Page 214 of A Liar's Twisted Tongue

“What are you?—”

“I’m not leaving you hanging this time. We’re fighting the Arcane? Perfect, maybe we can win. We have one on our side.”

“Who?”

Aralia turns to me, rolling up her shirt sleeves. “You.”

I smile like she’s told a joke, but she doesn’t. “Me?” I ask in disbelief. “I’m a Fire Folk.”

“Tell that to your eyes.” She walks past me, leaving me momentarily stunned. “Are we going or what?”

“Wait,” I grab her arm, stopping her, “so, you couldn’t accept that I’m septic but you can accept that I’m an Arcane?”

“It’s like I said, I had an idea of what Folk from the septic were, and I realized that was wrong. That didn’t change because your title did.”

And my title is Arcane. That can’t be true, it isn’t right. I would know if I was one of them. I can’t even do what they can—they literally stopped my feet from moving. I’m not that, but of course people think I am.

Lately, they’ve enjoyed assuming the worst.

“Aralia?”

“What?”

“That’s insane,” I say.

“Alright,” she says with a small smile and an annoyingly lavish voice.

I missed it.

Calista and Wendy are already in the common area when we exit our room.

“He’s certainly still in the academy,” Calista says to me, but not without glaring. Whatever.

“Then let’s go.”

Calista navigates us through the hallways, carrying Wendy with her until we find Lilac standing outside Lucian’s suite. “Lilac?” Calista walks to her and touches the sword that she holds. “You’re fighting?”

But Lilac’s eyes are on me when she whispers, “No.” Then she looks at Calista. “Yes, I’m fighting. Get Desdemona out of here. Now.”

“No—” I’m cut off when Lucian walks out, his eyes landing on me immediately.

Before he even seems to register that it’s me, he takes one long stride to me, holding onto my face like I’m a falsity.

“My darling Desdemona,” he says, and I expected more… I don’t know, elation from him. He sounds regretful. “You’re ruining me.” I feel something cold prickle up my back, grabbing my hands and pulling them behind me so hard that my back arches.

“Lucian!” Lilac shouts.

Lucian’s eyes close and his face contorts like he is in pain. The shadows drop from my wrists, and he gets out one measly word: “Run.”

“Run, now!” Lilac shouts when I hesitate.

And so I run, and no one follows. I turn around and they’re all fighting to hold Lucian back, even Kai. My entire body shakes with confusion so strong that it errs on the side of fear.

I’ve always had nothing, I never had Lucian.

Even while I run, I feel like a mess of emotions and nothing more. I have no idea what I’m supposed to do anymore. My mom doesn’t care for me, Damien and his family are scared of me, and who knows what’s going through Lucian’s mind.

I keep running like it will save me, but all I’ve ever done besides kill is run, and it’s seemed to have gotten me absolutely nowhere.

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