Page 85 of Iron Roses

Something cold spreads under my skin.

It feels like lightning and ice.

My hands twitch.

My mouth opens but no sound comes.

The world lurches.

Darkness folds over me from the outside in.

****

I’m not unconscious. Not really.

I fall—but not into sleep.

Into memory.

Into someone else’s pain.

*****

Cassian’s bedroom.

Dark. Cold. Silent.

I know this room.

The fireplace is out.

The bed is unmade.

And she’s there.

Giovanna.

A man. No face.He says nothing.

He lifts the knife.

I try to run to her.

I can’t.

I’m frozen, hovering, part of her and not.

The first stab lands in her side.

She jerks. Screams.

The pain tears through me.

I cry out—soundless.

The second stab hits just below her rib.

Her body twists, face contorted.

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