Red Queen (Red Queen, #1)

by Victoria Aveyard

says. “I’m trying to tell you that I’m not the same as the rest of them. I think my life is worth yours, and I’ll give it gladly, if it means change.”

He is a prince and, worst of all, the queen’s son. I didn’t want to trust him before for this very reason, for the secrets he kept hidden. Or maybe this is what ...

Cal leaves them both behind, not bothering to watch as a skin healer appears to fix them up. He saved me, he brought me home, he broke the rules for me. And he’s a merciless soldier, the heir to a bloody throne. Cal’s blood might be silver, but his heart is black as burned skin. When his eyes trail to mine, I force myself to look away. Instead of letting his warmth, his strange kindness confuse me, I commit the inferno to memory. Cal is more dangerous than all of them put together. I cannot forget that. “Evangeline, Andros,” Arven clips, nodding at the pair of them. Andros deflates, almost annoyed at the prospect of fighting—and losing—to Evangeline, but dutifully trudges into the arena. To my surprise, Evangeline doesn’t budge. “No,” she says boldly, planting her feet. When Arven whirls to her, his voice rises above his usual whisper and it cuts like a razor. “I beg your pardon, Lady Samos?” She turns her black eyes on me, and her gaze is sharp as any knife. “I challenge Mareena Titanos.”

But I still have to do my duty, to smile and shake their hands and thank them for their brave service. Each word tastes bitter, until I have to duck away from the crowd to an alcove half hidden by plants. The noise of the crowd still rises with the midday sun, but I can breathe again. For a second, at least. “Everything okay?” Cal stands over me, looking worried but strangely relaxed. He likes being around soldiers; I suppose it’s his natural habitat. Even though I want to disappear, my spine straightens. “I’m not a fan of beauty pageants.” He frowns. “Mare, they’re going to the front. I’d think you of all people would want to give them a proper send-off.” The laugh escapes me like gunfire. “What part of my life makes you think I’d care about these brats going off to war like it’s some kind of vacation?” “Just because they’ve chosen to go doesn’t make them any less brave.” “Well, I hope they enjoy their barracks and supplies and reprieves and all the things my brothers were never given.” I doubt these willing soldiers will ever want for so much as a button. Even though he looks like he wants to yell at me, Cal swallows the urge. Now that I know what his temper is capable of, I’m surprised he can keep himself in check at all. “This is the first completely Silver legion going into the trenches,” he says evenly. “They’re going to fight with the Reds, dressed as Reds, serving with Reds. The Lakelanders won’t know who they are when they get to the Choke. And when the bombs fall...

But he’s leaving to fight, maybe to die. Shaking, I put my hand in his and let him pull me out of my room.

“I’m sure Sara could tell you about her, if they were best friends.” “Sara Skonos can’t speak, Mare.” “At all?” Cal continues slowly, in the level, calm voice his father uses. “She said things she shouldn’t have, terrible lies, and she was punished for it.” Horror bleeds through me. Can’t speak. “What did she say?” In a single heartbeat, Cal goes cold under my fingers. He draws back, stepping out of my arms as the music finally dies. With quick motions, he pockets the speaker, and there is nothing but our beating hearts to fill the silence. “I don’t want to talk about her anymore.” He breathes heavily. His eyes seem oddly bright, flickering between me and the windows full of moonlight.

I can feel myself falling. “Are you really going to go with the legion?” Even the words make me afraid. He barely nods. “A general’s place is with his men.” “A prince’s place is with his princess. With Evangeline,” I add hastily. Good one, Mare, my mind screams. The air around us thickens with heat, though Cal doesn’t move at all. “She’ll be all right, I think. She’s not exactly attached to me. I won’t miss her either.” Unable to meet his gaze, I focus on what’s right in front of me. Unfortunately, that happens to be his chest and a much-too-thin shirt. Above me, he takes a ragged breath. 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.” As much as I want to stand still, to stop time and let this moment last forever, I know it’s not possible. Whatever I might feel or think, Cal is not the prince I’m promised to. More important, he’s on the wrong side. He’s my enemy. Cal is forbidden. So with hesitant, reluctant steps, I back away, out of his grasp and out of the circle of warmth I’ve gotten so used to. “I can’t,” is all I can manage, though I know my eyes betray me. Even now I can feel tears of anger and regret, tears I swore not to cry. 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’...

Once, I was afraid of these walls, frightened by such beauty. But I see the cracks now. It’s like the day of the bombing, when I realized Silvers were not invincible. Then it was an explosion—now a few bullets have shattered diamondglass, revealing fear and paranoia beneath. Silvers fleeing from Reds—lions running from mice. The king and queen oppose each other, the court has their own alliances, and Cal—the perfect prince, the good soldier—is a torturous, terrible enemy. Anyone can betray anyone.

Maven stares after his fleeing brother. “He does not like to lose. And”—he lowers his voice, now so close to me I can see the tiny flecks of silver in his eyes—“neither do I. I won’t lose you, Mare. I won’t.” “You’ll never lose me.” Another lie, and we both know it.

We watch in silence as River Row falls behind us and another forest rises up on the banks. The trees are strange, very tall with black bark and dark red leaves. It is deathly quiet, as no forest should be. Not even birdsong breaks the silence, and overhead, the sky darkens, but not from the waning afternoon light. Black clouds gather, hovering over the trees like a thick blanket. “And what’s this?” Even my voice sounds muffled, and I’m suddenly glad for the glass casing over the deck. To my surprise the others have gone, leaving us alone to watch the gloom settle. Maven glances at the forest, face pulled in distaste. “Barrier trees. They keep the pollution from traveling farther upriver. The Welle greenwardens made them years ago.” Choppy brown waves foam against the boat, leaving a film of black grime on the gleaming steel hull. The world takes on a strange tint, like I’m looking through dirty glass. The low-lying clouds aren’t clouds at all but smoke pouring from a thousand chimneys, obscuring the sky. Gone are the trees and the grass—this is a land of ash and decay. “Gray Town,” Maven murmurs. Factories stretch out as far as I can see, dirty and massive and humming with electricity. It hits me like a fist, almost knocking me off my feet. My heart tries to keep up with the unearthly pulse and I have to sit down, feeling my blood race. I thought my world was wrong, that my life was unfair. But I could never even dream of a place like Gray Town. Power stations glow in the ...

I flip open the cover, expecting to find some new histories, but instead, handwritten words stare up at me from the title page. Red and silver. It’s in Julian’s unmistakable swirling scrawl. The sight line of my room’s cameras beat into my back, reminding me I am not alone. Julian knew that too. Brilliant Julian. The book looks normal, a dull study of relics found in Delphie, but hidden among the words, in the same type, is a secret worth telling. It takes me many minutes to find every added line and I’m quietly grateful I woke up so early. Finally I have them all, and I seem to have forgotten how to breathe. Dane Davidson, Red soldier, Storm Legion, killed on routine patrol, body never recovered. August 1, 296 NE. Jane Barbaro, Red soldier, Storm Legion, killed by friendly fire, body cremated. November 19, 297 NE. Pace Gardner, Red soldier, Storm Legion, executed for insubordination, body misplaced. June 4, 300 NE. There are more names, stretching over the last twenty years, all of them cremated or their bodies lost or “misplaced.” How anyone can misplace an executed man, I don’t know. The name at the end of the list makes my eyes water. Shade Barrow, Red soldier, Storm Legion, executed for desertion, body cremated. July 27, 320 NE. Julian’s own words follow my brother’s name, and I feel like he’s next to me again, slowly and calmly teaching his lesson. According to military law, all Red soldiers are to be buried in the cemeteries of the Choke. Executed soldiers have no b...

same in other samples. I have included them all here, for you to pass on. I know I don’t need to tell you the importance of this list, of what it could mean to you and the rest of this world. Pass it on to someone you trust, find the others, protect them, train them, for it is only a matter of time before someone less friendly discovers what I have—and hunts them down. His words end there, followed by a list that makes my fingers tremble. There are names and locations, so many of them, all waiting to be found. All waiting to fight. My mind feels like it’s on fire. Others. More. Julian’s words swim across my eyes, searing into my soul. Stronger than both.

Maven brushes a hand over my dust map, wiping away West Archeon with a few strokes of his fingers. “Legions are loyal to their generals. And I happen to know a girl who knows a general very well.” When his eyes meet mine, all his fire is gone, replaced now by bitter cold. He smiles tightly. “You’re talking about Cal.” The soldier. The general. The prince. His father’s son. Again I think of Julian, of the uncle Cal would kill for his twisted version of justice. Cal would never betray his country, not for anything. When Maven answers, it’s matter-of-fact. “We give him a hard choice.”

I can feel Kilorn’s eyes on my face, weighing my reaction, and it’s almost too much pressure to bear. “Cal will never turn his back on his crown, on your father.” “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.” Farley scoffs. “You want me to pin my entire operation, the entire revolution, on some teenaged love story? I can’t believe this.” Across the table, a strange look crosses Kilorn’s face. When Farley turns to him, looking for some kind of support, she finds none. “I can,” he whispers, his eyes never leaving my face.

“Kilorn wanted you to have this,” she adds, holding out her hand. In it is a tiny green stone, the color of his eyes. An earring. “He said you’d know what it means.” I choke on my words, feeling a great surge of emotion. Nodding, I take the earring from her and raise it to the others. Bree, Tramy, Shade—I know each stone and what they mean. Kilorn

is a warrior now. And he wants me to remember him as he was. Laughing, teasing me, sniffing around like a lost puppy. I will never forget that.

The sharp metal stings, drawing blood. When I pull my hand back from my ear, I can see the crimson stain on m...

The sound

In the stories, the old fairy tales, a hero comes. But all my heroes are gone or dead. No one is coming for me.

Shade was always the handsome one, and death has not changed that.

i knew it lol.

I will kill him.