in that w

e broken glass. Raya's eyes flew open as she jerked upright, only to b

ga

d where the silver touched. Her bo

d saw dirt, blood, s

he air was musty and thick with t

uscle ached. Her ribs felt cracked, her jaw bruised. Dried

h the tunnels. It wasn't tha

clanging of boots

ke a brute with a jagged scar down his face, the other a

grunted. "Good. Thorne

naged a breath

"You'll be wishing we h

dragging her out by the elbows. Her legs barely worked, but they didn't care. Sh

ally sa

rogues circled above, howling, hooting, some throwing bones or coins into the pit bel

an from the forest, the one with

or

er with unre

e amplified by rage and presence. "But she left four of our kind sl

rowd

tured towa

she belongs.

roared in

nees nearly gave out. "You're

er flatly. "I'm gi

d her forward, d

nd, the cage gate slammed shut

other ga

pped into the pit

s a m

stood on two legs, its claws dragging in the dirt, its ey

a f

" she whispered. "T

ol for too long, trapped hal

into a cage with

pped to all fours. Its head tilt

it ch

ed in her ribs, but she scrambled to

apons. No wol

rough her, all the w

It raked its claws across her shoulder, tearin

r everything she has been through, her l

d thundered. She could feel something deep in

Be

hed her t

She ducked low, grabbed a rock from the dirt, and slammed it

stumbled. Ra

round its neck, and squeezed. It thrashed, bucking hard

eature was

rew h

rd. Something in he

oke through. Not all

urned gold. Her muscles expande

-this time faster, more savage. She ducked under its swing, leapt

of it before it

ad into the ground

cracked. The crowd

m!" someon

ll

on was red. Her

a beast anymore

er pack members who laug

that had ever told

kept pounding, the berserker's b

er nails ripped through fles

on the viole

t whispered

ent silent. Even T

r arm for the

e leapt in

clamped around h

d from her b

sed, her limbs twitch

serker

t lost hersel

.

new ways. The silver collar still burned her throat. She barely rememb

arms crossed, watching her

stopped you,"

idn't

pped c

was your own executioner. Tell me, Raya..." He lea

s eyes. And he realized

to the dirt in front of he

the fight," he said. "It doesn

t it. It was

been buried with