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I shakea little weird"

"At first it’s hard, but it’ll get easier," he assuresthe sand with my boot because what he says doesn’tof weakness feels potent and vile, like it doesn’t belong in my body

"I don’t think we can stay at the hillside any in "With the Day Takers wanting you and Doood idea to stay there"

"I know," I say with a nod "I agree I can’t stay there"

"We can start over somewhere" He brushes my hair back from my shoulder "Find a new shelter Those caves are all over the place around here"

"What about my memories?" I ask "Don’t you think we should find out what I know?"

"We will" He nudges my shoulder

I smile, butto pack up everything and move, not when they have so ht and be fine I make the decision then and there to leave on my own

"You and you alone, Kayla" Monarch says "That’s how it’s got to be in the end, otherwise it’ll never work"

"I don’t think I’ve been so happy to see a hill before" Ryder perks up as their horows closer "God, I just want to lie down and rest forever"

Aiden gives her ponytail a playful tug "You’re such a weakling and you know it"

She smiles and a blush creeps up in her cheeks She sweeps her hair forward, hoping he won’t notice and I catch sight of the nu to build an arhers and put the world back the way it was But you need to die in order to live"

I’m about to pull Aiden aside and tell hie a in the air today I stop at the top of a hill and gaze down to the bottom--to the hillside

Andhigh above and below the hillside and over by the pipe Fire, just like in the city

Chapter 37

"No!" Ryder cries, starting to run for their burning ho her back, pinning her against his chest "Let go of ainst hi to calm her down as she hysterically sobs "It’s okay," he says "I’m sure they all ot in," she says, trying to wrench away from him "The entrance is wide open"

"Who did this?" Ias I once was Or as invincible

"Perhaps the Day Takers," Cedrix steps beside me, hand in his pocket, a solemn face "Or perhaps so all around the front of the hillside "Maybe the same someone who controls the fires in the city"

"But no one knoho does that" I reach for my knife, but realize it isn’t there "Da helpless and useless

"What wrong?" Cedrix asks, watching the cloud of dirt I kicked up

"It’s nothing," I say, thinking of Maci Is she still in there? Alive? "Do you have a knife I could borrow?"

He gives me a funny look as he reaches into his pocket and hands rinded blade "If you’re thinking of being a hero, don’t," he says "You’re not as strong as you used to be"

Strong or not, I knohat I have to do Because I pro if I don’t h, he’ll catch me

"Kayla," Aiden yells on cue I hear his footsteps thundering after , up the hill and jump into the cave I shove the rock in front of the entrance and lock his on the other side and I know he’ll o on alert, the knife poised out as I tiptoe my way down the tunnel and down into the main room It’s dark as death, crates tipped over, food skewed all over the place It looks like soave up and just broke everything instead

Iunderneath the stairwell and in the corners of the rooave Maci, the silver blade stained red with blood

"What happened in here?" I say, picking up the knife A soft pulse thuds in my ears and boost htly up the stairs, following the sound into the room I was once chained in, only now the chains are empty and most of the lanterns are shattered

"Hello," I call softly The heart jumps "Who’s in here?"

Froure crawls out "Kayla" Maci blinks and then runs toher arirl on the head "It’s okay It’s going to be okay"

She tilts her head up to me "I know it is"

Of course she does "What happened?"

She rubs her eyes and steps back "They came for you"

"Who came for me?"

Her eyes widen and her pulse lurches with fear as she utters the words, "The Highers"