The ​Crown of Gilded Bones (Blood and Ash, #3)

by Jennifer L. Armentrout

“How could you do this?” Momma demanded as I scooted to the edge of the cupboard. A…a man stood a few feet from her, cloaked in scary shadows. “I’m sorry.” “So am I.” Momma swung out, but the shadow man caught her arm. “Momma!” I screamed, and glass cracked. Her head jerked around. “Run. Run—” Glass shattered, and the night spilled into the kitchen, tumbling down the wall and hitting the floor. I froze, unable to move as the gray-skinned creatures rose, their sunken bodies and red-smeared mouths scaring me. They swarmed the kitchen, and I couldn’t see her. “Momma!” Bodies snapped in my direction. Mouths dropped open. Shrill howls ripped through the air. Bony, cold fingers pressed into my leg. I screamed as I scrambled back inside the cupboard— “Shit,” the dark man cursed, and a spray of something rotten hit my face. The thing let go of my leg. I started to twist away, but the shadow man reached inside the cupboard, grabbing my arm. “Gods, help me,” he muttered, yanking me out. Panicked, I pulled at his grip as those things came at him. He swept out an arm. I twisted, struggling. My foot slipped in the wetness. I turned sideways— Momma was there, her face streaked with red. She thrust that black spike into the center of the shadow man’s chest. He grunted out a bad word. His grip loosened and slipped away as he fell backward. “Run, Poppy,” Momma gasped. “Run.” I ran. I ran toward her— “Momma—” Claws caught my hair, scratched my skin, burning me like the time I’d reached for ...