Sasha was sitting with her sister in her bed in their room in the cottage. Isaak and Elias had left the room, hopefully preparing breakfast.

“Elias wants to go to Ebenhow and Ella tried to convince him not to”, Sasha said.

“I know.”

“Did you see death in Ebenhow?”

“I did”, Ivy said matter of fact, “We need to finish the business with the king. The foreshadowing says it will happen within weeks. The exact procedure is not clear to me, but I know for sure I must take the reign before the end of the month.”

Ivy's face looked worried, she massaged her temples, a stern look in her eyes. Sasha knew she tried to see behind the fog, to understand more about the visions.

“Mother said Ebenhow was death for Elias, but she also said staying was the death for me.”

“Yes”, Ivy said, “or no. You just”, she sighed. “You have to stay here in the cottage for the next couple of days Sasha. Do not leave.”

“No, I will not”, Sasha said, hugging her sister. “About being a queen”, she pushed. “Is Isaak on board?”

“No”, Ivy sighed. “He still thinks I need protection and that he should keep being a crime lord. I didn’t want to become a queen Sasha. I need him and the time is running out!”

Sasha hugged her sister close. She wanted to punch Isaak in the face.

“The time is indeed running out. And I have more problems to add.” Sasha didn’t want to put more burden on her slender sister's shoulders, but she needed her. “I found something out. Something that will change everything.”

Ivy’s worried look became even more concerned. Sasha took her hands and cast an eye to the doorway. They were alone.

“The king is under a spell. The queen has stolen his heart and it has driven him mad. The culprit is not him, but her.”

Ivy leaned away from her, shock written on her face.

“The queen? Are you sure?”

“Yes, I have seen the potions and the magic, and I have spoken with the dragon queen. I will confirm it with the knights of Aaliyah before we strike, but I am sure.”

Sasha quickly got Ivy up to date with all the happenings, saving nothing, her cheeks turning red of shame when she thought about the orb. Not that Ivy didn’t already know.

“I don’t think he could forgive me”, Sasha said. “I need to tell him, and he will know for sure, that I have aimed for the kill.”

“You are an assassin”, Ivy noted. “It shouldn’t surprise him.”

“It's his father. He has been searching for a cure, hoping for him to love him all his life. He will never forgive me.”

“Men”, Ivy said. “They know how to mess things up.”

“That they do.”

“What do you want to do?”

“I think I need to start with the truth. I don’t want to, but it's too late for anything else.”

“I meant with the king and queen?”

“The king will get his heart back, and I still have the favor of a judgment from the knights. They will serve her a fair punishment.”

“That’s a good plan. That way you will get away with being the one holding the ax.”

“Yeah”, Sasha confessed. “I hope so, but she is strong. I am not sure I will be able to overpower her, even with Greg's and Isaak's team.”

“Isaak's people have worked with you for years and they will give their all. I am not so sure about what Greg could bring to the table though.”

“The academics are a triumph card. Without them, the queen is too strong.”

Sasha believed in Greg. She needed her friend there and she felt no shame to admit that. She only hoped that in time, he would come to stretch out to here again. She had hunted him badly, still, she would do it all over again if she had the choice.

“Elias wants to heal his father. With his help we can not loose”, Ivy said.

Sasha put up a face. Her sister wouldn’t understand. She had never told her the whole story about Greg.

“Elias is strong, but will he be able to look at us crushing her or will he turn against us? If he turns, we are too weak, even with my newfound abilities. We need Greg.”

Ivy pondered on this. She rose from the bed, going to the window.

“They are coming with breakfast”, she said. “Tell them today, and I will feed their reactions to my meditation. I will look for the path to follow.”