Fair enough. With that, I turned on my heel and carried everything back to Grace. When I re-entered the room, Grace’s eyes widened slightly at the sight of all the items in my arms. I set them down on the table in front of her. Then, I walked over to her and held up the key to her handcuffs. “May
Kayla Grace stared down at the table, her hands clasped tightly together in front of her. She almost seemed to tremble a little as she tried to gather her courage. I remained silent, giving her the opportunity to speak when she was ready. In the corridor outside, Noah and Nicholas were eerily si
I stared at Grace in silence, unsure what to make of all of this. I barely knew Grace, and I especially didn’t know her mother. Nor did I know Nicholas’s mother. For all I knew, this was just a bunch of poppycock. “Your mother,” I said carefully, “do you think I could talk to her? Hear it from her
Kayla I blinked at Nicholas, unsure if I had just heard him correctly. “You want to break her out?” I whispered, grabbing his arm and pulling him away from the interrogation room door, out of Grace’s earshot. “Are you insane?” Noah looked like he was about to burst. “She’s a guild prisoner, Ni
By the time we pulled into the driveway, the windows to the house were glowing warmly with amber lighting, and fragrant smoke billowed out of the chimney. Nicholas killed the engine, and I climbed off, pulling my helmet free and shaking out my hair. It felt… wrong to come back to this cozy, spacio
Kayla I stood frozen in the hallway as Nora disappeared around the corner. Despite myself, despite every wall I had worked so hard to keep up, my hands trembled slightly around the tray. Why did I feel so… hurt? Shaking my head, I turned away and headed back down to the kitchen without even br
Emma glanced at me sideways with a knowing smile playing on her lips. “Why the sudden interest?” “No reason,” I said quickly, perhaps a little too quickly. “Just curiosity, that’s all.” “Uh-huh,” she teased, nudging me lightly with her elbow. “Well, for what it’s worth, I think Nicholas has his
Kayla “Going out?” I asked, struggling against Nicholas’s grip—and trying not to spill my coffee—as he pushed me toward the stairs. “Where?” “Well, there’s a motorcycle show in town today. Thought it would be fun to check it out.” I stopped in my tracks at the bottom of the stairs and raised a
I nodded, suddenly feeling my legs go weak. Three days walking nonstop in the forest, living on berries and squirrels, finally seemed to be catching up to me. I sank down into a nearby chair, slumping slightly.Nicholas glanced at me, then walked out of the room without a word, leaving me and Jade a
KaylaI didn’t hesitate. “Take me there,” I said, turning abruptly toward Nicholas.Nicholas furrowed his brow slightly, as did Emma. I knew they were both surprised at my sudden interest in Nora, who had been nothing but a thorn in my side since we’d met. And frankly, I didn’t blame them. Maybe a f
At that, Nicholas released me, taking a step back. He furrowed his brow. “You look surprised.”“Because I thought you had no intention of going on a honeymoon,” I blurted out, smoothing down the front of my jacket. “I thought…”My voice trailed off, and I couldn’t find it in me to say it out loud. I
KaylaI looked up to see Nicholas approaching, his face pale. “Are you alright?” he asked, stopping a little ways away from where I was standing.I quickly turned away, hoping he couldn’t see the tears welling up in my eyes. “I’m fine.”“Kayla.” Nicholas stepped in my way. “Talk to me. Did something
Was it true that Nicholas had laughed in her face when she confessed her feelings? Was he truly that heartless, even back then? Was it true that Nora thought she was doing me a favor by trying to break us up, by showing me that audio clip?I didn’t think Nora could ever be my friend, not by a long s
KaylaI stared at the deer turning on the spit, its skin turned red and glistening with fat as the fire cooked it from beneath. The air smelled like roasting meat, mingling with the scent of fresh bread and mulled cider.I was starving and surrounded by food that looked utterly delicious, and yet my
Before I could protest further, Nicholas whisked me off my feet, gathering me in his arms like I was as light as a feather. He strode quickly toward the edge of the forest—I was surprised to find that we weren’t nearly as far as I thought we were this whole time—and then veered toward the house.“I’
KaylaI stared wide-eyed down at Nora’s unmoving body, at the pool of blood forming around her abdomen. She coughed and sputtered, eyes glazed over, already worlds away from this place by the time I found her.The warrior said that he had accidentally pushed her too hard during a spar, and she fell
And although it was bitterly cold out today, with the feast being held outside no less, all of the torches and fire pits scattered around the gathering area kept me warm enough that I’d even removed my jacket some time ago.Jade shook her head and took a seat next to me, perching on the edge of the