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Back Seasons of Chaos Save as PDF
Chapters (70)
  1. Dedication
  2. Prologue
  3. 1
  4. 2
  5. 3
  6. 4
  7. 5
  8. 6
  9. 7
  10. 8
  11. 9
  12. 10
  13. 11
  14. 12
  15. 13
  16. 14
  17. 15
  18. 16
  19. 17
  20. 18
  21. 19
  22. 20
  23. 21
  24. 22
  25. 23
  26. 24
  27. 25
  28. 26
  29. 27
  30. 28
  31. 29
  32. 30
  33. 31
  34. 32
  35. 33
  36. 34
  37. 35
  38. 36
  39. 37
  40. 38
  41. 39
  42. 40
  43. 41
  44. 42
  45. 43
  46. 44
  47. 45
  48. 46
  49. 47
  50. 48
  51. 49
  52. 50
  53. 51
  54. 52
  55. 53
  56. 54
  57. 55
  58. 56
  59. 57
  60. 58
  61. 59
  62. 60
  63. 61
  64. 62
  65. Epilogue
  66. Acknowledgments
  67. About the Author
  68. Books by Elle Cosimano
  69. Back Ad
  70. About the Publisher

I yank her head up. Water pours from her nose and mouth, and she hangs motionless from my hand. I drag her to the edge of the pool, fighting my wet jeans and her dead weight, the rough concrete scraping my arms as I haul her over the lip. The force of her body hitting the ground knocks the water from her lungs. She rolls onto her side, coughing up the contents of my pool.

I grab the life ring from the wall and use the rope to tie her wrists and ankles behind her as she chokes. My eyes burn with chlorine as I stand over her. “Where’s your transmitter?”

She coughs, sucking in ragged breaths. “I don’t have one. I’m not one of them.”

“Bullshit. I was here. I saw everything! Where did they take her?”

“Back to the Observatory. To Doug.” She winces as the rope chafes her wrists. “They work for Doug now.”

“That’s not even possible. That’s . . .” My protests trail away as a chill prickles my bare skin. Last week, Lyon said he’d been planning to dismantle the old Guard. To relieve them of their magic.

I’m not sure he can be swayed into conceding his magic peacefully. . . .

Doug. He must have escaped. He, Lixue, and the others who were here tonight . . . they must have fled while they still had their magic. But if Kai still has hers, why didn’t she fight me?

I scrape water from my face and rake my hair back to look at her. Not a flicker of magic stirs around her. Not a flutter of wind.

“Holy shit. You’re human.” Lyon must have stripped her of her magic before the others escaped. But if they all made it out of the Observatory, then why are they using the ley lines to go back to it? Why not slip off the grid where Lyon can’t track them? Why bother taking Fleur back to Lyon’s den?

Unless they have no reason to fear Lyon anymore.

They work for Doug now.

I stumble back, remembering the professor’s unanswered phone, ringing over and over again.

14

In His Footsteps Stray

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DOUG

I slide the key card over the sensor. An emerald-green flash precedes the release of the locks to the suite.

My suite.

I cross the threshold, scanning the room for motion sensors and cameras, ears attuned for the telltale beeps before the blare of an alarm, but the room is silent. As lifeless as the body it formerly belonged to. I move through it, my fingers trailing over the velvety back of the sofa, then the sleek, glossy surface of the credenza. The sprawling lair is tucked deep in a corner under the Winter wing, far from the Control Room. Most of the campus sustained damage from the quake, but this room seems untouched by the chaos that went down in the east wing yesterday.