The Mime Order (The Bone Season Book 2)

by Samantha Shannon

‘If I could choose anyone on Earth, it would still be you, Paige Mahoney.’

‘It must remain a secret until this conflict ends. It cannot be for ever, because we do not have that long.’ His voice was soft as shadow. ‘You are not beholden to the Guildhall. But if you still want me with you – if you will have me, despite the danger – then I want the same.’

I just know I want you with me.

‘If I fear anything, it is not that I want you,’ he said quietly. ‘Only that I might want you too much. And for too long.’

‘You can never want too much. That’s how they silence us,’ I said. ‘They told us we were lucky to be in a prison instead of the æther. Lucky to be murdered with nitrogen and not the noose. Lucky to be alive, even if we weren’t free. They told us to stop wanting more than what they gave us, because what they gave us was more than we deserved.’ I picked up my coat. ‘You’re not a prisoner any more, Arcturus.’

Some secrets are kept for their sanctity.

‘Hope is the lifeblood of revolution. Without it, we are nothing but ash, waiting for the wind to take us.’