Page 183 of Children of Blood and Bone

“You little—”

“He’s right,” I speak up, a new desperation bubbling to the surface.This can’t be it. After everything, I can’t lose my magic again. “We have a night. If we can get to Jimeta, find a boat—” If I can get my magic back… find some way to communicate with the gods…

“Zél, no.” Tzain bends to my eye level, the same way he does with Baba. Because Baba is delicate. Broken. And now so am I. “Jimeta’s too dangerous. We’re more likely to be killed than to find help. You need to rest.”

“She needs to get off her ass.”

Tzain gets in Kenyon’s face so quickly I’m surprised he doesn’t take the tent down with him.

“Stop it.” Amari wedges herself between them. “There’s no time for us to fight. If we cannot get through, we need to get out.”

As they erupt in arguments, I stare at the sunstone, within arm’s reach. If I could touch it… just a graze…

Please, Oya, I lift up the silent prayer,don’t let this be it.

I take a deep breath, preparing for the rush of Sky Mother’s soul, the fire of Oya’s spirit. My fingers brush the smooth stone—

Hope shrivels inside my chest.

Nothing.

Not even a spark.

The sunstone is cool to the touch.

It’s worse than before my awakening, before I ever touched the scroll. It’s like all the magic has bled out of my body, left on that cellar’s floor.

Only a maji tethered to Sky Mother’s spirit can perform the sacred act.Lekan’s words echo back into my mind. Without him, no other maji can be connected to Sky Mother before the ritual.

Without me, there’s no ritual at all.

“Zélie?”

I look up to find everyone staring at me, waiting for the final answer.

It’s over.I should tell them now.

But as I open my mouth to deliver the news, the right words don’t come out. This can’t be it. Not after everything we’ve lost.

Everything they did.

“Let’s go.” The words are weak. By the gods, I wish I could make them sound strong. This has to work. I won’tletthis be the end.

Sky Mother chose me. Used me. Took me away from everything I loved. She can’t abandon me like this.

She can’t throw me away with nothing but scars.

“Zél—”

“They cut ‘maggot’ into my back,” I hiss. “We’re going. I don’t care what it takes. I won’t let them win.”

CHAPTER SEVENTY-TWO

ZÉLIE

AFTER HOURS OF TRAVELINGthrough the forest surrounding the Olasimbo Range, Jimeta makes its way onto the horizon. Sharp and jagged like its rumored inhabitants, its sand cliffs and rocky bluffs jut out over the Lokoja Sea. Waves crash against the base of its cliffs, creating a familiar song I know all too well. Though the crashing waves pound and rumble like thunder, just being near the water again sets me at ease.

“Remember when you wanted to live here?” Tzain whispers to me, and I nod, a half smile rising to my lips. It’s nice to feel something else, tothinkof something besides all the ways our plans could fail.

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