Page 73 (1/2)

"Take thee thenize Cal’s voice anymore I’ve turned him into a er, I was stupid I let ins to rise behind Cal’s head, fraht, too sharp, and too soon; I have to shut my eyes

TWENTY-SIX

I can barely keep up the pace but the soldier atAnother does the sa withsure we can’t escape His presence is a dark weight, dulling e around us, e eyes of the court, but I don’t have the strength to care Cal leads the pack, his shoulders tense and tight as he fights the urge to look back

The sound of gunfire and screams and blood in the tunnels rumbles in my mind They are dead We are dead It is over

I expect us to descend, to march down to the darkest cell in the world Instead, Cal leads us up, to a room with no s and no Sentinels Our footfalls don’t even echo as we enter--soundproof In here, no one can hear us And that frightensoff the king

He stands in the center of the rooilded ars at his side again, along with a pistol he’s probably never used All part of the pageant At least he looks the part

The queen is here as well, waiting for us in nothing but a thin white gown The moment we enter, her eyes hts like a knife through flesh I yelp, trying to clutch my head, but the shackles hold fir to the end Will’s wagon The Guard Kilorn The riots, the es Maven’s face swirls in the ainst the fray, but Elara pushes him She doesn’t want to see what I re froht until my whole life, every kiss and every secret, is laid bare before her

When she stops, I feel dead I want to be dead At least I won’t have long to wait

"Leave us," Elara says, her voice cutting and sharp The soldiers wait, looking to Cal When he nods, they take their leave, departing in a din of clicking boots But Arven stays behind, his influence still pressing down onallows himself to exhale

"Son?" He looks at Cal, and I can see the slightest quiver in his fingers But what he could possibly fear, I do not know "I want to hear this fro time," Cal mutters, barely able to say the words "Since she caotten son He looks al into a pained frown His eyes waver, reluctant to hold his gaze, but Maven stares right back He will not flinch "You knew about this, my boy?"

Maven nods "I helped plan it"

Tiberias stu?"

"I chose the targets" Cal squeezes his eyes shut, like he can block this all out

Maven’s eyes slide past his father, to Elara, who stands close by They hold each other’s gaze, and for a hts With a jolt, I realize she won’t She can’t let herself look

"You told me to find a cause, Father And I did Are you proud oflike a bear "You did this! You poisoned hi to his eyes, I know the king’s heart, no matter how small or cold, has been broken He loves Maven, in his oay But it’s too late for that "You’ve taken h gritted teeth "Maven has his own heart, and he believes in a different world as ed me"