Ash Princess (Ash Princess Trilogy, #1)

by Laura Sebastian

I’m tempted to cling to him, to anyone, so I won’t have to be alone. But I’m always alone. I should be used to it by now, though I don’t think it’s the kind of thing a person ever grows used to.

Is it better to have your life ended by someone who hates you or someone who loves you?

Because I am not all right. I am a hurricane barely contained in skin.

The hope inside me is not smothered yet. It is dying, yes, with only a few embers left. But I’ve seen fires rekindled with less.

“We are not defined by the things we do in order to survive. We do not apologize for them,” she says quietly, eyes never leaving mine. “Maybe they have broken you, but you are a sharper weapon because of it. And it is time to strike.”

She is my friend, I realize. Not the same way Cress was, not the kind I enjoy light conversations with, not the kind I dance with or try on dresses with. I might not always like her, but she is here when I need her in a way Cress couldn’t be.

I understand, though. Girls like us have learned what trust gets you.

But that’s the trouble with ifs. Once they start, there is no stopping them.