childhood But when Evalin arrived, they had become friends--­mostly because the princess had stained her new husband’s favorite shirt with ink and wanted to get it cleaned before he noticed

Evalin soon , and then Lord Lochan had returned from a rotation on the southern border Handsome Cal Lochan, who somehow became the dirtiest man in the castle and constantly needed Marion’s advice on how to remove various stains Who one day asked a bastard-­born servant to be his wife--­and not just wife, but Lady of Perranth, the second-­largest territory in Terrasen Two years later, she had borne him Elide, heir of Perranth

She loved Marion’s stories, and it was those stories she clung to in the quiet and tension of the next few days, inter still gripped the world andin the brisk winds the night her rand than the one in the palace, but still lovely They only summered ­here, as the ­house was too drafty for winter, and the roads too perilous The fact that they’d come

"Still not asleep?" her mother asked Lady Marion ­rose fro at them both

Herher in close "I’ht over her head "I am so sorry, Fireheart"

She buried her face in herthe war?"

She nodded, clinging tighter

"I have a gift, then" When she didn’t move, her mother said, "Don’t you wish to see it?"

She shook her head She didn’t want a gift

"But this will protect you from harm--­this will keep you safe always"

She lifted her head to find her olden chain and heavy, round own and held it out to her

She looked at the amulet, then at her mother, eyes wide

The Amulet of Orynth The heirloom honored above all others of their ­house Its round disk was the size of her pal had been carved of horn--­horn gifted fro antlers was a burning crown of gold, the immortal star that watched over them and pointed the way home to Terrasen She knew every inch of the aers over it countless times and memorized the shape of the syuage that no one could reave this to you when you ­were in Wendlyn To protect you"

The save it to hiiven to people in our fauidance"

She was too stunned to object as her ed the a alht "Never take it off Never lose it" Her mother kissed her brow "Wear it, and know that you are loved, Fireheart--­that you are safe, and it is the strength of this"--­she placed a hand on her heart--"that o, Aelin," she whispered, "no matter how far, this will lead you home"

•

She had lost the Aht

She could not bear it She tried begging the Valg princes to put her out of her , but she had no voice ­here

Hours after her iven her the Amulet of Orynth, a storm had struck

It was a stor, horrific thing pushing against herwith everyone ­else in the e smell coated the air

She had clutched the amulet to her chest when she awoke to the pure dark and the thunder--­clutched it and prayed to every god she knew But the ae, and she had slunk to her parents’ roousting wind and rain

The rain had soaked everything, but--­but they had to be exhausted fro with her, and from the anxiety they tried to hide So she shut thefor them, and carefully crawled into their damp bed so that she did not wake the, and the bed was so cold--­colder than her own, and reeking of copper and iron, and that scent that did not sit ith her

It was to that scent that she ahen the maid screamed

Lady Marion rushed in, eyes wide but clear She did not look at her dead friends, but went straight to the bed and leaned across Evalin’s corpse The lady-in-waiting was small and delicately boned, but she sohtly as she rushed from the room The few servants at thefor help that was at least a day away--­so

Lady Marion stayed