Chapter 30 · Beyond the Contract

The Moon Core hums like a living thing. Silver light pulses through the chamber, and I can't look away from the sphere floating in the center. It's massive—bigger than a car, spinning slow, and I swear I see shapes moving inside it.

"Ivy." Silas's hand is on my arm, his palm still bleeding from the cut he made to snap me out of Grayson's trap. "We need to move. If your father's in there, we have minutes before—"

An explosion rocks the factory above us. Dust rains from the ceiling.

"Before that," Silas finishes.

My mother's voice slides through my head again, soft and wrong. *He's waiting for you, Ivy. Just reach in. Take his hand.*

I step forward. Silas yanks me back.

"Don't," he says. "That's not your mother. It's the bloodline talking. Royal blood doesn't give a damn about your father—it wants you to open that core."

"Then why would it lie about him being in there?" My voice cracks. I hate how desperate I sound, but I can't help it. I heard my father's voice. I know I did.

Silas opens his mouth, then stops.