Page 62 of The Heart Trials

I blink, realizing he’s talking to me. “No.” I haven’t exploited my friend’s trust to help people who I don’t even know.

“Do it soon. Who has made a match?”

“I like Jace,” Talia says. “I think I’m going to try him out.”

Rhythe nods. “It’s smart to try a few people to see who you have the best connection with. Leave him out to dry tomorrow, see how bad he wants you. Make him desperate.”

Talia agrees.

“And you?” he asks Lira.

“I’m hoping I can pry Finn out of his rut,” she says. “He wants to win, badly. It would be smart to partner with him. I can ditch him at the last minute.”

“What are we doing here?” I ask, not understanding. I assumed we’d be planning to have each other’s backs until we can’t anymore, but it’s obvious there is something deeper going on here.

“We’re making it to the Ascension Ceremony,” Rhythe says. “Whatever it takes.”

“And then what?”

“Then we rob the Benevolent blind.”

He wants me for my smuggling skills…that’s why he’s after me. My hands ball into fists as I slowly release a breath, keeping my mask in place.

“That Dorian guy is a threat,” Rhythe continues. “He’s already made a strong match, I suspect. He is best positioned to win this tournament so far. During the second trial, we are going to get rid of him.”

20

Ilay awake in a tent all night, thinking about Rhythe planning to get rid of Dorian during the second trial. I tossed and turned, irritated by the injustice of the two people here for real reasons being plotted against.

At daybreak, I drag myself, foggy-brained, out of my tent to the table, which has been replenished with food. Mae and Dorian are already awake, seated together, nibbling off of the same plate. Grainfolk are scattered, not like they were on the beach, organized and in a unit. They’re mixing with others, the lines blurring between districts.

Talia and Jace emerge from the same tent, and for some reason it makes my face heat. Their arms are wound around one another, and every few steps they stop and press their mouths together longer than seems needed for a kiss. Finn is eating alone. Orrick is eating too, but I’m not sure if the things on his plate are actually food. Several others are having hushed conversations. Some in groups, others in pairs.

Everyone is talking about the second trial, wondering how much time we have to prepare.

People are choosing their partner-interests over their district. Where does that leave me? I’m no closer to picking someone to betray. The minute Caelus and I get what we came for, that person will be dead. How do I choose who is worth living or dying? Choosing who is worthy enough to live makes me no different than the Benevolent.

This impossible choice will require choosing which regret to carry. And it feels like trying to draw a line in a world that’s erased them all.

I don’t see Caelus anywhere. I join the line, behind Kade. He doesn’t acknowledge me, and I couldn’t care less. He’s preoccupied making eyes at Lira, who is fishing out sweet breads from the pile.

“But what kinds of hot seasons are your favorite?” he asks her. “Because the summer months have all those bugs everywhere that get stuck in your clothes. They’re kind of a pain.”

“You think so?” There is mirth in Lira’s tone. A distinct difference from her mannerisms in the tent last night. She’s playing with Kade, stoking his interest so that she has a backup plan to Finn, I bet. But Kade isn’t being honest about why he is here, either. They deserve each other.

“I don’t mind the ones in summer,” she says, licking honey from her fingers. “They have little spots on their back and fly. It’s so cute.”

“I know you said you hate the cold but have you ever been to Sundew Hill in winter? There are these tiny bugs that come out at night and light up.”

Lira looks up from the table of treats at Kade for the first time. “They light up? Really?”

“Yep. We could go there sometime once we win this thing.”

“You’re very forward this morning, Kade. Things not working out with you and Axira? I saw you two talking.”

I accidentally knock over a pile of glazed rolls, contorting my body to see her face.

Kade scoffs. “I’m keeping my options open until I find the right one.” Him behaving as if I didn’t end our conversation shouldn’t bother me, but it does.