Chapter Ten

Summary

• An assassin posing as a cadet is killed by Mira, revealing General Sorrengail has enemies.
• Violet Sorrengail experiences shock as a first-year cadet kills Nadine, who is mistaken for Violet.
• Violet confronts the killer, using daggers and combat skills to defend herself despite being overpowered by his size.
• The assailant and Violet have a brutal fight, where Violet is determined not to die or let others die because of her.
• Violet strategically injures the assailant before he pins her down, attempting to strangle her.
• As she reaches the brink of asphyxiation, Violet stabs the assassin with a dagger multiple times, ultimately killing him.
• She pushes his dead body off and despite suffering immense pain and a concussion, insists on staying to finish the assessment day activities.
• Violet speculates internally that her assassination attempt was orchestrated by Colonel Aetos.
• Violet cleans herself and remains composed, concealing her emotions despite the traumatic events.
• Afterward, classmates and instructors support and examine Violet, noting the brutality of the attack.
• Violet asserts that the attack was a message to her mother, and similar events happened to her older sister.
• As the chapter progresses, Violet attends routine academy activities, pondering her relationships and the threat posed by Aetos.
• She has a tender but tense reconnection with Xaden, who offers her care and shares experiences from his new station at Samara.
• Violet opens up about her struggles with the candidates' deaths, resisting the desensitization process of the academy.
• Xaden leaves Violet with a letter he wrote, suggesting a deeper connection between them.
• Violet's mixed feelings about Xaden, protocol at the academy, and her own survival instincts are highlighted throughout the chapter.