Glass Sword (Red Queen #2) - Victoria Aveyard Page 0,130
to protect them, if something hap-
pens.”
Something. Another raid, an all-out attack, what could become a
slaughter of the ones I’ve tried so hard to save. But staying behind is less dangerous than going to Corros, and they exhale sighs of quiet relief.
Cameron watches them relax, her face twisted in envy. She would stay
with them if she could, but then who would train her? Who would
teach her how to control her abilities—and use them? Not Cal, and cer-
tainly not me. She doesn’t like the price, but she’ll pay it.
I try to look at the other volunteers in turn, hoping to see deter-
mination or focus. Instead, I find fear, doubt, and, worst of all, regret.
Already, before we’ve even begun. What I would give now for Farley’s
wasted Scarlet Guard, or even the Colonel’s Lakeland soldiers. At least
they have some shred of belief in their cause, if not themselves. I must believe enough for all of us. I must put up my mask again, and be the lightning girl they need. Mare can wait.
Dimly, I wonder if I’ll ever get the chance to be Mare again.
“I’ll need you to walk me through this again,” Cal says, gesturing
between Cameron and the spinning illusion of Corros Prison. “The
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rest of you, eat well and train as best as you can. When the storm lets
up, I want to see you all back in the yard.”
The others snap to attention, unable to disobey. As I learned to
speak like a princess, Cal has always known how to speak like a gen-
eral. He commands. It’s what he’s good at, it’s what he was meant for.
And now that he has a mission, a set objective beyond recruiting and
hiding, all else fades away. Even me. Like the others, I leave him to his
muttered plans. His bronze eyes glow against the faint light of the illu-
sion, as if it has bewitched him. Harrick stays behind, dutifully keeping
his illusion alive.
I don’t follow the newbloods deeper into the Notch, to the tunnels
and holes where they can practice without hurting each other. Instead,
I face the storm and step outside, letting a cold blast of freezing rain hit me head-on. Cal’s warmth is quickly snuffed out, abandoned behind
me.
I am the lightning girl.
The clouds are dark above, swirling with the weight of rain and
snow. A nymph would find them easy to manipulate, as would a Silver
storm. When I was Mareena, I lied and said my mother was a storm
of House Nolle. She could influence the weather as I can control elec-
tricity. And in the Bowl of Bones, I called bolts of lightning out of the
sky, shattering the purple shield above me, protecting Cal and me from
Maven’s soldiers as they closed in. It weakened me, but I am stronger
now. I must be stronger now.
My eyes narrow against the rain, ignoring the sting of each freezing
drop. It soaks through my thick winter coat, chilling my fingers and
toes. But they do not numb. I feel everything I must, from the pulsing
web beneath my skin to the thing beyond the clouds, beating slowly
like a black heart. It intensifies the more I focus on it, and it seems
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to bleed. Fingers of static spin from the maelstrom I cannot see, until
they tangle into the low rain clouds. The hairs on the back of my neck
rise as another storm takes shape, crackling with energy. A lightning
storm. I clench a fist, tightening my grip on what I’ve created, hoping
it resounds.
The first clap of thunder is soft, barely a rumble. A weak bolt fol-
lows, touching down in the valley, briefly visible through the mist of
snow and rain. The next one is stronger, veining purple and white. I
gasp at the sight, both in pride and exhaustion. Every blast of lightning
feels brilliant inside me, but drains as much power as it holds.
“You’ve got no aim.”
Kilorn leans against the opening to the Notch, careful to keep as
dry as he can beneath a lip of roof. Away from the fire he looks harder
and thinner than ever, though he eats as well as he did in the Stilts.
Long hunts and constant anger have taken their toll.
“Guess it’s for the best, if you insist on practicing with that so close to home,” he adds, pointing at the valley. In the distance, a tall pine
smokes. “But if you plan on improving, do us all a favor and take a