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her eyelids until the moment she fell asleep.
    The next morning, Ileni woke with the dawn, so tense and excited and terrified she didn’t even consider going back to sleep. Magic waited for her, and she itched to use it. She sat up, rubbed her crusty eyes, and resisted the urge to vault out of bed. It had been so long since she had been eager to start her day that she didn’t trust the feeling.
    And she shouldn’t. This is the Empire. I am surrounded by my enemies, and I am a weapon.
    She reached out for the lodestones . . . so close, and brimming with power. Her skin tingled, and she realized that she had drawn some of the magic in without thinking.
    It was like being herself again, after she had been someone else—a stranger—for months.
    But who was really the stranger? The girl with no power? Or the girl who would use power she knew was evil, just so she could pretend magic was still a part of her?
    She squeezed her eyes shut, trying to think past theshame and the joy twined tightly within her. If she was going to pretend she was a student here, she had to use the magic.
    But she couldn’t let herself forget that it was evil.
    She pushed the blanket off her legs and got to her feet. The wardrobe contained a selection of clothes, none of which fit exactly right. She chose a large plain dress with a belt she could pull tight. There was no mirror in the room—because there didn’t have to be: a flicker of magic turned a section of the stone wall reflective, and Ileni gave herself a cursory glance. The dress was far from elegant, but it would do.
    She had forgotten how much easier magic made everything. The belt tied in back—no problem. The tangles in her hair unknotted at her command. Dirt disappeared from her skin, and the tinges of blood that had been clinging to her for days took only a moment to banish. How had she ever lived without this?
    How will I live without it again?
    She was in the middle of a spell to make her dress blue when someone knocked. She hesitated, then let the spell go and opened the door.
    Evin’s eyes swept up and down her dress. “You didn’t have to stop on my account. What color were you going for?”
    She was startled enough to answer. “Blue.”
    “Dark or light?”
    “Uh—”
    “Never mind.” He murmured a spell. A surge of power tingled over her, and her dress was midnight blue, close to black. “Dark looks better when you’re threatening people with knives, I think.”
    Ileni gaped at him.
    “What?” He held up both hands, his sleeves falling to his elbows. “I can change it back, if you don’t like the color, or—”
    “ I can change it back,” Ileni snapped.
    “Okay.” He hesitated. “I’m sorry. Breakfast?”
    Ileni blinked hard and forced herself to step back. “I’m sorry. I . . .” She had no idea how to finish that sentence.
    It had taken him a second to do that spell. She had been working on it for several minutes before he showed up and interrupted her. She had never met anyone that powerful. Even she, back when she had been the most advanced Renegai in her village, couldn’t have worked such a complex spell so fast.
    “It’s all right.” Evin gave her a confident, devastatingly beautiful smile. The smile didn’t transform his face so much as accentuate it, making her pay attention to his appearance for the first time.
    His smile widened indulgently, making it clear what he assumed her silence meant. Before she could think of a way to disillusion him, he started down the hall.
    Well, that was for the best. Let him think she was struck dumb by his handsomeness. What better explanation did she have to offer?
    I used to be very powerful. And now all I can do is steal magic from stones and be close to people who are very powerful.
    Well, actually. Another thing I can do is kill you all.
    That made her feel slightly better.
    Even with magic to keep her safe, the walk along the ledge made Ileni’s stomach turn over. The path curved around the