Blood.
Would those ties prove a more powerful influence on Wren, who had always longed for a mother, or on Ravenna, who had lost a daughter? Did she truly care about Wren at all, or was Wren simply a tool to be used to further her own ends?
Or would it be as it had been with her father, a cruel combination of both?
Turning aside, she found some bags and tossed one each to Leo and Julian.
“Take whatever you can easily carry,” she said. After Julian donned his armor, they loaded up on food, water canteens, and even weapons. Leo took a few pieces of golden jewelry and Wren, several jars of bonedust.
While Julian was examining a pair of iron throwing stars, Wren noticed that Ironheart had made its way back onto his belt. Of course he wouldn’t want her to have it after her betrayal.
But it hurt all the same.
When they reached the end of the room, there was a wide hatch, large enough for barrels and a horse to be led through, and a smaller door more suitable for people. Wren bent over the bone lock, using the key once more, then carefully opened the door.
Ditching the torch, she emerged in a cavern of sorts, with natural stone concealing them from above and a tangle of bushes protecting them from wider view. Wren suspected that this place would be impossible to spot from the Wall or along the usual patrol routes, but they were still within the palisade’s protections.
“Come on,” she said, ushering the other two out and closing the door behind them.
Together they took in their surroundings, staring at the world beyond their small enclosure. All was darkness, save for the lanterns dotting the Wall above and the flash of bone-white bricks illuminated by the moon and stars. The palisade stood like distant specters, watching, waiting.
“Now what?” Leo asked, looking between them.
“We go back into the Breach,” Wren said, casting her gaze northeast. “We destroy the well by any means necessary. After that, we deal with the rest.”
The rest. Their respective families, their convoluted plots… and their army of revenants.
But Wren was ready, and she didn’t need Ghostbane or Ironheart because she was a blade—a weapon to be wielded, a force to be reckoned with.
And she would defeat the undead.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Thank you to my publishing dream team—my agent, Penny Moore, and my editor, Sarah McCabe—who have been the best partners I could ask for in this career. I’m so glad we got to do this again.
Thank you to everyone at Simon & Schuster and Aevitas Creative Management, who do so much work behind the scenes that I rarely see—but always feel—on the long journey from a messy manuscript on my hard drive to publication.
Thank you to my friends and family, who have supported me from the beginning, and who make those rare days I’m not working worth all the struggle in between.
Thank you to the First Riders Street Team alumni, who keep the love alive years after the series ended. I hope you enjoy the Dominions as much as you enjoyed the Golden Empire. Super special thank-you to my Rider Council: Alex, Brianna, Callum, and Megan, who helped me run things the second time around, and who continue to help with constant support, encouragement, and beta reads.
Finally, thank you to the readers, reviewers, librarians, booksellers, and everyone in the bookish community for championing my stories. I couldn’t do this job without you, and I couldn’t be more grateful.