Chapter 28 · Take Your Name Back

Mara can't feel her legs.

She's on her knees in a puddle of her own blood, and Elias is standing over her with the hot key in his hand. The key that's supposed to rewrite any oath in the city. The key their father died protecting. And her brother just took it like he was picking up loose change.

Julian's on his feet now. The brand on his chest is gone, but he looks worse than when he had it. His face is gray. His hands are shaking. He's staring at Elias like he's trying to figure out which bone to break first.

"You planned this." Julian's voice is flat. Dead. "You wanted her to break the lock."

Elias doesn't even look at him. He's turning the key over in his palm, watching the light catch on the teeth. "I needed the old contracts to fail. Mara was kind enough to do the hard part."

"The water districts—" Julian takes a step forward. Elias raises one hand, and Julian stops. Not because he wants to. Because something in the air just got heavier.

"Will flood by dawn," Elias finishes. "Yes. Unfortunate. But necessary."

Mara tries to stand.