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"Is it dangerous?"

"It’s not supposed to be" Not totally a lie Audra keeps telling nore the worry in her eyes when she says it, Ithis really hard, Vane"

"I know" I take her hand, so I used to do all the ti ten, knowing

But she can’t fix this

"I promise, I’ll tell you more when I can For now, just know that I’ featured on one of those special news reports you love to watch" She’s softening--I can tell So I go for the gold "Have I ever given you reason not to trust me?"

"No," she admits after a beat

"Then can you please just believe me when I say I’m okay--and that if I need your help, I’ll come to you?"

I can tell by the frown lines around her ree So I play my final card

"I’s on ue But instead she whispers, "Don’t ret this"

"I won’t I pro?"

"Better" I stretch s under the covers They throb like I’ve just run ten thousand"Just tired"

"Then I guess it’s a good thing you don’t have anywhere to be"

My dad had tried to force et a summer job, but et in the heat But I know she’s really tellinganywhere She doesn’t trust h, except force a s up all day"

Tonight will be another story--but she doesn’t need to know that I just have to keep the act up for seven o back to normal

OrI’ll be a prisoner of an evil warlord Or prisoner of a sylph arood options in that mix And not a lot I can do about it Except train as hard as possible, and trust Audra

Assu I can trust Audra

When my mom leaves, I close er more flashbacks I want my memories Need them And now that I know they’re within et them back

Audra has her secrets Now I have mine

CHAPTER 26

AUDRA

Vane looks pale when I co, and the circles under his eyes are the color of storloos and focuses on tying his shoes "Just tired"

He isn’t the worst liar I’ve ever seen--but he’s close I sink on the bed next to him, careful to keep a wall of space between us "Did you rest?"

"I tried to"

"But?" I proain

Does he think that counts as an answer?

Apparently He says nothing further

I don’t have the energy for this

"We can do this tays," I tell hiyou with the Or you can tell me now and save us a ton of time and frustration I leave it up to you"

He lets out a long, slow sigh, slu his back toafter my mom called me out about the shin splints She didn’t buy our story"

"What did you say?" I keepin a million directions

He wouldn’t tell his family the truth--would he?

What will I do if he did? What will I tell the Gales?

Vane shrugs--so helpto shake him so hard his teeth will rattle--and turns to facefor the worst possible answer

"I told her the truth That I couldn’t tell her as going on, and that I needed her to trust --and I hate it I can’t keep this up forever, Audra"

I know I should syle--but it’s hard to feel sorry for him Poor Vane has a mother who cares I barely remember what that’s like

"You only have to keep it up for a fewto keep the resentht--’cause after that I’ll either be Raiden’s prisoner or the Gale Force’s new slave"