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Back The Bone Shard Emperor Save as PDF
Chapters (68)
  1. Cover
  2. Dedication
  3. Map
  4. 1
  5. 2
  6. 3
  7. 4
  8. 5
  9. 6
  10. 7
  11. 8
  12. 9
  13. 10
  14. 11
  15. 12
  16. 13
  17. 14
  18. 15
  19. 16
  20. 17
  21. 18
  22. 19
  23. 20
  24. 21
  25. 22
  26. 23
  27. 24
  28. 25
  29. 26
  30. 27
  31. 28
  32. 29
  33. 30
  34. 31
  35. 32
  36. 33
  37. 34
  38. 35
  39. 36
  40. 37
  41. 38
  42. 39
  43. 40
  44. 41
  45. 42
  46. 43
  47. 44
  48. 45
  49. 46
  50. 47
  51. 48
  52. 49
  53. 50
  54. 51
  55. 52
  56. 53
  57. 54
  58. 55
  59. 56
  60. 57
  61. Acknowledgements
  62. Discover More
  63. extras
  64. meet the author
  65. A Preview of "The Foxglove King"
  66. A Preview of "The Stardust Thief"
  67. BY ANDREA STEWART
  68. Praise for Andrea Stewart

I tested the broken fixture. I didn’t think it would hold my weight. Someone might have used it once to gain access to the lair, and it seemed that was a one-time thing. But I had strength granted to me by Mephi, and I was tall. I eyeballed the distance. If I hung over the edge of the roof, my feet would nearly reach the opening. There was an overhang below. If I fell, I’d probably break something, or more than one something. I supposed I could heal from that, as long as my head wasn’t one of the things I broke.

Feeling more than a little foolish, I lowered myself over the roof’s edge. My feet hung into the opening. The gutters creaked at my weight. I swung my legs back, then forward, and then let go.

I didn’t swing gracefully into the den as I’d intended. My chest hit the wall and I slid, grasping at plaster for a hold. I managed to seize the edge of the opening as I fell, my cloak torn and the skin beneath scraped and bleeding, my arms aching.

I hung there for a moment before gathering the courage to haul myself up and inside.

It smelled like an animal – musty and astringent. Uphilia’s lair? She’d been the Emperor’s Construct of Trade and I knew she’d had two pairs of wings. What possible secrets could be hiding in the lair of the Construct of Trade? Boring secrets, probably. Secrets not worth risking broken bones for.

But I dug around in the straw regardless, searching for secret compartments.

I didn’t need to look that hard. I found something hard and square, and I lifted it from the straw. I squinted in the darkness. A… book?

The moon was hidden by clouds, so I couldn’t even make out the cover. I felt around in the darkness and found a lamp secured to the wall. There was still a little oil in it, and flint and tinder beneath.

I lit the lamp, and though it flickered, I could see.

It was a record of births and deaths here on Imperial. I flipped through the pages until I found the record of Lin’s birth.

There it was: 1522–1525.

My stomach swam with unease. Surely someone had made a mistake. But it was too egregious an error. I shut the book and buried it beneath the straw, struggling to breathe past the tightness in my throat.

Lin Sukai, heir to the Emperor, had died when she was three.

So who was the Lin I knew?

28

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Nisong

The north-eastern reaches of the Empire

Leaf returned from Imperial with the news Nisong had expected. “She won’t abdicate. Definitely not in favor of you. And she’s not happy you’re claiming to be her illegitimate sister.”