Page 128 of Wings of Ebony
CHAPTER 37
NEW GHIZON BURNS.
Smoke billows toward the sky, kissing the sun. The General’s bound by his feet and hands, attached to a rope I hold over my shoulder. His head drags the pavement, his eyes batting in and out of consciousness. I make my way up the street, around piles of rubble, dragging the General. A simple spell helps him come along weightlessly. His groans are muffled and restraints are onhishands.
He’s done.
Almost.
Idohave one more thing for him.
But first, I have unfinished business here.
He didn’t act alone.
I’ll have the Chancellor’s head, too.
The city’s in ruins. People stare as I pass. A few mutter things under their breath. Others bow, saying thanks. The city is falling whether they like it or not. I sift through faces, looking for someone I know.
That’s when I see him and my blood runs hot again. I yank the dead weight behind me faster and approach Luke, who’s chewing out some frail woman. His nails are dug into her arm.
I’m at his back before he knows I’m there.
“O-ooh, R-Rue! So ni—”
I slam my fist into his teeth and he staggers before stumbling to the ground. I straddle him and punch him again.Lying asshole. Two-faced.
“I’m sorry! The General s-said if I cooperated and got in good with Bri to spy on you, he’d promote me to Patrol. He even said he’d give my family new designations, Dwegini.…”
“You’d let my people die to up your status?” He’d fit right in where I’m from. I kick him.
“Mind if I?” The familiar voice of a girl I used to call my best friend tickles a special place inside me. Bri’s definitely looked better. Her knees aren’t shaking anymore, but she’s covered in scrapes and dried blood. The bandages on her wrists are blotchy with red stains.
“Your wrists?” I ask.
“I-I asked Bati to have my onyx removed, Unbound.” She holds her hands up. “No more magic, officially.”
“Bri, I—I don’t know what to say.”
“Rue, I’ve always envied your ability to just be you. You’ve never fit in here, so to speak, and you never tried to. You’re comfortable in your own skin. I want that. I want…” She gazes off in the distance. “I guess I want to stop caring about being the best at whattheysay I need to be and figure out what being the best means tome. Starting with getting rid of that stolen onyx on my wrists. And I know it doesn’t fix anything, but I wantnopart in what the Chancellor did. It was wrong. Itiswrong. And I’m still working through it all, to be honest.” She shifts her weight and winces. “But I want to do what I can to help. I’m sorry, Rue. I’m so sorry.”
I hug her and it feels good. Luke groans in pain, trying to get back up. I kick him and he barrels back over.
“If I screw up…,” she starts.
“Whenyou screw up,” I say.
“WhenI screw up, call me out on it, please.”
“Oh, I will. Trust. Let’s just hope your know-it-all ass listens.”
We laugh.
“Being you unapologetically, Bri, is the best goal you’ve ever set for yourself, I gotta say.”
She blushes. “I’m gonna do my best. Trying to be like you.”
We laugh again. “But hey, have you seen the Chancellor?” I ask.
