House of Earth and Blood
by Sarah J. Maas
Contents
Chapter Forty-Nine
Overview
Sabine explains how she discovered Danika stole the Horn during a temple blackout and covered it up by swapping surveillance footage to protect her daughter's legacy. She denies killing Danika or sending the demon, reveals Amelie Ravenscroft is watching them, and threatens to kill Bryce and Hunt if they continue their investigation. Their theory about the murders is left in shambles as Sabine disappears into the night.
Summary
Bryce reels from Sabine's claim that Danika stole the Horn, struggling to accept it while Hunt supports her physically on the rooftop. Sabine elaborates on how she discovered the theft: during a blackout at the temple, audio recordings captured Danika's footsteps leaving her patrol post, disappearing for a minute, and returning as though nothing had happened. Sabine doesn't know whether Danika caused the blackout to steal the Horn or merely seized the opportunity, but she immediately swapped the surveillance footage across every database to cover Danika's crime.
When Bryce asks why Danika would steal the Horn, Sabine dismisses her daughter as a reckless brat who wanted to test boundaries. Sabine insists everything she did—swapping footage, threatening Bryce and Hunt—was to protect Danika's legacy. She also reiterates her earlier statement from the night Danika died: she believed Danika was killed because she couldn't keep quiet about having stolen the Horn, essentially blaming Danika's own recklessness for her murder.
Hunt accuses Sabine of sending the demon that attacked them earlier that evening, but Sabine flatly denies it, claiming she was waiting on the rooftop all night. She reveals that Amelie Ravenscroft is stationed across the street as a lookout and witness, and that Amelie observed Bryce and Hunt's intimate moment, embarrassing Bryce. Sabine uses this surveillance as leverage, warning them to stay out of the case.
Before departing, Sabine delivers a final threat: she did not kill Danika, but she will kill Bryce and Hunt if they jeopardize Danika's legacy. She then leaps off the rooftop, shifting into wolf form mid-fall, and disappears into the night. Hunt rushes to the edge but can only watch the wolf vanish into the darkness. The encounter leaves the pair with a shattered theory—Danika herself stole the Horn, and the killer's identity remains unknown.
Who Appears
- SabineAlpha wolf and Danika's mother who reveals she covered up Danika's Horn theft and threatens Bryce and Hunt.
- BryceStruggles to accept that Danika stole the Horn; confronted and threatened by Sabine on the rooftop.
- HuntShields Bryce during the confrontation, accuses Sabine of sending the demon, and watches her escape.
- DanikaDeceased; revealed to have stolen the Horn from the temple during a blackout.
- Amelie RavenscroftPositioned across the street as Sabine's lookout, observed Bryce and Hunt's intimate moment.