Page 16 of Feathers of Ash and Hope

Time creeps along slowly, and I shift my stance for what feels like the hundredth time. We have been at it for hours, and the candidates still keep coming. Daeva circles above and sends me her view of the line, the people no more than little dots. It is getting shorter but only marginally, and it’s already close to noon.

I curse Jared under my breath, but he hears me and grins, keeping his eyes on the boy in front of him. The boy’s pallid skin makes me doubt his desire to be here. Jared sidles up to me.

“If you keep up that face, this poor kid is either going to run or piss himself,” he whispers.

“If a certain someone wouldn’t have signed me up for this, he wouldn’t have to worry about that,” I reply dryly.

Jared snorts and gets back to work.

I feel eyes on me, but I can’t see anything unusual. I guess standing in front of a row of people will account for a few eyes finding their way to me.

The candidate with the sickly color leaves, and the next one steps up. The kid is slim and doesn’t look old enough to enter, but passes the warded threshold without a problem.

He moves well but looks like either one of us can push him over with a deep breath. His thin frame and carefree smile remind me of Leo. I slam down the metal shield in my mind as soon as the thought comes up. I’m not going back there. It’s bad enough that he and the others keep popping up in my dreams.

Eyes of an unusual blue-green meet mine for a second, and I suck in a breath. I have no idea why this kid affects me that much or why he seems familiar. I push down my curiosity. I don’t want to know.

“Summer.” He fidgets. “Gray…Grayson Summer,” the boy mumbles. His voice is warm and husky.

I instantly know the first name is false, but the last name sounds correct.

Truth-telling is one of my gifts. Lies are dissonant, like someone playing out of harmony, and make my skin crawl if I have to listen for too long.

It is not like I instantly know the truth, but it gives me a hint that something about a sentence isn’t right.

That the kid stated his names separately is the only reason I’m able to make the distinction here, and it piques my interest.

Why would he make up a different first name?

I watch him closely. His voice sounds more relaxed now, and he jokes with Jared about how intimidating we are, surprising a laugh out of Jared in the process.

The kid’s gaze flicks back to me. He has big eyes with long lashes, freckles dust his nose and cheeks, and strands of straw-colored hair peek out from under his woolen hat. His cheeks are smooth. He looks not a day older than sixteen and unaffected by the bad this world has to offer.

Why the fuck did he end up here?

Our eyes meet for a second before he looks away again.

Summer takes his number, and while I want to say something to change his mind and send him home to safety, I don’t.

His eyes meet mine again. I can’t read his expression, but he doesn’t seem cowed by my glowering. Maybe there is more to this wisp of a boy than is apparent. He claims us to be intimidating, but clearly, that isn’t true.

Chapter

Five

ARA

Assessment is a well-coordinated affair.I guess it has to be since they want to weed out the candidates until the best one hundred and sixty recruits are left—forty for every division.

When I step into the inner courtyard, the sun stands high, stealing all the shadows and making the air too warm for a winter day. It’s like I stepped into a massive arena. Tall buildings surround the space, the ground is sandy, and the fighting in one half of it emphasizes the impression. Not that I have been to one of the big arenas to watch a fight, but I’ve heard of it, and this looks just like I pictured it.

I walk past temporary barriers and get in line for the first test.

Candidates in front of me whisper about recruits willing to walk over bodies to get in. I hope that is an exaggeration, but the seriousness of what I’m about to do registers.

Two men face each other with swords in one of the sparring areas. Several shallow cuts decorate the arm of one of them, while the other’s right cheek promises to be a proper shiner in the morning.

This is different from a simple bout of training with my brothers.

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