The Songbird and the Heart of Stone

Mische’s 16th birthday passes quietly as she remains committed to Atroxus, who continues to visit her occasionally. One day, a vampire is captured and brought to the church. Mische runs to see her sister and other acolytes wrestling him down, binding him with chains of Atroxus’s light. The vampire is kept in a cell, and Mische begins visiting him daily, sitting beside his cage as he fiddles with a wilted flower. The next day, she brings him a yellow flower from the courtyard and tries to talk to him despite the language barrier. She starts to believe there’s light in every heart, even those of vampires, though Atroxus insists that vampires are tainted and beyond redemption. When the vampire is executed by exposure to the sun, Mische is furious. She cuts his body down in front of everyone, unwilling to let him be displayed in such a way.

The group reaches the precipice of the Sanctum of Psyche, where Asar warns them that their thoughts can be manipulated and they should trust nothing they see. As they enter Psyche, Asar is shocked to find the Heir mark appearing on his hands, signaling that Raoul has passed away and that he is now the rightful ruler of one of the three vampire kingdoms.