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Back When Stars Come Out Save as PDF
Chapters (51)
  1. Front Cover
  2. Title Page
  3. Copyright
  4. Contents
  5. Content Warning
  6. Chapter One
  7. Chapter Two
  8. Chapter Three
  9. Chapter Four
  10. Chapter Five
  11. Chapter Six
  12. Chapter Seven
  13. Chapter Eight
  14. Chapter Nine
  15. Chapter Ten
  16. Chapter Eleven
  17. Chapter Twelve
  18. Chapter Thirteen
  19. Chapter Fourteen
  20. Chapter Fifteen
  21. Chapter Sixteen
  22. Chapter Seventeen
  23. Chapter Eighteen
  24. Chapter Nineteen
  25. Chapter Twenty
  26. Chapter Twenty-One
  27. Chapter Twenty-Two
  28. Chapter Twenty-Three
  29. Chapter Twenty-Four
  30. Chapter Twenty-Five
  31. Chapter Twenty-Six
  32. Chapter Twenty-Seven
  33. Chapter Twenty-Eight
  34. Chapter Twenty-Nine
  35. Chapter Thirty
  36. Chapter Thirty-One
  37. Chapter Thirty-Two
  38. Chapter Thirty-Three
  39. Chapter Thirty-Four
  40. Chapter Thirty-Five
  41. Chapter Thirty-Six
  42. Chapter Thirty-Seven
  43. Chapter Thirty-Eight
  44. Chapter Thirty-Nine
  45. Chapter Forty
  46. Chapter Forty-One
  47. Chapter Forty-Two
  48. Chapter Forty-Three
  49. Chapter Forty-Four
  50. About the Author
  51. Back Cover

I’m escorted out of the chamber by Bastian. Shy’s at my side. We don’t speak as we head back to Elite Cain’s office. Once the doors are shut, I find father and son staring at me like I’ve grown two heads and tentacles.

“What?” I ask.

“That was…” Shy begins but doesn’t finish.

Bastian shakes his head.

I think that’s as close to approval as I’m going to get.

Chapter Forty-Four

Anora and the Stars

Mom says I’m still grounded, but she deducts time for attending the retreat over the weekend. I find I’m not really all that upset. Maybe it’s because things at home have been pretty stable since I returned from my horrific weekend. Maybe it’s because I prefer the company of books over my cell phone, or that my only friends happen to double as birds and can fly into my room at any point they wish, or that I’m going to be sneaking out my window most nights to patrol Rayon with Jacobi (once he recovers), Natalie, and Shy and to train with Mr. Val.

Granted, if I am ever caught, I’m probably grounded for infinity plus two, but I’ll take my chances. I have work to do. I’m going to climb up in this world that lives beneath the living, learn all there is to know about it. I’m going to gain allies and study my enemies. I’m going to learn to open the gates and reclaim my poppa’s coin.

By the time I’m through, no one—not Roth or Lennon or Influence—will have power over me.

For now, though, I need to make it through my return to school.

As Mom navigates the curved driveway toward Nacoma Knight, I realize this is it. Not many people get a chance at a fresh start, and this one is mine. If I don’t do it right, I’m screwed.

So I swallow my nerves and lean across the middle of the car to kiss Mom on the cheek.

“Thanks for the ride, Mom. I’ll see you after school!” I get out of the car and pause before closing the door. “I love you.”

Mom smiles. “I love you too.”

I head inside Emerson Hall to exchange books at my locker. An ache forms in my chest as I wander down the halls I once shared with Lily, Thane, and Lennon. Two of the three might have ended up as my enemies, but for a time, I thought they were my friends.

The news doesn’t report Thane’s death but instead calls it a disappearance. I asked Shy why, and he said his uncle wants it that way. The knowledge makes me uncomfortable, like he is expecting him to come back to life. His coin is with the Order in a vault.