As Vladim moved to turn the locks, I heard Genya whisper. "You definitely owe me a kiss after all this, Don't think I won't hold you to it."
I laughed lightly. "We'll see."
"There is no seeing, you will, if I have to be the one to do it then so be...
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THE NEXT MORNING, I WOKE TO FIND THAT GENYA had already risen. She'd left me a pot of hot tea on a tray surrounded by apple blossoms. The rain had stopped, but the walls of the conservatory were covered in mist. I rubbed my sleeve against a pane of glass and looked out into the deep blue of early dawn. A deer was moving between the trees, head bent to the sweet grass.
I dressed slowly, drank my tea, and lingered by the reflecting pool where the lanterns had long since gone out. In a few hours, this place might be buried in darkness. I wanted to remember every detail. On a whim, I picked up a pen and flipped to the last page of a diary that had been left behind and wrote our names.
Freya Julikov Genya Safin
I wasn't sure why I did it. I just needed to say we had been there. I found the others packing up in the main hall. Genya waylaid me by the door with my coat in her hands. The olive wool was freshly pressed.
"You should look your best when you put the Darkling in the ground."
"I'll be sure to try," I said with a smile. "I'll try not to bleed all over it."
I took her hand in mine. "We will win this," I said. "One way or another." I placed Nikolai's ring in her palm. "Just in case all goes well."
She smirked at me. "Are you suggesting I propose?"
I shrugged. "Guess we'll have to wait and see."
We stepped outside, the Soldat Sol waited in rigid formation, rifles on their backs, canisters of inactive lumiya slung over their shoulders. The tattoos on their faces looked fierce in the dawn light. The Grisha wore roughspun. They might have been ordinary soldiers.
Harshaw had left Oncat curled up with Mischa, but now she sat in the parlor window, lazily grooming herself and watching us assemble. Tolya and Tamar had their golden sunburst pinned to their chests. Mal and Alina were still inside with Mischa.
They turned to look at me, smiling— Mal tapped the space where the pin would have gone, right over his heart. I nodded.
The deer had scattered. The orchard was empty as we moved through it, boots leaving deep marks on the soft earth. A half-hour later, we were standing at the shores of the Fold. I and Genya joined Alina with the other Etheralki: Zoya, Nadia, Adrik, and Harshaw. It felt somehow right that we should be the first to enter and that we would do it together.
The Squallers raised their arms, summoning current and dropping the pressure as Zoya had done back in the caves. My ears crackled as they layered the acoustic blanket. If it didn't hold, Alina and I were ready to summon light, and Harshaw was ready to summon fire to draw the Volcra back. We spread out in a line, and with measured steps, we entered the darkness of the Fold.
