Servant of Earth (The Shards of Magic, #1)

by Sarah Hawley

That was the way of some men. Their tongues wagged in an imitation of love while their fists dealt pain. I stroked the dagger’s outline at my thigh, thinking about what it might be like to live in a world where women didn’t have to depend on people they feared for safety.

“If you give too much of yourself down here,” he continued in an odd tone, looking down at me intently, “you risk losing everything. Because no one will ever return that loyalty. You’ll give and give and end up hollow…or dead. Remember that.”

Life can be so painful. During the worst moments, all you can do is focus on one second at a time. You focus on staying alive. You make it your only goal, and you forget everything before or after.”