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"Maven lies as easily as he breathes, and his mother holds his leash, but not his heart" Cal’s eyes widen, i newbloods not to protect his throne but to hurt you To find you To h "Maven wants youelse on this earth"

Would that Maven were here now, so I could rip out his horrible, haunting eyes "Well, he can’t have me" I realize the consequences of this, and so does Cal

"Not even if it stops the killing? Not for the newbloods?"

Tears bite ment, but instead he smiles and ducks his head Ashaht ould lose you" His words are deliberately chosen, carefullya hand on his fist It’s all the assurance he needs to press on "I thought I was going to lose you So many times"

"But I’m still here," I say

He takes my neck in his hands like he doesn’t believe e to flinch I don’t want Cal to pull away

I have been running for so long Since before all this even started Even back in the Stilts, I was a runner AvoidingI didn’t want to feel And I a now From those ould kill me--and those ould love me

I want so badly to stop I want to stand still without killing myself or so, I must hurt myself to save myself, hurt others to save others Hurt Kilorn, hurt Cal, hurt Shade and Farley and Nix and everyone stupid enough to follow ht hihtens, like any second so to come and take me from him "That’s e set out to do, so we do it We build an ar a king will change nothing Another will take his place But it is a start If we cannot outrun Maven, we must stop him cold For the newbloods For Cal For me

I am a weapon made of flesh, a sword covered in skin I was born to kill a king, to end a reign of terror before it can truly begin Fire and lightning raised Maven up, and fire and lightning will bring hiain"

His breath e sensation, when surrounded with such blazing war

Because I am weak, I turn in his ar for soet We are both weak, it seems

As his hands run over my skin, I feel a different sort of pain Worse than Maven’s machine, deeper than ht I a, of this fire--and of Maven’s One already betrayed ht leave at any moment But I do not fear a broken heart I do not fear pain

I cling to Cal, Kilorn, Shade, to saving all the newbloods I can, because I a up to eone and I a in the blackness of a lonely storlass, and I feelto shatter