Page 65 of Of Flame and Fury

They all jolted to their feet as a man in blue scrubs appeared through the door.

“Is Coup all right?” Bekn breathed.

The man’s brown eyes looked at the clipboard in his right hand. “He’s going to be okay. He came in with fourth-degree burns across his abdomen. He has a broken tibia-fibula and we had to reset his shoulder.” He looked up. “But he’s out of surgery and should recover in a few days. As far as CAPR injuries go, this is far from the worst I’ve seen. He’s already awake, and asking for all of you.”

Bekn sagged against Kel. Kel tried to focus on the doctor’s voice as he continued talking. She was still waiting for therealdoctor to charge through those doors and tell them that they’d done everything they could, but nothing had worked. Coup was gone. His body was empty, like her father’s. His CAPR injuries too deep, like Oska’s.

The doctor held open the door at his back. “Follow me, please.”

Bekn, Dira and Rahn rushed forward in a flurry of limbs. Kel didn’t move. She couldn’t convince herself that this was real. Sheknewwhat lay on the other side of those swinging doors.

Coup, broken and bandaged—because of her.

He’d won the race. All because she’d told him to impress her.

The static morphed into fractured screams. Her heart poundedharder than it should have, for a rider she barely knew. For someone she’dhated.

Somehow, she had letCoup, the swaggering, mocking rider of her nightmares, crawl beneath her skin, far deeper than Oska had, in a way that stole her breath. And now, Kel couldn’t do it. She couldn’t look at Coup and think about the tangled fear and desperation rushing through her. What it might mean.

So, Kel turned and walked back out of the doors she’d come through.

TWENTY-EIGHT

Kel floated through Cristo’s white maze, unsure if she touched the ground. Right now, by her phoenix’s side was the only place she wanted to be.

When she reached the entrance to Savita’s aviary, she glanced at the door’s glass reflection and winced. Her worry for Sav and Coup had declared itself through purple bruises beneath her eyes. But compared to the image of Coup torn open, burns too deep to bleed, she couldn’t bring herself to care.

At the sight of her phoenix, the breath she’d been holding finally left her lungs. Savita lay nestled on the ground, picking at the feathers of her wings, oblivious to what lay beyond her glass walls.

Kel quickly checked Sav’s vitals on the tablet embedded in the wall. Her stomach curdled, preparing for the worst, no clue how the sprites’ magic might have affected Savita’s own.

Bitterness filled Kel’s mouth at the thought. CAPR had pitted another species against phoenixes for the crowd’s entertainment. Coup had been right. Every race was nothing but a pageant.

But Sav’s temperature seemed too stable, too calm, to explainthe heat that had shrouded Coup at the finish line. Where were the hints of a rebirth? The flames they’dseen?

Kel stumbled toward her phoenix, eyes stinging. Cristo was still keeping Savita’s vitals from her. He hadn’t been able to hide them during the race, when they’d needed a live feed, but now, Kel was back to square one.

She’d barely lifted her gloved hands to Savita’s neck when she heard the aviary’s door beep open. Sav lurched to her feet, quickly moving between Kel and the entrance. It might have been endearing, if Savita’s tail hadn’t collided with Kel and knocked her to the ground.

A moment later, Kel heard a heavy, familiar sigh. “I knew I’d find you here.”

Kel ducked her head as she stood. Guilt rippled through her stomach.

“Nova Presshas released updates on the riders in today’s race. Three died. Four more in critical condition. Coup got off easy,” Dira added, her voice flat.

Kel clenched and unclenched her fists. She kept her mouth closed, unsure if words or bile would come out.

Closing the door, Dira folded her arms over her rumpled uniform. “Why did you leave?”

“There was nothing I could do there.”

Dira stormed closer. “Coup asked to seeallof us. The second we walked into his room, he asked where you were.”

The words battered at Kel’s empty lungs. “He didn’t want me there. Trust me.”

“Bullshit, Kelyn! They’re new to the team, but I would’ve thoughtyou—of all people—would want to be there for him. He’s a Howler, and you just—”

“It’smyfault he’s lying in that bed,” Kel exploded.

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