To Kill a Shadow by Katherine Quinn

Author:Katherine Quinn
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Young Adult;High Fantasy;Romantic Fantasy;warriors;The Mist;Shadow and Bone;Night’s Watch;enemies-to-lovers;forced proximity;protector;starcrossed lovers;monsters;monster hunters;prophecy;Teen & Young Adult Coming of Age Fiction;Teen & Young Adult Dating & Sex Fiction;Teen & Young Adult Magical Realism Fiction;Teen & Young Adult Loners & Outcasts Fiction;Teen & Young Adult Romance eBooks;Teen & Young Adult Social Issues eBooks;Entangled Teen;YA Fantasy;YA Romance;Forbidden YA Romance;Young Adult Romance;YA Action-Adventure Series;fantasy;young adult;romance;To Kill a Shadow;to Kill a Shadow by Katherine Quinn;Katherine Quinn;warrior;kingdom;cursed kingdom;monsters;forbidden love;fantasy romance;LGBTQIA;gods;epic fantasy;epic fantasy romance;friends to lovers romance;friends to lovers;opposites attract;overcoming odds;knights;knight in shining armor
Publisher: Entangled Publishing, LLC
Published: 2023-08-18T13:15:28+00:00

Chapter Twenty-Six

Jude

The mind can be the sharpest weapon one possesses, but it can also be the blade that delivers the fatal blow.

Asidian proverb

It was quiet for a long time after Nic sliced open his own throat.

The winds were changing, taking the cursed poison with them—whatever it was that had caused such chaos to ensue. A poison that had compelled a young boy to kill himself in the most gruesome of ways.

Jake was the first to react, rushing to cradle his dead friend in his lap. Tears cascaded down his golden cheeks, sobs racking his lithe frame as he wailed. As he mourned for his friend.

I stopped breathing, my limbs weighted down by the realization of what I’d just witnessed. What I had failed to stop. Again.

Kiara moved quickly as she reached for her discarded glove, sliding it on while the others were distracted. Her entire body trembled, and I wanted to reach out, to hold her in my arms.

But her scars…

I’d finally seen what she concealed, and… There were no words. I had never seen anything like them before, and gods knew I had seen every manner of injury over the years. They’d been black, veiny, tinges of blue whispering among the glimmering onyx. My throat constricted as I peeled my eyes from her.

Kiara had hidden herself from me out of fear of my reaction, but while shocked by the revelation, I didn’t feel repulsed, only curious.

Jake continued to rock Nic in his arms, his tears splattering upon his friend’s open wound. Kiara rushed away from the group, leaning over to heave up the meager contents of her stomach.

I was beside her in a heartbeat, winding my fingers through her hair and holding the strands away from her face, mustering whatever soothing words I could find and whispering them in her ear. I couldn’t help it, and thoughts of maintaining my distance vanished entirely. Someone had killed themselves before our very eyes, and pushing her away would just be cruel.

The moment she’d gotten everything out of her system, she took off, marching to where Starlight and the other horses rested. She grabbed at her canteen, unscrewing the cap and chugging the cool water.

Starlight protested beside her, waving her head back and forth as she kicked out her front legs.

“Shhh, girl. It’s all right,” she whispered, leaning her head against the mare’s neck.

She settled at Kiara’s touch, allowing Kiara to hold her as a lone tear escaped down her cheek, dripping onto Starlight’s velvety coat.

“Kiara.”

She jerked at the sound of her name.

I spoke it again, and her body tensed when I wound my arms around her, holding onto her waist as my chest pressed into her back. “This was why I didn’t want you to come.”

No one should bear witness to this.

I rubbed soft circles onto her back, resting my chin atop her hair. She let out a soft whimpering sound before giving in to the sensation of being held.

I could tell it was new to her as well, the touching.

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