Total pages in book: 123
Estimated words: 114925 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 575(@200wpm)___ 460(@250wpm)___ 383(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 114925 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 575(@200wpm)___ 460(@250wpm)___ 383(@300wpm)
She blanched but tried to mask it by blowing him a kiss with bite. “You’re whipped. I get it. Can we go now?”
Maintaining his languid pace, he leaned down and nuzzled my cheek with his own. “I’ll see you on the other side, Pink.” He strode off with the high princess.
Suddenly alone, I felt as though I’d tumbled down a hill, slamming into rocks. The man who’d threatened the other woman wasn’t the Cyrus I knew and adored. And yet he was the exact same, merely amplified. But at what cost?
The door closed behind him, but my guards didn’t return. As I struggled to order my thoughts, I sensed another presence. Familiar. “Show yourself,” I rasped, not sure what emotion he elicited right now.
A robe-clad Domino stepped from the corner shadows. “Astan already influences him.”
Ice crystalized in my veins. “Then I need to be a stronger influence, not avoid him.” I would remind Cyrus what we were fighting for. Who we were fighting for.
The librarian didn’t try to hide his disappointment in me. “I can’t and won’t try to stop you.”
“Good.” Smart, even. So why was my chest clenching?
“What I will do is offer advice.” He moved to my side, his bigger body eclipsing mine. Today he smelled sweet verging on heady, like the flowers that grew on top of the Rock. I didn’t like it. Not one bit. “Listen, and your heart will tell you things your mind hasn’t yet grasped.”
I recalled the whisper of denial I’d perceived while kissing Cyrus and gulped. “Any, um, news on my friend?” I asked, changing the subject to Mykal.
Domino studied me for a long while, silent as I shifted from one bare foot to the other. “Nothing new,” he finally replied.
“And my mom?” I shuffled to my bed and eased onto the edge of the mattress. “She’s well?”
“She is.”
I wrung my hands together. “And you still can’t tell me who my, um, new friend is?” The other Soalian.
“Correct.”
“So why are you here?” I demanded, suddenly mad at him, Cyrus, myself, and the world. And I didn’t even know why.
No answer came, and when I looked up, I discovered Domino had gone. His absence only added fuel to the fires of my irritation.
Hoping to better understand my reaction, I focused inward, spotlighting my memory garden. What in the world? So. Many. Weeds. Too many to pinpoint a specific section.
The sight roused tears I couldn’t bank. What even was my life anymore? I had the truth but little else. Cyrus was my boyfriend, and he claimed to love me, but I rarely saw or spoke to him. I was supposed to help him become king and overcome the courting of a god but also stay away from him for reasons. I’d kissed him, but he’d walked away with a past girlfriend. I’d become a Soalian, a citizen of the Kingdom of Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow, and a member of the much-feared Tome Society, and I should be shouting the truth from rooftops. Except, I couldn’t mention CURED’s lies without the threat of death. Though I’d always yearned to grow my own garden, I’d failed to tend the one in my head. Right now, my best friend was a projection of a man no one else could see or hear, yet I’d sent him away. Hopefully only temporarily.
My shoulders rolled in but squared in a snap. This wasn’t a time to indulge in self-pity. I had work to do.
Determined to start fresh, I torched the memory garden, letting righteous flames of fury eat up the weeds. A simple action, and yet a weight I hadn’t known I’d been carrying lifted from my shoulders. Much better.
The morning bell spilled over the airwaves, and my door opened again. I flowed from the bed, collected my fragment of the Rock, and stuffed it in my pocket.
Today, I traveled to Theirland.
Head high, I stalked forward. Still no sign of my guards. Though the hallway overflowed with trainees, none of them paid me any heed, per usual. No matter. I continued with purpose, every step fueled by intent. I would apologize to Domino at the first opportunity and help Cyrus as I saw fit. I wouldn’t put anyone in added danger, not even myself.
After I showered and dressed in clean fatigues, I double-checked that I still wore my necklace—yes—and transferred my piece of the Rock into my new pocket. With nothing else to do, I headed for the rift room, where one of three doorways to Theirland would instantly transport me to a CURED-owned military base. Hmm. Knights and barons rushed through the crowd in a steady stream, all heading in the same direction, leaving a trail of stinging anxiety in their wake.
Whatever the high princess had referenced must have escalated.
I picked up the pace, lagging a few steps behind Cash and Miller. They muttered together, speculating about what could be going on.