The enemy stands revealed, but learning how to defeat it might be a different matter . . .

After confronting the ugliest truth and escaping the harrowing events at Fontanil, Oren Trevaine returns to his capital to regroup and find his path forward.

But with faceless enemies lurking in every shadow, the Iron Castle feels less like a stronghold and more like a trap. Allowing his court to learn the extent of his troubles will mark Oren's reign as weak, but ignoring the danger could cost him his head—and that of his wife, Queen Marguerite of Westmere.

When Oren makes his audacious move, reaching out to old enemies to forge a new future, he discovers the extent of the rot threatening his kingdom, and just how far those at its root will go to attain power.

Oren might be a man of peace, but he was made for war. When the choice lies between the lives of his people and his conscience, is it a choice at all?