Dante leaned into her palm, his lips moving against the silk. “I think she wants me to find La Fonte di Guarigione.”
Alessa sat up. “It still exists? Then I’ll go right now and bring water back for you. You’ll be healed. Maybe you can go back to—”
“No.” He shook his head. “I don’t think that’s how it works.”
“Why not? I don’t care how far I have to go, I will. You could be healed, your power restored. And if you’re right, and Crollo is planning something worse, we need that water for the troops.”
“I think that’s what she’s trying to tell me. That we need to find it before he sends whatever he’s planning.”
“Well, where is it, then? Is it on Saverio?”
He closed his eyes. “Not anymore.”
“Anymore?” Her scalp prickled. “Dante, how can a spring move?”
“It’s not a spring.”
She made a face. “I don’t know much of the old language, but I do know that part. ‘Lei diede loro una fonte di guarigione—she gave them a healing fountain.’”
“Your accent is still terrible.” Dante half-smiled. “‘E quando venne il momento della battaglia, i guerrieri sarebbero stati forti, perché Lei diede loro una fonte di guarigione.’ It can mean fountain, but another way to translate una fonte is wellspring—source.”
Alessa whispered it to herself, trying on the words with the new meaning he’d offered.
And when it came time for battle, the fighters would be strong, for she gave them … a source of healing.
She stilled. “You’re saying that Dea’s third gift isn’t on Saverio anymore, because…”
Dante closed his eyes. “Because we banished them.”
Her breath left her body.
To survive the horror Crollo had planned, they needed an army of nearly invincible soldiers.
But first, they had to find them.
Acknowledgments
I’ve always told myself stories, but it wasn’t until a few years ago that I tried to write them down. See, “real” writers always seemed like quiet, solitary souls, and I … am not. And yet, since deciding to become a writer—or at least realizing I’d decided, because apparently everyone knew but me—my life has been filled with more wonderful people than ever. I could fill a hundred pages with gratitude, and I’d still run out of room, but I’ll try to keep it （somewhat） brief.
First, my eternal thanks to my agent, Chelsea Eberly, the greatest champion a writer could ask for. Thank you for believing in this book and in me, and for your enthusiasm, guidance, and all around wonderfulness.
Vicki Lame, editor extraordinaire, working with you has been a dream come true. Thank you for seeing everything this book could be, for working tirelessly to get it across the finish line, and for adding me to your incredible roster of authors.
All my gratitude to everyone at Wednesday Books, both past and present: Jennie Conway, Angelica Chong, and Vanessa Aguirre, for your patience, kindness, and attention to detail that kept me （mostly） on deadline, despite my endless questions and all the times I forgot to hit “reply all.” I swear I’ll get the hang of it eventually. Michelle McMillian, Melanie Sanders, Lena Shekhter, Anne Newgarden, Meghan Harrington, Alexis Neuville, and Brant Janeway for your efforts behind the scenes; Callum Plews, Carlotta Brentan, and Michael Gallagher for your work on the audiobook; and Rhys Davies for the beautiful maps. A very special thank-you to Kerri Resnick and Olga Grlic for designing the incredible cover, and Kemi Mai for bringing it to life. I am in awe. I couldn’t have asked for a better publishing team than St. Martin’s Press and Wednesday Books, and I’m so honored to work with all of you.
To Molly Powell, Natasha Qureshi, Callie Robertson, Kate Keehan, and the rest of the Hodder team, thank you for bringing this story to UK readers with such dedication and enthusiasm; to Lydia Blagden for designing the beautiful UK cover, and Sukatangan for illustrating it.
My deepest thanks to critique partners, friends, experts, and authenticity readers who went above and beyond to help me do justice to this cast of characters, including but not limited to Claudia Giuffrida, Amy Acosta, Anah Tillar, Iori Kusano, Anonymous, and Irtefa Binte-Farid, who gets extra friendship points for reading the whole book in one night. I hope I made you proud.
Ron Harris, Kristie Smeltzer, Megan Manzano, and everyone at Writer House, thank you for seeing potential in me before I knew if I had any. Taylor Harris, my local debut buddy, look at us now! Alice, Naomi, Christine, Jess, Meghann, Chae-Yeon, and all my patient friends and family members, thank you for listening to my bookish rambles. Autumn Ingram, thank you for teaching me （and by extension, Alessa） how to innocently slip innuendo into any conversation.