Red Queen (Red Queen, #1)

by Victoria Aveyard

Then his fingers are under my chin, tipping my head up to meet his gaze. Gold flame flickers in his eyes, reflecting the heat beneath. “I’ll miss you, Mare.”

But maybe the prospect of going off to war has made Cal bold and reckless, things he never was before. He takes me by the hand, pulling me to him. He’s betraying his only brother. I’m betraying my cause, Maven, and myself, but I don’t want to stop. Anyone can betray anyone. His lips are on mine, hard and warm and pressing. The touch is electrifying, but not like I’m used to. This isn’t a spark of destruction but a spark of life. As much as I want to pull away, I just can’t do it. Cal is a cliff, and I throw myself over the edge, not bothering to think of what it could do to us both. One day he’ll realize I’m his enemy, and all this will be a far-gone memory. But not yet.

“I know my brother. If it comes down to it, to saving your life or saving his crown, we both know what he will choose,” Maven fires back. “He would never choose me.” My skin burns under Maven’s gaze, with the memory of one stolen kiss. It was him who saved me from Evangeline. Cal who saved me from escaping and bringing more pain upon myself. Cal who saved me from conscription. I’ve been too busy trying to save others to notice how much Cal saves me. How much he loves me. Suddenly it’s very hard to breathe. Maven shakes his head. “He will always choose you.”

“You almost did,” he murmurs back. “I almost chose you this morning.”

“I can save you.” The words make my skin scrawl. “Your father loved you, Maven. You didn’t see it, but he did.” “A lie.” “He loved you, and you killed him!” The words come faster, spilling like blood from a vein. “Your brother loved you, and you made him a murderer. I—I loved you. I trusted you. I needed you. And now I’m going to die for it.”

“So you choose him?” That’s all this ever was. Jealousy. Rivalry. All so shadow could defeat the flame. I have to throw my head back and laugh, feeling the eyes of the brothers on me. “Cal betrayed me, and I betrayed him. And you betrayed us both, in a thousand different ways.” The words are heavy as stone but right. So right. “I choose no one.”

I have three older brothers, so when I spit at Maven, my aim is perfect, hitting him square in the eye.

Many things led to this day, for all of us. A forgotten son, a vengeful mother, a brother with a long shadow, a strange mutation. Together, they’ve written a tragedy.

Behind me, almost in my ear, Arven laughs to himself. “Who has the advantage?” he sneers to himself, repeating his words from Training. My muscles ache and twitch, begging for it to be over. I just want to lie down, to admit defeat, to die. They called me a liar, a trickster, and they were right. I have one more trick left up my sleeve. Rhambos takes aim, setting his feet in the sand, and I know what I must do. He hurls his spear with such strength it seems to burn the air. I drop, throwing myself to the sand. A sickening squelch tells me my plan has worked and the scream of electricity surging back to life tells me I might win. Behind me, Arven collapses, a pipe speared through his middle. “I have the advantage,” I tell his corpse.