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My head aches froht braid, and it’s too ht I undo the careful knot at the end, lettingthe pressure The dark, wavy strands settle around lamorous like my mother I have too much of my father in me His square jaw and narrow nose The low arch ofdark andstriking and powerful

Is that enough to count as beautiful?

What does Vane see when he looks at reatest danger ofif the boy I can’t have--and refuse to let et ahold ofthe strands tighter than ever If only I could wrangle s as easily

I can’t So I’ll do the next best thing

I slip into my jacket, unsheathe the windslicer, and stoht is thick with the sounds of skittering rodents and chirping insects, and the war tointome focus Then I throw myself into my memorized exercises

I slash and stab Dip and spin Race up the sides of trees and back-flip off Dive toward the ground and sonoring the extra weight of the water, the extra burn in my limbs

Sweat soaks my unifor leaves off the palth and speed

This is who I aer than Storive in to fear or pity or love I’m the one in control

The rey, and I swing the blade with a vengeance My thoughts vanish My brain steps back, lettingon instinct

MyHelps me clarify h

I can’t stand back and wait for it to happen I have to trigger it s turn to rubber and I collapse to the sticky, date-covered ground I reach for the nearest Easterly and pull it aroundI realize

Wind

Vane needshim, the better chance there is he’ll find a way to breathe one in and let it settle into his consciousness To hear it

I may not be able to call the Westerlies to hiht

Now

It ork I have to believe it ork

And if it doesn’t, I doubt anything else will

CHAPTER 35

VANE

I yawn for the ten zillionth ti at the endless, empty stretch of freeway I point the AC vent at my face to let the cold air jolt etlike four thirty--which is still ridiculously early, by the way But two a to kill me?"

"I need to know if this ork" She sounds way too alert for this tiet tired?

Her words hit ht you said this would work"

She shifts in her seat "Nothing is guaranteed But this should work"

Should is a whole lot different than will "And if it doesn’t?"

Silence

Guess that h, honestly, I’n that says LOS ANGELES 81 MILES

I groan "Re there?"

"I wasn’t sure I had the energy to get us there and back"

The change in her tonewith the ends of her braid She tends to do that when she’s hiding so from me

I’m tempted to call her on it, but I have better questions to ask The way I see it, this drive is an hour and a half of uninterrupted "Ask Audra" tiure out where to start, "assuh or whatever, where do we go froht it through Which says wonders about how unsure she is "I suppose I’ll contact my mother so she can send word to the Gales"

"Your o? Who denied your request for backup?"

"She’s helping as much as she can"

I snort "If that were true, we’d have a whole aruardian too, Vane She’s bound by her oath to serve just as et in the way"

Her voice is calm Detached

But I don’t buy that she doesn’t care I mean, dude, I’m not even related toto keepthe law or oath or code or whatever And that’s how it should be

So I can’t stop h"