Page 99 of A Rising Hope

I nestled my body near his, listening to his heart as I wove my fingers with his.

“So is the bitch Queen actually dead, or is she going to do the whole ‘surprise, I am not actually dead’ trick like you and your boyfriend like to do?”

I tried to swallow, but my mouth felt so dry. I turned to see Insanaria’s rotten body still laying only a few steps away from me. A flicker of my fingers and flames engulfed her, her ashes scattered to the wild seas around us.

“No, she is very much dead,” I replied, as the Queen’s body disintegrated.

“Good.”

“Good indeed,” I agreed. “The bitch Queen might be dead, but the queen of all bitches is still around.” I nudged Priya with my elbow, not hiding the grin stretched on my face.

Priya scowled, but her lips stretched in an inconspicuous smile.

“Get it, the queen of all bitches?” I nudged her again.

“Oh my gods Freckles, I fucking get it, okay?” she snarled. “Glad to see your dull humor survived your otherworldly experiences.”

“I am glad you are alive, Priya.”

“I might be okay with the fact that you are alive too, Freckles,” Priya begrudgingly agreed.

My entire body ached and maybe it was the welcoming warmth of daylight, or maybe it was pure exhaustion from magic and death, but I found myself drifting slowly to sleep.

A little nap was all I needed; the soothing darkness free of visions calling my name.

But I didn’t get even a minute of peaceful sleep before the ground shook around us once more. Priya was already on her feet, daggers in her hands.

“I thought you said she was dead.” She scanned the horizon, looking for the cause of the thundering noise.

“She is.”

“Then what the fuck is that?” Priya pointed to the large, dark shadows approaching.

I closed my eyes, snuggling up closer to Gideon’s unconscious body. I was too tired. I just wanted a nap. But before I could get even a minute of rest, a loud crackling roar thundered through the sky.

“Freckles . . . ” Priya’s eyes dug into me, burning a hole in the back of my head, and if I didn’t move, I was sure she’d kick me next. So I sat up, rubbing the sides of my head. Another roar sounded closer. And the shadows grew bigger.

“That would be the magic I freed.” I winced, turning to the horizon, feeling the ground tremble as the roar reached us.

60

ZORA

Ileaned my head against the dirt wall. My arms wrapped around my bent knees; my body shivered from the frigid air in the cellar. I stayed quiet, not uttering a word.

Tori, Cori, Ashe, and Motra piled in on the other side of the door.

“We need you, Zora,” Tori’s voice shook. “Gia is gone, we can’t lose you too.” She swallowed. And though I couldn’t see her, I heard her sister comforting her nearby.

“Orest is summoning whatever is left of the armies to head west towards the Dniar River on the morrow. If we take Svitar, we can still win the war.” Ashe’s voice was dull, the usual playful spark turned dark. “Yanush and Ioanna are staying behind with Cass and Lulu, with a small battalion of the wounded. In a few days, we are arranging transportation north.”

“Cass lost both of her legs, Zora,” Tori mumbled. “And Ioanna lost her eye. And Lulu’s arms are shattered, we are not sure she’ll ever be able to use her hands again. And Broderick hasn’t spoken a word since he learned of Gia’s death.”

“Snap out of it, Zora,” Ashe urged. “Orest is?—”

“I don’t want to hear anything about him,” I scowled.

“You’ve rotted in this hole for four days now, Zora,” Motra started warily.

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