Silvia POV I recognize the smell instantly. In the old stories they talk about the effect of troll stink. In the pictures, entire armies are razed to the ground as a troll stands over them, grinning through teeth like haphazardly strewn gravestones. I always wondered how I would know if I was smelling troll stink. Now I know. Fer is screeching in my head and I feel myself begin to vibrate as the shift comes over me, relentless and unstoppable. I bring my hands to my head-- it feels ready to explode. No, no, no, no, no, I mutter as though that will stop anything. My body is so hot I think I will melt the marble I'm standing on and then it's cold, so cold I feel my limbs will just crack right off. It's the iron! The iron is doing something. I dimly hear myself shriek in pain and fall to my knees. The first time the iron took hold was like ice. Everything was cold and hard. Then, the pain of the first transformation of my wolf was indist

Vuko POV The wolf stands over Silvia, its paws straddling her. Beyond them is Seersha who hides her face in her hands. Her shoulders heave with sobs. The wolf is not big and so I don’t understand how it overpowered Silvia. Why is she still in her human form? It looks up as we approach, slowing down as we try to understand what we are seeing. On the walls around us, guards writhe, pinnacled by some unseen force. The wolf looks up, its green eyes luminous in the torchlight of the cathedral. Blood—Silvia’s blood—drips from its mouth. I try to understand but my heart won’t accept this truth. I know this wolf. I saw this wolf at its Naming. This is Hemming, Didi’s wolf. But Didi is Silvia’s brother. What brother would do this to his sister? It’s impossible. The wolf’s eyes scan us, then settle on me. He snarls and I see the glint of his iron teeth. For the first time since Esme told us what she was forced to do for Didi, I understand how s

Silvia POV There’s no pain. In this place, even the memory of Hemming’s eyes—cold and green as ice—softens, fades. Didi’s cruel words are muffled, I no longer feel their sting. At first I fought it. It had been only moments. Hemmings teeth flashing with iron. His claws reaching for me. Then a sense of plummeting, twisting, and turning. Only there was no fall. There was just the sensation of falling and then I was here, in this field with the warm, fragrant breeze hushing through the long grass, clouds of dandelion floating over me. Perhaps I’ve just fallen asleep? But when? Which part stopped being real? Seersha’s betrayal? Didi’s anger? His attack? Falling? A low moan draws my attention and I turned over. A man lies sleeping, his smooth, brown back to me. Dandelions have fallen into his dark curls. He smells like home. He smells like memories that make me smile. "Vuko?" I whisper, placing a hand on his arm. He doesn't stir.

Vuko POV I follow the witch blindly, not seeing what is in front of me, only that Fulvio is behind me, kneeling over Silvia, tending to her. She will wake and see him. They will fall in love. It will be too late for me. My own heart echoes the thundering trembles of the viaduct ahead of us. But is it my imagination or is the ground actually jumping under our feet? I'm still staring at my feet trying to figure out this new variation of everything collapsing when the Cook-Troll comes lumbering up behind us. He seems to have given up on his human-form disguise. The jumping stops when he does. "Need some help, guys?" he asks. His troll voice sounds like stones tumbling against granite. He must have been a pretty quiet Cook to go unnoticed in Loop City. Esme and I look at each other. I don't know if she's thinking of the trollbomb as well but we both say "No!" at the same time and equally adamantly. "But tha

Silvia POV Darius takes my hand and we leave the magical garden and Luka with his dreams. We pass a short way through to the edges of the precisely planted forest. Darius plucks a gem-fruit from one of the low-hanging branches and hands it to me. "Try it," he says. I hesitate. I'm not sure fruit is supposed to glint at you. Ah well. I take a bite. It's an explosion. Bubbles tickle my nose and gooey globs of sweetness come apart in my mouth. There's so much juice it spills out of my mouth and I have to laugh as I try to catch the sticky drops in my hands. The aftertaste is less sweet and more tangy, like lemon ice mixed with ginger. My heart is actually racing! "What do you think?" asks Darius anxiously. "It's just that I've never really had anyone to show before." "It is extraordinary!" I say, "Honestly, I could eat this all day. What in our Goddess's name is that?" As we make our way out of the forest,