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“He blessed or so? Touched by the Vale?”

“No Not blessed,” she says distantly “He used to work for the Sons, you know Joined after my brother died” Her voice is slow and robotic “Served as a recruiter before beco a scar hunter Back before House Lune fell, before the Battle of Iliuht in people like you Like ht How to survive so they could take back just some of what’d been taken froiven araids It was a trap They interrogated his men in front of hiot there, he was the only one left The Gold was captured with the peeling knife in hand” She pauses, disliking the n needed, infored for a full pardon Ephraim watched the man who skinned his friends walk free” She looks at me “Point is, Ephraim wants to die, but he can’t That’s his curse”

“That’s why you took the Obsidian,” I say “Because he couldn’t watch another friend die?”

She shrugs “I knohere to hurt”

There’s no regret in her eyes She seems a person made all of flint and iron, one who came into the world full-born, without mother or father or past or future Less a woman than shovel or an axe If there is more than that to her, she would never show it to me “What sort of person does that make you?” I ask

She doesn’t answer immediately

She points east to the New Foru is pale in the night and rises out of the trees around it like a hill of snow, stark in contrast with the brutal lines of the pyramid forum the Society used “Beautiful, isn’t it?” I nod She stares on at it “You think clean hands built it?”

—

The Sovereign is in conference with Theodora and Daxo e join them I keepfroress of the squadron toward the stolen shuttle The Sovereign watches it coolly as she converses with Theodora, but I can sense the underlying tension in her Her eyes are bloodshot and heavy bags have formed under them Coffee cups and the reo without sleep?

“…could not have done this alone,” Daxo is saying to Theodora He cuts short when he sees me enter the room with Holiday

“Continue,” the Sovereign says

Daxo hesitates for awith someone I recommend we conceal this from the Senate until we knowHeads by the end of the week”

“Theodora?” the Sovereign asks

“You know er we hold this from the Senate, the more it discredits the transparency you pro about the unusual traffic over Hyperion”

“It’s stupid to go before then says “I won’t have those er They’ll smear me and call a referendum to make me step down before the vote With Caraval and the Coppers lost, we’re going to lose six to seven My veto is all that can stop this absurd peace process”