After dinner, Feyre cannot stop thinking about Jurian as Rhys flies her back to the town house. Feyre asks about the bond after sensing him again, and Rhys explains that it is a living channel shaped by his power and by what Feyre needed when they made their bargain: not to be alone. When Feyre points out that his cruel reputation is a front to protect what matters, Rhys agrees and says he would become a monster to keep his people safe.

On the roof, Feyre asks what it cost Rhys to keep Velaris hidden during Amarantha’s reign. Rhys reveals that he used the scraps of power Amarantha left him to control the minds of captured Night Court citizens and anyone who might know the truth, forcing them to forget Velaris and his true court. He also hid the city itself from sight and turned away travelers, but because so much of his power was tied to that protection, he had little left to fight Amarantha and instead chose to become her sexual captive so she would not torture the people he loved.

That night, Feyre dreams that Amarantha is torturing her again and wakes screaming to find Rhys shaking her awake. Feyre realizes that in her sleep she has manifested fiery claws that shredded her bed linens, and Rhys helps her calm herself and extinguish the power. As Feyre vomits from panic and shame, Rhys admits that he has his own recurring nightmare of Amarantha hurting Cassian and Azriel while he is forced to watch; Feyre tells Rhys that he never failed them, and Rhys identifies Feyre’s flames as power from the Autumn Court.

The next morning, Rhys takes Feyre to a bleak island in the Western Isles and shows her the Prison, an ancient mountain that itself contains terrible inmates from before the age of the High Lords. Rhys, armed in Illyrian fighting leathers, explains that visitors must walk in because the wards forbid winnowing or flying to the entrance. He also answers Feyre’s question about Amren, saying that Amren fears the place because she was once a prisoner, though not in her current body.

When Feyre tries to approach the Prison, the idea of going under another mountain overwhelms her. Rhys gently reminds Feyre that they escaped before and may need to face this place to stop future disaster, but Feyre still cannot force herself to take a step. When Feyre begs him, Rhys keeps his promise not to question her, takes her back to Velaris, and Feyre spends the rest of the day in bed.