Chapter 2 Summary: Rune

⚠️ Spoiler Warning: This guide contains detailed spoilers for the entire novel. Proceed only if you've finished reading or are comfortable knowing the plot.

Summary

Chapter 2 opens with Rune fleeing the ballroom at Larkmont Palace during a recital celebrating her upcoming marriage to Prince Soren. The song being performed is the final composition written by her deceased best friend, Alex Sharpe, and each note intensifies her grief. She touches the ring Alex gave her, still on her finger, as a wave of sorrow threatens to overwhelm her in front of the palace guards and party guests.

As she runs, Rune reflects on how much she misses her home in the New Republic. She recalls her grandmother's gardens, riding her horse Lady through the wilds of Wintersea, and the smells of the sea, woods, and fields. Although she appreciates Umbria's culture, architecture, and lack of anti-witch sentiment, she knows it is not where she belongs. She is surprised to discover that leaving the island meant leaving her heart behind, even though the New Republic wanted her dead.

The chapter then reveals the circumstances of her engagement. Cressida, the witch queen, saved Rune's life and Seraphine's, and directed Rune to make herself irresistible to Prince Soren, a former naval admiral sympathetic to witches. Rune staged their first meeting outside the opera, where Soren spilled wine on her dress. He became smitten, and they spent increasing time together until he proposed. Rune refused, reciting her lines: she would not marry him unless he gave Cressida an army to wage war on the New Republic.

Rune has no desire to marry Soren or to serve Cressida, and the thought of working for the witch queen fills her with self-loathing. But Cressida saved her life and wants to rescue the witches left behind. The Blood Guard, led by Gideon Sharpe, has captured Aurelia Kantor, a powerful sibyl who can see the past, present, and future. They are using her to locate witches in hiding, executing three or four each week. Rune reflects that the Crimson Moth—her former identity—would have rescued Aurelia, but the Moth is now trapped in Larkmont Palace, half-drunk on champagne.

Rune considers the logistics of rescue: every port is guarded by witch hunters and hounds trained to scent magic. Only one ship, the Arcadia, refuses to allow the Blood Guard and their beasts aboard, but hunters travel undercover and board the vessel once it enters New Republic waters. Even if she freed Aurelia, the Blood Guard would never stop hunting witches. The only solution, Rune concludes, is to destroy the Blood Guard and tear down the New Republic—which means putting Cressida back on her throne. She compares Cressida, a cold-blooded murderess, to a society that would slit witches' throats, and decides Cressida is the lesser of two evils.

Rune reaches the powder room, uncorks a bottle of whiskey, and drinks straight from it. She reflects on her assumption that playing the role of smitten fiancée would be easy, but since Alex's death, the flirting, scheming, and deceiving have taken a toll. She had hoped that fleeing the New Republic would let her finally be herself—the real Rune Winters—but she does not know who that is anymore.

Looking in the mirror, she sees tears streaking her face and the golden dress Soren gave her, which she hates. The dress reminds her of another one, given by someone who knew what her soul required. She tries not to think of Gideon Sharpe, who proposed a partnership—not marriage—but could never love a witch. She is uncertain which is more upsetting: that Alex loved her, or that Gideon did not. Two months have passed since Gideon swore to hunt her down, and he has not come. She tells herself he has moved on.

The grief finally erupts. Rune grips the sink and breaks into silent, quaking sobs. She barely hears the door open behind her and sees forest green flash in the mirror, assuming Soren sent a guard. She reaches for the smile she uses as a weapon, but another glance stops her. Gideon pushes back his hat and aims his gun directly at her.

Key Events

Rune flees the ballroom during a recital playing Alex Sharpe's final song.
She reflects on missing her home in the New Republic and her grandmother's gardens.
The chapter reveals how Rune met Soren and the terms of their engagement: she refused his proposal until he agreed to give Cressida an army.
Rune learns the Blood Guard is using the captured sibyl Aurelia Kantor to locate and execute witches, three or four per week.
She considers the Arcadia as the only ship that refuses to allow witch-hunting hounds aboard.
Rune retreats to a powder room, drinks whiskey, and breaks down sobbing.
Gideon Sharpe enters the powder room and aims his gun at her.

Character Development

This chapter deepens Rune's internal conflict. She is torn between her grief for Alex, her homesickness, her self-loathing at serving Cressida, and her unresolved feelings for Gideon. Her identity as the Crimson Moth—a rescuer of witches—is now dormant, and she struggles with the guilt of partying while her sisters are murdered. The chapter shows her using alcohol to cope and her realization that she no longer knows who the real Rune Winters is. Her decision to view Cressida as the lesser of two evils reveals her moral compromise: she is willing to ally with a murderess to save witches from extermination.

Gideon's appearance at the end reframes his absence. Rune assumed he had moved on, but his arrival with a gun suggests he has not forgotten her—and that his promise to hunt her down may still stand.

Themes, Symbols, or Motifs

Grief and mourning: Alex's song, his ring, and Rune's sobbing in the powder room all center on her unresolved grief.
Marriage as political transaction: The engagement to Soren is purely strategic, a bargain for military support.
Deception and role-playing: Rune plays the smitten fiancée, using seduction as a weapon, and wears a smile that masks emptiness.
Witch persecution: The Blood Guard's use of Aurelia Kantor to hunt witches highlights the systematic violence against witches.
The ring as symbol: Alex's ring on Rune's finger connects her to her lost friend and her former life.
The dress as symbol: Soren's golden dress represents the role she is forced to play, while the memory of another dress represents the self she has lost.
The Arcadia as refuge: The ship that refuses to allow witch hunters aboard symbolizes a rare safe space in a hostile world.
Identity crisis: Rune's question—who is the real Rune Winters?—underscores her loss of self.

Why This Chapter Matters

Chapter 2 establishes the central stakes of the novel: Rune's engagement to Soren is a calculated move to secure an army for Cressida, and the fate of witches in the New Republic depends on it. The chapter also introduces the moral dilemma at the heart of the story—Rune must ally with a murderess to save her people—and deepens her emotional turmoil through grief, homesickness, and self-loathing. Most importantly, the chapter ends with Gideon's sudden return, setting up the central conflict of the book: the witch hunter she once loved has found her.

Study Questions and Answers

1. Why does Rune agree to marry Soren, despite her self-loathing?

Rune agrees because Cressida saved her life and Seraphine's, and because Cressida wants to save the witches left behind in the New Republic. Rune believes the only way to stop the Blood Guard is to destroy the New Republic and put Cressida back on her throne, which requires Soren's army. She views Cressida as the lesser of two evils compared to a society that executes witches.

2. What does the golden dress symbolize in this chapter?

The golden dress, given by Soren, represents the role Rune is forced to play as the smitten fiancée. She hates it because it puts her body on display and is not her taste. It contrasts with the memory of another dress, given by someone who knew what her soul required, symbolizing the authentic self she has lost.

3. Why is Rune unable to rescue Aurelia Kantor?

Rune cannot rescue Aurelia because every port of entry is guarded by witch hunters and hounds trained to scent magic. Even the Arcadia, which refuses to allow hunters aboard, is boarded once it enters New Republic waters. Rune is also trapped in Larkmont Palace, across the Barrow Strait, and the Crimson Moth is no longer active.