Tears pricked Kate’s eyes as she listened, and when the others applauded she joined in, mouth closed to keep her emotions from spilling out from her.
Raith raised his hands for silence again, and this time it was necessary. “Prince Corwin will need help. The trip to Seva will be perilous at every turn. He will need the best of us to aid him.”
“I will go,” Dal said at once. He shot Corwin a glare, one made fiercer by the scars on his face. “I can’t believe you didn’t tell me already.”
Corwin shrugged, a smile teasing his lips. “I know better than to speak for you, my friend.”
“I’m going, too,” Bonner said, rising to his feet.
Kate glanced up at him, feeling a wave of fear for him. He wasn’t made for war. He was meant to create, not destroy. But there was a hardness to him now that had never been there before. Perhaps it would be enough to see him safely through.
Kate stood up beside him and said, “Me as well. I will go.” There was no question about it. It was already her plan, to find Kiran and Vianne.
She turned her gaze on Corwin, their eyes locking. As always, something moved between them, a force like lightning and thunder.
When the meeting ended, Corwin approached Kate. Wordlessly, he took her by the hand and led her to where a small band of trees grew on the side of the gorge. It offered the only privacy there was to find in the camp.
Corwin stopped and faced her. “I’m sorry for all the things I didn’t do, Kate,” he began. She opened her mouth in protest, but he placed a gentle finger against her mouth. “Please, let me finish. Then you can scream at me all you want. I will stand here and savor every minute of the abuse.”
With a blush heating her face, Kate pressed her lips together and waited.
“You were right. I should’ve done everything I could to let your father go into exile. I should’ve believed you when you said he was innocent. I was blinded by the idea that to be king was to obey. That the laws were some fixed, holy thing, unchangeable, irrefutable in their wisdom. But they aren’t. The world changes, the wheel spins, and so we must change as well. That is what it means to lead—finding the wisdom to bring change when it’s needed and to hold fast when it’s not. Thank you for helping me learn this truth.”
The world is black and white and all the shades of gray in between, Kate thought. She held her breath, his confession sliding over her like stepping into a warm pool of water, soothing and welcome. She remembered that moment when he begged her not to use her power to kill Edwin and the others, how close she’d come. But he pulled her back despite his doubt and fear. He lifted her up. Or maybe we lifted each other.
“You never answered my question, though,” Corwin said, pulling her out of her thoughts.
“What question?” she asked, breathless.
“Whether or not you’ll have me.” He stepped closer, their bodies nearly touching. “I love you, Kate Brighton. I always have. I’m yours however you want. As prince or pauper, husband or paramour. That power belongs to you and only you.”
Kate stared up at him, her mouth falling open. She could see he meant every word. And there was a deeper meaning behind his words, one she sensed as clearly as if he’d spoken them aloud: that he accepted her in the same way—as she was, without question. Traitor, wilder, woman.
Kate. Just Kate.
With no words to offer him in return, she answered him the only way she knew how.
With a kiss.
The first of many, as long as their perilous future would allow.
Acknowledgments
THIS IS THE HARDEST BOOK I’ve written to date, and I owe so many thanks for it that mere words won’t be enough. Still, I’ll give it a try. First, to my editor, Jordan Brown, for taking a chance on this book even though it was only halfway done. Your faith in the story, and in me, made all the difference. As did your brilliant insight.
To the wonderful team at Balzer + Bray for allowing me the privilege to once again call this place my publishing home and for believing in this girl called Kate, armed with magic and a moonbelt: Alessandra Balzer, Donna Bray, Tiara Kittrell, Renée Cafiero, Caroline Sun, Bess Brasswell, and Tyler Breitfeller. And extra-special thanks to the magicians behind the gorgeous cover: art director Alison Donalty, designer David Curtis, and artist Santi Zoraidez. Thank you for making Kate and Corwin look so good.
As always, thanks to my agent, Suzie Townsend, my first and last champion. And to the rest of the New Leaf crew who helped give this story a place in the world: Sarah Stricker, Joanna Volpe, Kathleen Ortiz, Mia Roman, Veronica Grijalva, Pouya Shahbazian, and Jaida Temperly.
To my early readers and cheerleaders: Sarah Goldberg, Amanda and Jay Sharritt, Susan Dennard, Natalie D. Richards, Lorie Langdon, Liz Coley, Kristina McBride, Maria Pilar Albarran Ruiz, and Erin Rupert.
To my riding coach, Lori Miller, a true wilder at heart—thanks for the equine advice and guidance.
Thanks to the rest of my family not yet mentioned: Adam, Inara, Tanner, Betty, Phil, Debra, Krystal, and Vicki. And thanks to God, who makes all things possible.
And finally, thanks to you, dear reader. I hope you enjoyed the ride.
About the Author
Photo by Krystal Arnett Photography
MINDEE ARNETT is the acclaimed author of Avalon and its sequel, Polaris, as well as the Nightmare Affair series. She lives on a horse farm in Ohio with her husband, two kids, a couple of dogs, and an inappropriate number of cats. You can find her online at www.mindeearnett.com.
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Books by Mindee Arnett
Proxy
Avalon
Polaris
Onyx & Ivory
The Nightmare Affair
The Nightmare Dilemma
The Nightmare Charade
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Copyright
Balzer + Bray is an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.
ONYX & IVORY. Copyright © 2018 by Mindee Arnett. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.
www.epicreads.com
Cover art by Santi Zoraidez
Cover design by David Curtis
Map illustration by Maxime Plasse
Digital Edition MAY 2018 ISBN: 978-0-06-265268-3
Print ISBN: 978-0-06-265266-9
1819202122PC/LSCH10987654321
FIRST EDITION
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