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Back The Ones We Burn Save as PDF
Chapters (93)
  1. Cover
  2. Title Page
  3. Dedication
  4. Part One: Skra: Sixty Days Remain
  5. PART ONE SKRA SIXTY DAYS REMAIN
  6. 1
  7. 2
  8. 3
  9. 4 Two weeks later
  10. 5
  11. 6
  12. 7
  13. 8
  14. 9
  15. 10
  16. 11
  17. 12
  18. 13
  19. 14
  20. 15
  21. 16
  22. 17
  23. 18
  24. Part Two: Monster: Twenty-Five Days Remain
  25. PART TWO MONSTER TWENTY-FIVE DAYS REMAIN
  26. 19
  27. 20
  28. 21
  29. 22
  30. 23
  31. 24
  32. 25
  33. 26
  34. 27
  35. 28
  36. 29
  37. 30
  38. 31
  39. Part Three: Butcher: Six Days Remain
  40. PART THREE BUTCHER SIX DAYS REMAIN
  41. 32
  42. 33
  43. 34
  44. 35
  45. 36
  46. 37
  47. 38
  48. 39
  49. 40
  50. 41
  51. 42
  52. 43
  53. 44
  54. 45
  55. 46
  56. 47
  57. 48
  58. 49
  59. 50
  60. 51
  61. 52
  62. 53
  63. Part Four: Bloodwinn: Coup Successful
  64. PART FOUR BLOODWINN COUP SUCCESSFUL
  65. 54
  66. 55
  67. 56
  68. 57
  69. 58
  70. 59
  71. 60
  72. 61
  73. 62
  74. 63
  75. 64
  76. 65
  77. 66
  78. 67
  79. 68
  80. 69
  81. 70
  82. 71
  83. 72
  84. 73
  85. 74
  86. 75
  87. 76
  88. 77
  89. 78
  90. 79
  91. 80 EPILOGUE Three months later
  92. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
  93. ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Her hair fell across her face as she shook their mother, digging her fingernails into the soft flesh of her limp forearms. “Mama? Mama, no. Wake up. Wake up!”

Ranka’s legs buckled. “Vivna.”

Her sister jerked backward. Panic flared in her eyes, and she cringed away from Ranka, her fingers still on their dead mother’s arms. “What have you done?”

“It was an accident. I didn’t mean to—I was trying to protect you—”

“What have you done?”

Ranka started to cry. “I’m sorry!” She tried to push her matted hair out of her face, but blood soaked her clothes and her skin. “They were going to kill you—”

“You should have let me die.”

“No, Vivna, please.” Something inside her was collapsing. “I’m sorry.”

Her older sister stared at her, and then her expression morphed, cold and strange. She stood, hands trembling, and smoothed down the front of her ruined dress. “It’s okay,” she said, her voice carefully neutral. “Come here, Ranka. It’s okay.”

She held out her arms.

“Come here.”

Ranka jerked out of the memory. Her head pounded. Lines of fire shot through her chest, lighting up her arms. Bile rose in her throat and she vomited, pitching forward. The memory was already slipping away, the kernel hardening, but she was so close, so close.

In her body, something foreign, twisted, and rotting was taking root. It raced through her in a tidal wave, sliding through her veins, attacking her cells. Tiny, fingernail-sized blisters appeared on her palms. Belren flickered.

Blood gushed from Ranka’s nose.

From the poison.

She was done hiding. Done running.

Comes the cure.

Ranka sank claws into Belren and tore it open.

“Come here, little sister.”

Ranka inched forward, shaking. She folded herself into her sister’s arms. The sobs came fully as it hit her what she’d done. What she was now, what she could never be again.

Vivna’s hands ran over the back of her head. “I’ll fix this.”

“I’m sorry.” Ranka sobbed harder. There was blood in her mouth, her hair, her eyes. She wanted to peel away her own skin. “I didn’t mean to. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to.”

“I know,” Vivna said. “I know. I’ll fix it.”

And then Vivna took their mother’s butcher knife and stabbed Ranka in the stomach.