Burning Bridges (44 page)

BOOK: Burning Bridges

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“
That is nothing new, Noah,
”
I growled, stooping and pressin
g the blade of my sword to the back of his
neck.
“
Since you and the King are
so
friendly, I want you to deliver a message to him.
”

“
So
,
you
’
re not going to kill me?
”
Noah asked with a smile on his face.

“
No, that would be too easy.
”

“
And way too much fun,
”
Ayden called, standing to his feet.

“
You
’
re kidding, because I
’
m not saying anything. According to the King, you are already dead. Alwaenia is already dead.
”

Fed up with Noah
’
s vagueness, I stabbed him in the shoulder with my sword and he cried out as he bled out on the concrete.
“
I
’
m quite crafty with a bow and arrow, Noah, but I think swords are definitely my thing.
”

“
Okay!
Okay!
”
he yelled out.
“
What
’
s the damn message?
”

Ayden watched me.
“
Tell the King Aleksandria Esolen said this isn
’
t over. Tell him she said it
’
s only begun and she won
’
t stop until
diversity
rules all.
”
With a grunt, I pulled back my sword and kicked him to the ground.

“
We should go,
”
Ayden said. I nodded at him and we headed to the door.

All of what I
’
d said was true. The King—the man I
’
d believed to be my father—had started something I was gladly willing to finish. They weren
’
t taking Alwaenia like conspirators did so long ago. They weren
’
t taking Old Haven from the people who deserved more, from the people who were more. I was determined to c
hange this nation and kill whom
ever I had
to. The thought alone scared me, but five weeks had changed me.

Ayden suddenly yelled out. I turned to face him, but he was already a step ahead of me. Noah had lodg
ed the dagger into his back and
stood
watching me in triumph. Before I could regret my decision to let him live, though, Ayden slugged him three times in the face and he fell to the ground.

I jumped and screamed,
“
Ayden, let
’
s go!
”

He leaned forward and whispered into Noah
’
s ears.
“
Threaten my mother again and I
’
ll make sure you don
’
t live to see daylight.
”
W
ith a final kick to the chest,
Ayden crossed the sector to me and I helped him out of the door. He limped pretty badly, but he could walk for the most part.

“
Echo,
”
Ayden whispered as we made our way through the empty corridors.
“
Are you smiling?
”

I didn
’
t get his meaning until I
looked up at him.
“
No.
We haven
’
t reached the end yet.
”

“
I was afraid you were going to say that.
”
Ayden held me close
to him and I took the moment thank the gods for our survival. Our plan hadn
’
t worked and
our
freedom was still a fragile thin
g, b
ut we had each other and that would do.

The foyer had cleared once again and we made our way out the arena doors. I wondered about Mother, Everlae, and Shadow and tried to suppress the tears. When I tried to remember
happy moments before things le
d up to this point, I got nothing. I only had this moment and every second spent with Ayden.
If someone had told me mere weeks ago that loving a man would lead to my own demise, I would have thought them crazy. Now I knew, and I was eager to fight.

The night still bled an inky orange and I held tight to Ayden as we stared out at the ruined houses
, burned bridges,
and dead bodies. The air smelled stale as if rain was approaching and estranged survivors still loitered in the streets. Sweat, blood, and tears—we
went through it all, and yet we hadn
’
t even reached the end. This time, though, I was sure we were ready to take on the world if need be. A border couldn
’
t stop us now.

Just beyond the horizon, Ayden and
I gazed out at the setting sun.
“
Today is yesterday
’
s victory, yesterday is tomorrow
’
s conquest, and tomorrow is today
’
s war.
Though
I face death, I am
not fearsome.
”
Ayden nodded and
I looked on with pride.

This is love. This is your life, Echo. Own it. Start over. Fight.

Stay alive.

###

T
he second volume in the Bleeding Heart Trilogy…

Deceiving Destiny

December
22
nd
2012

Acknowledgements

This story would be nothing without Him, so I want to thank God for giving me this remarkable ability to share my love for writing with the world. It
’
s only by the grace of Him that I have made it thus far. Secondly, I want to thank my loving parents. I know as they are reading this, they probably have big smiles on their faces. I know, guys, I love you too.

I also want to thank
Chamera Sampson, Jennifer Don, Dominique Goodall, R.K. Ryals, and Tianna Scott. You girls rock and are a huge impact on this entire journey. You guys have encouraged and inspired me from the very beginning and I hope you will to the very end. This wouldn
’
t have happened without you girls, so thanks again.

Thanks to Carley Zucco for putting up with me through most of this. HUGE thanks to Silviya and her amazing talents! The cover of this book is wonderful and it
’
s all thanks to you! You
’
re friendly and trustworthy—two attributes I find so rarely in this world.

Thanks to Shanna Roberson, Alicia Chunn,
Nyzeera Green,
Bella Belikov Colella,
Michelle Figley
, and my family
for being some of the best supporters EVER!

And last but surely not least, I want to thank Saline Elder and Naomi Garcia: my girls. When I need a break from writing you guys always seem to be right there and that means so much! Thanks to everyone who has supported me (you know who you are!) in the biggest and smallest ways. You guys have made this experience memorable, something I will definitely never forget. I love you guys from the crown of my head to the soles of my feet.

-N.R.

About the author

Born in New York and raised in Pennsylvania, Nadège Richards has traveled to six other states and two countries, but aspires to travel the world some day. Forever a lover of Art and all things pertaining to Literature, she hopes to obtain knowledge from her writing career, rather than popularity. She wrote her first novel about aliens and goats in the 8th grade and has had a passion for story-telling ever since. Her friends and family are her biggest inspiration. She enjoys being part of the Indie community and sharing her stories with the world.

When not reading, writing, and blogging obsessively, she
’
s usually found hiking, studying, camping, or at home with her family. She
’
s been a martial artist for two years, a singer for three, and always seeks a common ground in everything. She considers her writing very personal, as she
’
s always been a private person. She enjoys writing about what could or should happe
n, rather than what did happen—
she
’
s a dreamer and a procrastinator.