Chapter no 18
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN “Halden!” I rush to kneel by his side, and the shadow evaporates like it was never there. “Are you all right?” “My prince!” Anna jumps to the cobblestone, panic filling her eyes, as his second guard joins her. “Oh, Halden, are you…” Not just his guard? My eyebrows rise as I glance at […]
Chapter no 29
CHAPTER 29 It was the most uncomfortable thirty minutes I could recall. Mor and I sipped chilled mint tea by the bay window, the replies of the three High Lords piled on the little table between our twin chairs, pretending to be watching the summer-kissed street beyond us, the children, High Fae and faerie, darting […]
Chapter no 17
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN “Thadeus Netien,” Captain Fitzgibbons reads from the dais the next morning, his voice carrying over the formation in the snow-packed courtyard as he holds the death roll in front of him. “Nadia Aksel. Karessa Tomney.” Hearing the names of every member in active service who has died the previous day takes longer than […]
Chapter no 28
CHAPTER 28 I dragged myself out of bed by sheer will the next morning. Amren had said the Carver wouldn’t bind himself into a Fae body—had claimed that. But it wouldn’t hurt to try. If it gave us the slightest chance of holding out, of keeping Rhys from giving everything … He was already gone […]
Chapter no 16
CHAPTER SIXTEEN “Arrogant, are we?” His flash of an undeniable smile is there and gone before I can fully succumb to its knee-wobbling effect. “Let’s see how you do in the dark.” Shadows fill the mat and devour every ounce of sunlight, leaving me in complete and total darkness in every direction I look. Challenge […]
Chapter no 27
CHAPTER 27 We found Nesta and Amren waiting outside the throne room, both of them looking pissy and tired. Well, that made six of us. I didn’t doubt Keir’s claim about the mirror—and risking gazing into it … None of us could afford it. To be broken. Driven mad. None of us—not right now. Perhaps […]
Chapter no 15
CHAPTER FIFTEEN By the time it’s our squad’s turn to descend the stone steps of the Infantry Quadrant’s outdoor amphitheater on Friday, it’s been another four days since I’ve seen Xaden, and he keeps his shields up so frequently that we may as well just start writing letters again. Carved into a northern ridgeline just […]
Chapter no 26
CHAPTER 26 That’s who the final, empty seat was for. And Rhys … He remained sprawled in his chair, sipping from his wine. “Welcome back, Eris,” he drawled. “It’s been what—five centuries since you last set foot in here?” Mor slid her eyes toward Rhys. Betrayal and—hurt. That was hurt flashing there. For not warning […]
Chapter no 14
CHAPTER FOURTEEN “Absolutely not,” Xaden responds before Kaori leads him away, but there’s a slight roaring in my ears as Devera goes over the changes to our academic schedule and how we’ll be paired for Xaden’s new class, which she labels Signet Sparring. We’re dismissed a few minutes later. I’m fine. This is fine. […]
Chapter no 25
CHAPTER 25 Amren hadn’t dressed Nesta in cobwebs and stardust, as Mor and I were clothed. And she hadn’t dressed Nesta in her own style of loose pants and a cropped blouse. She had kept it simple. Brutal. A dress of impenetrable black flowed to the dark marble floors of the throne room of the […]