He jerked as if startled, but didn’t look at me. “Go back to sleep.”

“I can’t.”

Now he peered at me through the darkness. “Why not?”

“Your orb.” I gestured. “Your sister. You need to cover it.”

He returned his attention to the orb. “She was so stubborn. We had a couple of the old orbs left, but she insisted on using a new one despite the danger. Claimed Gian’s death was his own fault. Said he had been too ambitious and caused the orb to shatter. Called the old orbs brittle.”

I waited, sensing he had more to say.

“She was the strongest Stormdancer, and therefore in charge of us. She made the final decisions.” He smiled at a memory. “She was a year younger than me, but she bossed me around since we were toddlers.” He laughed. “My parents knew what they were doing when they named her. Kaya means ‘my older little sister.’”

“And I thought that bossy quality was reserved for annoying younger brothers,” I said. “Mine thinks he knows everything and will argue about it even when I prove him wrong.” Funny how I could miss having him around.

“I would have liked to have a brother, but all I had was Kaya. Do you have any other siblings?”

“Two older sisters, but—”

“Do they all work with glass?”

“Yes.”

“Do they have magical abilities?”

“So far, I’m the only one. Ahir has just reached puberty. The Keep magicians will test him when he visits me this year.”

“Kaya and I could both call the wind,” Kade said. “Very fortunate and very unusual, considering neither of my parents has that ability.”

“Who is the strongest Stormdancer now?”

“I am. Although I shouldn’t be. When Kaya died, my powers doubled.”

Our early-morning conversation woke Zitora. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes. “Since you’re awake,” she said drily, “you can feed and saddle the horses.”