ROMAN."Are you sure we need to do this?" August asks as soon as be joins me in the morgue. "We don't have to do it today. We were going to have a ceremony and everything. We can wait until then.""I don't think we should," I murmur. "Not with the mark that my dear brother tattooed on his own arm."Even though it turns my stomach to be doing this, I slide Hyden's body into the fire and wait for the flames to swallow his entire body.I step back and let the smoke funnel into the tube and out into the air. Some of the smoke remains in the room, and the smell of burning flesh wafts through my nose. My eyes start to water, but I don't think it's from smoke and the smell. I should say something. I should at least have something honorable to say about him. But I don't. And maybe that's the saddest thing of all.The flames take ahold of Hyden, consuming him completely until there's nothing left but his ashes. The last of my family, now being swept into a brass urn.I don't even have an ide
MONICAI can't do it.Cassandra must have seen that on my face because she shakes her head and weeps even more intensely, her face scrunched up in pure pain."You have to do it," she begs. "You can't leave me like this. You can't leave me alive. They will find me.""I can't kill you," I whisper.Suddenly, images flash in my mind. Images of Hyden bleeding from my bites. The taste of his blood. It's all so vivid that I can't move for a moment. It's only when I feel Cassandra's cold hands closing around mine that I find myself alert again.I turn to her, and she presses the blade into my hands and guides it towards her neck."Do it," she says, and it sounds like she poured all her energy into those two words.Before I can say anything more, Cassandra pressed the blade against her neck using the force of my hands. Since she's weak and I'm reluctant, the blade barely slides into her skin. It draws blood, but not enough to deal her some lasting damage. She tries again, but since I'm openly
MONICA.The air rings with my uncertainty, clinging to the wind like a bad perfume. I press my back harder against the tree trunk as though it would absorb me with just enough pressure. Is this real? I know that I haven't been sleeping the best, and I know that that can lead to funky stuff. I might just be imagining this whole thing.I mean, when was the last time I saw Cassandra? It's been so long that I can't even remember. Hell, I also don't remember the last time her name came up in conversations. I just know that Janus told me that she had to be put away for what she did to me.Seeing this version of her now makes me doubt a lot of things. It makes me doubt if this is even real. But then again, why would she be something I would hallucinate when she hasn't crossed my mind in forever.But the smell of blood and unwashed flesh is what brings me back.This is real. I hear her. I smell her. I see her.And she's still trying to crawl closer to me."Help me, please," she begs, holding
MONICA."Come on, you got this!" Padma urges as she puts her hands on my shoulders and tries to tackle me. "This is going to be easier for you in the long run. All you need to do right now is to take me down.""I feel like you're trying to go easy on me," I mutter, but she laughs."Oh, believe me, I'm not."As though on cue, she grips me harder and slams me down on the soft grass. I gasp as pain travels down my spine. I know that I'm strong enough not to incur that much damage, but it still stings. I just don't know what stings more: the actual slamming or the defeat that comes with it.I always knew that Padma was strong. I've seen her haul my stuff like it's nothing. I've seen her move my furniture like it's the most natural thing on earth. What I didn't expect was that she would be skilled in fighting too. She hid it so well with her delicate little dresses and her giggles. I fully thought we would be at least even in strength even though she's miles ahead in terms of skill.But I
ROMAN.Two days has passed since all of the recent events, and yet in many ways, I still feel stuck."The funeral is already set," August tells me as we make our way to the balcony with the perfect view of the training grounds. "The body has been prepped for cremation. Everyone has been incredibly... supportive.""And by supportive, you mean?""They know that Hyden has never been the good guy." August looks conflicted. "Look. I have never heard anyone say that he was murdered in cold blood. Everyone understands that it was self defense. No one has talked about Monica that way."I know that he's not lying. Over the past couple of days, many people have come to the palace with flowers, but not for Hyden. For Monica. They’ve expressed their sympathy over what happened, and it's helped a lot. Monica has become a little bit more sure of herself, more eager to train. More eager to move on.That's actually where we're heading now, to see how she's doing in training.August and I arrive, watc
MONICA.The air around Roman and I thickens, filled with a charged kind of energy as he lays me down on the bed. He positions himself next to me, propping his body on his elbow as he deepens the kiss. His hand is bunched up in my hair. My hands roam his chest, grazing his skin with my palms and finding his heartbeat.It's strong. Fast. As though he just ran a marathon. I don't know why, but it makes my stomach flutter.I pull away just enough to look into his eyes. "We don't have to. Not right now. Not after everything.""But I want to." His voice is as soft as the fingertip he's trailing down my hip. "I love you, and nothing changes that. Nothing will ever change that. I'll always want you, Monica."He kisses me again, and I fully expect him to touch me. Rub me. Conquer me like he always does. But the fingertip he's trailing down the curve of my hip doesn't become a full hand. It's just the ends of his fingers, skimming my skin. Even his kiss is soft, caring, like he thinks I'm fragi