Rhys and Feyre sit on the roof of his townhouse, discussing the morality of stealing the book. Rhys shows Feyre three “blood rubies” sent from Tarquin, a warning that they are marked for death for their betrayal. Rhys admits he made a mistake and debates whether to tell Amren, who would want to destroy the Summer Court. Azriel arrives, and Feyre leaves them to discuss strategy, imagining a vivid sexual scenario with Rhys as she walks back to her room.

That night, Feyre is awakened when a darkness slips into her room under the door. She follows the darkness to Rhys’s room and finds him in bed, unresponsive. She tries desperately to rouse him back to consciousness. Something in the darkness snaps, and Rhys wakes, grabbing Feyre and pinning her to the bed, his hands talons and his feet claws. Using her power to calm his mind, she draws him out of his nightmare, memories of his enslavement to Amarantha. 

Feyre checks Amren’s progress decoding the book, but Amren must master the language first. Feyre spies a jeweled necklace on Amren’s table, a gift from Varian, captain of Tarquin’s guard, as appeasement for the blood ruby threat.