"Hold tight to your lies." As the frigid darkness of war descends upon Onyx, Lady Cinder's nights are filled with King Tristan's warm glow. No matter how hard she tries to maintain the smooth exterior of the trained assassin that she is, deep down Cinder knows that she wants to keep Tristan by her side forever. And she'll kill to do it. But what will happen to her moon-soaked moments in King Tristan's arms if Brix lets it slip that Cinder originally joined Onyx's search for a future queen with the intention of murdering the King? While her brother's closest, most brutal confidant stews in a prison cell in the bowels of Breakwater's castle, Cinder must recover from wounds by his hands. She's driven to find Brix's cell, make him pay for the havoc he wreaked, slowly wrench answers from him about her own brother's allegiances, and then silence him forever before he burns Tristan's love for her to the ground. Sometimes dark actions are required to protect dark hearts.