As Gideon kisses Rune to hide her identity from the officers and party guests, the scent of Cressida’s magic suddenly fills the air. The sensation drags him back to the memory of Cressida branding him and awakening the curse buried in his skin. In that instant, Gideon opens his eyes and sees not Rune but Cressida pressed against the wall beneath his hands.

Shaken and disgusted, Gideon jerks away and nearly reaches for his gun before stopping himself. The moment he breaks skin-to-skin contact, the pain in his brand recedes, and Cressida’s image vanishes. Rune stands before him again, hurt and shocked, but Gideon is briefly uncertain whether Cressida has somehow stolen Rune’s appearance before Rune pushes past him and disappears into the crowd.

Gideon quickly regains enough clarity to reject that fear, reminding himself that Rune and Cressida are fundamentally different. Remembering there is still a spy in the room, he follows Rune but loses her in the chaos and finds only the fading scent of her sea-like magic. Alone in the empty hall, with his brand throbbing, Gideon pieces together Cressida’s earlier words and realizes the truth: her hidden spell triggers on skin-to-skin contact with Rune, making him see Rune as Cressida. The discovery leaves Gideon furious at Cressida and newly aware of how dangerous the curse is.