Quinn froze. Then he gingerly took his hands off me. He cleared his throat and took a step away.
Next to him, I heard Calla stifle a giggle. Ire studied us, his expression calculating.
But Malissa’s eyes locked on mine, sharp and full of fury. She glanced at Blake, then the broken metal frame that lay crumpled on the ground.
She knew.
Her posture didn’t change, but a frigid cold pulsed off her in waves. She stepped closer, stopping just short of touching me. Her voice was venomous.
“Foolish Azure. You have no idea what you’ve brought upon yourself.” Then she turned and stalked away.
Calla stepped closer to me and placed a hand on my shoulder.
“We stand here with fewer than we did yesterday.” Blake’s voice carried over the courtyard, cutting through the heavy silence. He was the calm, controlled Ambush Master once more, the weightof command settling over him like a mantle. Every warrior there straightened, drawn toward him.
“Some of the best among us fell—to humans, to demons, to betrayal we never saw coming.”
A long, raw silence followed. Heads bowed. Hands clenched at sides. I could feel grief move through the crowd like a living thing.
Blake stood unmoving, his expression carved from stone.
“We honor them by slaughtering every last demon that escapes its realm. Tomorrow we honor them by entering the Culling. We honor them by completing the Raveling. We honor them by refusing to fall.”
Then he turned back to the others. He was not just a warrior. He was a blade forged for this moment. And we all felt it.
“We are at war,” he said, his voice low but fierce. “Last night proved how vulnerable we are. How much we have to lose. The Demon Realm must be sealed. If we fail, we die.”
The warriors’ breathing was rough in the morning air, but no one moved.
“Whether we are chosen in the Culling or not, it doesn’t matter,” Blake said. “Every one of us must train harder. Fight harder. Be stronger than ever before. No matter the cost.”
His gaze found mine for the briefest second. I felt the burn of it in my chest.
No matter the cost.
That afternoon, we practiced coordinated attacks with our tygers, using their weight and speed to crush through defenses. We trained in leaping onto high ground, ambushing from above before the enemy could react, drilling in silence, without a single shouted command.
Blake rode close by, Kingsolver at Flame’s side, flanking her almost always.
He didn’t approach me, even after training was over, watchingme from a distance as I followed a tired Calla and Quinn to the dining halls, yearning tight in his ice blue stare.
Whatever had ignited between us was a smoldering flame, just beneath the surface.
But the Culling came first. And it would take place tomorrow.
32
The day of the Culling, I woke with a start, heart already pounding. Edith slept beside me. She, Nelly, and Thyme had chosen to stay with me that night, none of us knowing what I’d face come morning.
I started to panic. My mouth was dry. My hands were cold. I wasn’t ready. I would never be ready. I wasn’t a killer. I wasn’t a warrior. I was a ribbon dancer who could sing a little. An Azure. A yin.
I could hear Nelly moving around. The delicious smell of tea and sweet bread wafted over to me. She must have brought up our breakfast. The window rattled as she slid open the curtains.
Suddenly, she screamed. Something crashed. I jolted upright, my heart slamming against my ribs. A mess of tea, bread, fruit, and meat lay on the floor. Our breakfast.
Nelly was scrambling away from the window, pointing at something outside with a shaking finger. “What in rust’s name is that?!”
I pushed out of bed, nearly tripping over the blankets tangled around my feet, and rushed to the window as Edith followed close behind.
