{"product_id":"a-torch-against-the-night-isbn-9781101998878","title":"A Torch Against the Night","description":"\u003cb\u003e\u003cb\u003eBook two in the \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling series • One of \u003ci\u003eTime Magazine\u003c\/i\u003e’s 100 Best Fantasy Books of All Time • A\u003ci\u003e USA Today \u003c\/i\u003ebestseller\u003cbr\u003e \u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003c\/i\u003e“\u003cb\u003eFresh and exciting\u003c\/b\u003e...Tahir has shown a remarkable talent for penning complex villains.”\u003ci\u003e—\u003c\/i\u003eA.V. Club\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe beloved and bestselling fantasy series that “glows, burns, and smolders.” (\u003ci\u003eHuffington Post\u003c\/i\u003e). \u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cb\u003e \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eElias and Laia are running for their lives.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003eAfter the events of the Fourth Trial, Martial soldiers hunt the two fugitives as they flee the city of Serra and undertake a perilous journey through the heart of the Empire.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e Laia is determined to break into Kauf—the Empire’s most secure and dangerous prison—to save her brother, who is the key to the Scholars' survival. And Elias is determined to help Laia succeed, even if it means giving up his last chance at freedom. \u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003eBut dark forces, human and otherworldly, work against Laia and Elias. The pair must fight every step of the way to outsmart their enemies: the bloodthirsty Emperor Marcus, the merciless Commandant, the sadistic Warden of Kauf, and, most heartbreaking of all, Helene—Elias’s former friend and the Empire’s newest Blood Shrike. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBound to Marcus's will, Helene faces a torturous mission of her own—one that might destroy her: find the traitor Elias Veturius and the Scholar slave who helped him escape...and kill them both.\u003cb\u003e\u003cb\u003eNamed one of the best books of the year by: \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/b\u003eTIME\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eEntertainment Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cbr\u003e Buzzfeed\u003cbr\u003ePopSugar\u003cbr\u003eBustle\u003cbr\u003ePaste Magazine\u003cbr\u003ePopCrush\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ePraise for \u003ci\u003eA Torch Against the Night:\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“The stakes here are high and the plot runs like a well-oiled machine, ratcheting up the tension with every chapter.” —\u003cb\u003eNPR.org\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e“An adrenaline rush till the very last page.” —\u003cb\u003eBuzzfeed\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “The sequel to Tahir’s bestselling smash \u003ci\u003eAn Ember in the Ashes\u003c\/i\u003e finally comes out in August, and let me tell you, it does not disappoint.” —\u003cb\u003eBook Riot\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “\u003ci\u003eA Torch Against the Night\u003c\/i\u003e is an unabashed page-turner that scarcely ever pauses for breath.” \u003cb\u003e—\u003ci\u003eThe Christian Science Monitor\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Fast-paced, exciting and full of adrenaline, \u003ci\u003eA Torch Against The Night \u003c\/i\u003eis everything fans of Tahir’s debut could possibly anticipate in a sequel.” \u003cb\u003e—\u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe Bucks County Courier Times\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“Thrilling…Tahir meticulously plots these novels, ramping up the suspense and including plenty of surprises.” —\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe Buffalo News\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“Delivers in every way...The stakes have never been higher, and the tension is acutely felt as Elias and Laia run for their lives.” \u003cb\u003e—USA Today’s Happy Ever After blog\u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003c\/i\u003e“At last, it’s here...It’s as heartbreaking as it is action-packed, delivering a worthy second installment in Tahir’s bestselling series.”\u003cb\u003e —Paste\u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Tahir proves to be a master of suspense and a canny practitioner of the cliffhanger, riveting readers’ attention throughout.…[An] action-packed, breathlessly paced story.” —\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003e, starred review\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"This sequel has a darker tone and even higher stakes than its predecessor, setting the stage for a thrilling conclusion.\" —\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e, starred review\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\"Excellent.\" \u003cb\u003e—Kirkus Reviews\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"The rare sequel that improves on the original...\u003ci\u003eunputdownable\u003c\/i\u003e.\" —\u003cb\u003eCommon Sense Media (Five Stars)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ePraise for \u003ci\u003eAn Ember in the Ashes\u003c\/i\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e“This novel is a harrowing, haunting reminder of what it means to be human — and how hope might be kindled in the midst of oppression and fear.” —\u003cb\u003eThe Washington Post\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“An Ember in the Ashes could launch Sabaa Tahir into JK Rowling territory…It has the addictive quality of The Hunger Games combined with the fantasy of Harry Potter and the brutality of Game of Thrones.”—\u003cb\u003ePublic Radio International\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"An Ember in the Ashes glows, burns, and smolders—as beautiful and radiant as it is searing.\"\u003cb\u003e—Huffington Post \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“[An Ember in the Ashes] thrusts its readers into a world marred by violence and oppression, yet does so with simple prose that can offer moments of loveliness in its clarity. This complexity makes Ember a worthy novel—and one as brave as its characters.” \u003cb\u003e—The New York Times Book Review \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Sabaa Tahir spins a captivating, heart-pounding fantasy.”\u003cb\u003e —Us Weekly\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“An Ember in the Ashes mixes The Hunger Games with Game of Thrones...and adds a dash of Romeo and Juliet.” \u003cb\u003e—The Hollywood Reporter\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“\u003cb\u003eBlew me away...\u003c\/b\u003eThis book is dark, complex, vivid, and romantic—\u003cb\u003eexpect to be completely transported.\u003c\/b\u003e” —\u003cb\u003eMTV.com\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Fast-paced, well-structured and \u003cb\u003efull of twists and turns\u003c\/b\u003e, An Ember in the Ashes is an evocative debut that has left me invested in knowing what happens next.” —\u003cb\u003eNPR\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e“Once you get caught up in the story, \u003cb\u003eit’s addictive, and there’s no way you can put it down\u003c\/b\u003e before you figure out what happens to the characters you have fallen for over the course of the 400 some-odd pages. So I didn’t.” —\u003cb\u003eBustle \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“\u003cb\u003eThis epic fantasy set in the Martial Empire has it all\u003c\/b\u003e: danger and violence, secrets and lies, strong characters and forbidden romance and a touch of the supernatural.” —\u003cb\u003eThe Atlanta Journal-Constitution \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“A setting inspired by ancient Rome; a fierce battle for freedom in the face of tyranny; and \u003cb\u003ea villain who makes Cersei Lannister and Dolores Umbridge look like a pair of pathetic amateurs\u003c\/b\u003e...An Ember in the Ashes is at the\u003cb\u003e top of our must-read list\u003c\/b\u003e for 2015.” —\u003cb\u003eMTV.com\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e“Be prepared to be blown away\u003c\/b\u003e by this fantasy-thriller-adventure.” —\u003cb\u003eGirls’ Life\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“An Ember in the Ashes is a book that's \u003cb\u003etoo good to put down\u003c\/b\u003e.” —\u003cb\u003eRedEye\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e“\u003cb\u003ePerfect for fans of Maggie Stiefvater's The Scorpio Races or Sarah Maas's Throne of Glass series\u003c\/b\u003e…The book is already set to be a film, which will be EPIC!” —\u003cb\u003eTeenVogue.com\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e* \u003c\/b\u003e“Tahir’s \u003cb\u003edeft, polished debut \u003c\/b\u003ealternates between two very different perspectives on the same brutal world, deepening both in the contrast. In \u003cb\u003ea tale brimming with political intrigue and haunted by supernatural forces\u003c\/b\u003e, the true tension comes from watching Elias and Laia struggle to decide where their loyalties lie.” —\u003cb\u003ePublishers Weekly, starred review\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e“Tahir’s world-building is wonderfully detailed and the setting is an unusual one for fantasy novels. All of her characters, even minor ones, are fully realized....\u003cb\u003eFor fans of Game of Thrones and of Melina Marchetta’s Finnikin of the Rock\u003c\/b\u003e.” —\u003cb\u003eSchool Library Journal\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e“An original, well-constructed fantasy world...\u003cb\u003etruly engaging\u003c\/b\u003e.” —\u003cb\u003eKirkus Reviews \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e“An \u003cb\u003eepic fantasy debut\u003c\/b\u003e about an orphan fighting for her family and a soldier fighting for his freedom. It’s a story that’s literally burning to be told.” —\u003cb\u003eHypable.com\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“First-time novelist Tahir has written an ambitious sword-and-sand adventure story that is notable for its suspense and scope.” —\u003cb\u003eBooklist \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e“Here's \u003cb\u003eone of the year's most anticipated\u003c\/b\u003e young-adult debuts.” —\u003cb\u003eio9.com\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“\u003cb\u003eI was so engrossed with this book that I missed a connecting flight.\u003c\/b\u003e If that doesn’t convince you to read An Ember in the Ashes, I don’t know what will. \u003cb\u003eAn explosive, heartbreaking, epic debut\u003c\/b\u003e that will keep you glued to the pages. I hope the world’s ready for Sabaa Tahir.” —\u003cb\u003eMarie Lu, New York Times bestselling author of Legend\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e“With An Ember in the Ashes, Sabaa Tahir shows us light in the darkness, hope in a world of despair, and the human spirit reaching for greatness in difficult times.” —\u003cb\u003e#1 New York Times bestselling author Brandon Sanderson\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e“An Ember in the Ashes is \u003cb\u003ea spectacular page turner\u003c\/b\u003e that asks readers to consider how far they’d go to save the ones they love. \u003cb\u003eSabaa Tahir is the next superstar in young adult fiction\u003c\/b\u003e and her debut is as cinematic as Gladiator and as high-stakes as Game of Thrones.”—\u003cb\u003eHolly Goldberg Sloan, New York Times bestselling author of Counting by 7s\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e“\u003cb\u003eA heart-pounding story of love and loss\u003c\/b\u003e, with the most original world-building I’ve read all year. Deeply felt and deeply moving, \u003cb\u003eI could not put it down\u003c\/b\u003e.” —\u003cb\u003eMargaret Stohl, New York Times bestselling co-author of Beautiful Creatures\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e“This electric debut is a \u003cb\u003epulse-pounding action-packed Romeo and Juliet \u003c\/b\u003estory in a richly imagined world with a great twist and heroic characters you’ll root for and won’t stop thinking about.” —\u003cb\u003eMelissa de la Cruz, New York Times bestselling author of Frozen and The Ring and the Crown\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eSABAA TAHIR\u003c\/b\u003e is a former newspaper editor who grew up in California’s Mojave Desert at her family’s eighteen-room motel. There, she spent her time devouring fantasy novels, listening to thunderous indie rock, and playing guitar and piano badly. Her #1 \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling An Ember in the Ashes series has been translated into more than thirty-five languages, and the first book in the series was named one of \u003ci\u003eTIME\u003c\/i\u003e’s 100 Best Young Adult Books of All Time. Tahir’s most recent novel, \u003ci\u003eAll My Rage\u003c\/i\u003e, won the National Book Award for Young People’s Literature, the Michael L. Printz Award, the \u003ci\u003eBoston Globe-Horn Book\u003c\/i\u003e Award for Fiction and Poetry, and was an instant \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestseller.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eVisit Sabaa online at SabaaTahir.com and follow her on Instagram @SabaaTahir and TikTok @SabaaTahirAuthor.\u003cb\u003eI: Laia\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003e How did they find us so fast?\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Behind me, the catacombs echo with angry shouts and the screech of metal. My eyes dart to the grinning skulls lining the walls. I think I hear the voices of the dead.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003e Be swift, be fleet, \u003c\/i\u003ethey seem to hiss\u003ci\u003e. Unless you wish to join our ranks.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Faster, Laia,” my guide says. His armor flashes as he hastens ahead of me through the catacombs. “We’ll lose them if we’re quick. I know an escape tunnel that leads out of the city. Once we’re there, we’re safe.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e We hear a scrape behind us, and my guide’s pale eyes flick past my shoul­der. His hand is a gold-brown blur as it flies to the hilt of a scim slung across his back.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e A simple movement full of menace. A reminder that he is not just my guide. He is Elias Veturius, heir to one of the Empire’s finest families. He is a former Mask—an elite soldier of the Martial Empire. And he is my ally—the only person who can help me save my brother, Darin, from a notorious Martial prison.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e In one step, Elias is beside me. In another, he is in front, moving with un­natural grace for someone so big. Together, we peer down the tunnel we just passed through. My pulse thuds in my ears. Any elation I felt at destroying Blackcliff Academy or rescuing Elias from execution vanishes. The Empire hunts us. If it catches us, we die.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Sweat soaks through my shirt, but despite the rank heat of the tunnels, a chill runs across my skin and the hairs on the back of my neck rise. I think I hear a growl, like that of some sly, hungry creature.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003e Hurry\u003c\/i\u003e, my instincts scream at me. \u003ci\u003eGet out of here.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Elias,” I whisper, but he brushes a finger against my lips—\u003ci\u003eshh\u003c\/i\u003e—and tugs a knife free from the half dozen strapped across his chest.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e I pull a dagger from my belt and try to hear beyond the clicking of tun­nel tarantulas and my own breathing. The prickling sense of being watched fades—replaced by something worse: the smell of pitch and flame; the rise and fall of voices drawing near.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Empire soldiers.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Elias touches my shoulder and points to his feet, then mine. \u003ci\u003eStep where I step\u003c\/i\u003e. So carefully that I fear to breathe, I mimic him as he turns and heads swiftly away from the voices.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e We reach a fork in the tunnel and veer right. Elias nods to a deep, shoulder-high hole in the wall, hollow but for a stone coffin turned on its side.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “In,” he whispers, “all the way to the back.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e I slide into the crypt, suppressing a shudder at the loud crrrk of a resident tarantula. A scim that Darin forged hangs across my back, and its hilt clanks loudly against the stone. \u003ci\u003eStop fidgeting, Laia—no matter what’s crawling around in here.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Elias ducks into the crypt after me, his height forcing him into a half crouch. In the tight space, our arms brush, and he draws a sharp breath. But when I look up, his face is angled toward the tunnel.\u003cbr\u003e Even in the dim light, the gray of his eyes and the sharp lines of his jaw are striking. I feel a jolt low in my stomach—I’m not used to his face. Only an hour ago, as we escaped the destruction I wrought at Blackcliff, his fea­tures were hidden by a silver mask.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e He tilts his head, listening as the soldiers close in. They walk quickly, their voices echoing off the walls of the catacombs like the clipped calls of raptor birds. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “—probably went south. If he had half a brain, anyway.” \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “If he had half a brain,” a second soldier says, “he’d have passed the Fourth Trial, and we wouldn’t be stuck with Plebeian scum as Emperor.” \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The soldiers enter our tunnel, and one pokes his lantern into the crypt across from ours. “Bleeding hells.” He recoils quickly at the sight of whatever lurks within. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Our crypt is next. My belly twists, my hand shakes on my dagger. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Beside me, Elias releases another blade from its sheath. His shoulders are relaxed, his hands loose around the knives. But when I catch sight of his face—brows furrowed, jaw tight—my heart clenches. He meets my gaze, and for a breath, I see his anguish. He does not wish to deliver death to these men. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e But if they see us, they will alert the other guards down here, and we’ll be neck-deep in Empire soldiers. I squeeze Elias’s forearm. He slides his hood over his head and pulls a black kerchief up to hide his face. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The soldier approaches, his footsteps heavy. I can smell him—sweat and iron and dirt. Elias’s grip on his knives tightens. His body is coiled like a wild­cat waiting to strike. I clamp a hand onto my armlet—a gift from my mother. Beneath my fingers, the armlet’s familiar pattern is a balm. \u003cbr\u003e The soldier reaches the edge of the crypt. He lifts his lantern— \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Suddenly, further down the tunnel, a thud echoes. The soldiers spin, draw steel, and hurry to investigate. In seconds, the light from their lantern fades, the sound of their footsteps fainter and fainter. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Elias releases a pent breath. “Come on,” he says. “If that patrol was sweep­ing the area, there will be more. We need to get to the escape passage.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e We emerge from the crypt, and a tremor rumbles through the tunnels, shaking dust loose and sending bones and skulls clattering to the ground. I stumble, and Elias grabs my shoulder, backing me into the wall and flat­tening himself beside me. The crypt remains intact, but the ceiling of the tunnel cracks ominously.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “What in the skies was that?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “It felt like a land tremor.” Elias takes a step away from the wall and eyes the ceiling. “Except Serra doesn’t have land tremors.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e We cut through the catacombs with new urgency. With every step I expect to hear another patrol, to see torches in the distance.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e When Elias stops, it is so sudden that I barrel into his broad back. We’ve entered a circular burial chamber with a low, domed ceiling. Two tunnels branch out ahead of us. Torches flicker in one, almost too far away to make out. Crypts pock the chamber walls, each guarded by a stone statue of an armored man. Beneath their helmets, skulls glare out at us. I shiver, stepping closer to Elias.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e But he does not look at the crypts, or the tunnels, or the distant torches.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e He stares at the little girl in the center of the chamber.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e She wears tattered clothing and her hand is pressed to a leaking wound in her side. Her fine features mark her as a Scholar, but when I try to see her eyes, she drops her head, dark hair falling into her face. \u003ci\u003ePoor thing\u003c\/i\u003e. Tears mark a path down her dirt-streaked cheeks.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Ten hells, it’s getting crowded down here,” Elias mutters. He takes a step toward the girl, hands out, as if dealing with a scared animal. “You shouldn’t be here, love.” His voice is gentle. “Are you alone?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e She lets out a tiny sob. “Help me,” she whispers.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Let me see that cut. I can bandage it.” Elias drops to one knee so he’s at her level, the way my grandfather did with his youngest patients. She shies away from him and looks toward me. \u003cbr\u003e I step forward, my instincts urging caution. The girl watches. “Can you tell me your name, little one?” I ask. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Help me,” she repeats. Something about the way she avoids my eyes makes my skin prickle. But then, she’s been ill-treated—likely by the Empire— and now she faces a Martial who is armed to the roots of his hair. She must be terrified. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The girl inches back, and I glance at the torch-lit tunnel. Torches mean we’re in Empire territory. It’s only a matter of time before soldiers happen by. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Elias.” I nod at the torches. “We do not have time. The soldiers—” \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “We can’t just leave her.” His guilt is plain as day. The deaths of his friends days ago in the Third Trial weigh on him; he doesn’t wish to cause another. And we will, if we leave the girl here alone to die of her wounds. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Do you have family in the city?” Elias asks her. “Do you need—” \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Silver.” She tilts her head. “I need silver.” \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Elias’s eyebrows shoot up. I cannot blame him. It is not what I expected either. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Silver?” I say. “We don’t—” \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Silver.” She shuffles sideways like a crab. I think I see the too-quick flash of an eye through her limp hair. \u003ci\u003eStrange\u003c\/i\u003e. “Coins. A weapon. Jewelry.” \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e She glances at my neck, my ears, my wrists. With that look, she gives herself away. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e I stare at the tar-black orbs where her eyes should be, and scrabble for my dagger. But Elias is already in front of me, scims glimmering in his hands. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Back away,” he snarls at the girl, every inch a Mask. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Help me.” The girl lets her hair fall into her face once more and puts her hands behind her back, a twisted caricature of a wheedling child. “Help.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e At my clear disgust, her lips curl in a sneer that looks obscene on her otherwise sweet face. She growls—the guttural sound I heard earlier. \u003ci\u003eThis \u003c\/i\u003eis what I sensed watching us. \u003ci\u003eThis \u003c\/i\u003eis the presence I felt in the tunnels.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “I know you have silver.” A rabid hunger underlies the creature’s little-girl voice. “Give it to me. I \u003ci\u003eneed\u003c\/i\u003e it.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Get away from us,” Elias says. “Before I take off your head.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The girl—or whatever it is—ignores Elias and fixes her eyes on me. “You don’t need it, little human. I’ll give you something in return. Something wonderful.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “What \u003ci\u003eare\u003c\/i\u003e you?” I whisper.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e She whips her arms out, her hands gleaming with a strange viridescence. Elias flies toward her, but she evades him and fastens her fingers on my wrist. I scream, and my arm glows for less than a second before she is flung back­ward, howling, clutching her hand as if it is on fire. Elias pulls me to my feet from the dirt where I am sprawled, pitching a dagger at the girl at the same time. She dodges it, still shrieking.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Tricky girl!” She darts away as Elias lunges for her again, her eyes only for me. “Sly one! You ask what am I, but what are \u003ci\u003eyou\u003c\/i\u003e?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Elias swings at her, sliding one of his scims across her neck. He’s not fast enough.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Murderer!” She whirls on him. “Killer! Death himself! Reaper walking! If your sins were blood, child, you would drown in a river of your own making.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Elias reels back, shock etched into his eyes. Light flickers in the tunnel. Three torches bob swiftly toward us.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Soldiers coming.” The creature whirls to face me. “I’ll kill them for you, honey-eyed girl. Lay their throats open. I already led away the others following you, back in the tunnel. I’ll do it again. If you give me your silver. He wants it. He’ll reward us if we bring it to him.” \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003e Who in the skies is he\u003c\/i\u003e? I don’t ask, only bring up my dagger in response. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Stupid human!” The girl clenches her fists. “He’ll get it from you. He’ll find a way.” She turns toward the tunnel. “Elias Veturius!” I flinch. Her scream is so loud they probably heard her in Antium. “Elias Vetu—” \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Her words die as Elias’s scim rips through her heart. “\u003ci\u003eEfrit, efrit of the cave\u003c\/i\u003e,” he says. Her body slides off the weapon and lands with a solid thump, like a boulder falling. “\u003ci\u003eLikes the dark but fears the blade.\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Old rhyme.” He sheathes his scim. “Never realized how handy it was until recently.” \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Elias grabs my hand, and we bolt into the unlit tunnel. Maybe through some miracle, the soldiers didn’t hear the girl. Maybe they didn’t see us. \u003ci\u003eMaybe, maybe— \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e No such luck. I hear a shout and the thunder of bootsteps behind us.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003eII: Elias\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Three auxes and four legionnaires, fifteen yards behind us. As I race ahead, I whip my head around to gauge their progress. Make that six auxes, five legionnaires, and twelve yards.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e More of the Empire’s soldiers will pour into the catacombs with every second that passes. By now, a runner has carried the message to neighboring patrols, and the drums will spread the alert throughout Serra: \u003ci\u003eElias Veturius spotted in the tunnels. All squads respond.\u003c\/i\u003e The soldiers don’t need to be sure of my identity; they will hunt us down regardless.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e I take a sharp left down a side tunnel, pulling Laia with me, my mind careening from thought to thought. \u003ci\u003eShake them off quickly, while you still can. Otherwise . . .\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003e No\u003c\/i\u003e, the Mask within hisses. \u003ci\u003eStop and kill them. Only eleven of them. Easy. Could do it with your eyes closed.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e I should have killed the efrit in the burial chamber straightaway. Helene would scoff if she knew I’d tried to help the creature instead of recognizing it for what it was.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003e Helene\u003c\/i\u003e. I’d bet my blades she’s in an interrogation room by now. Marcus—or Emperor Marcus, as he’s now called—ordered her to execute me. She failed. Worse, she was my closest confidante for fourteen years. Neither of those sins will come without cost—not now that Marcus possesses absolute power.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e She will suffer at his hands. Because of me. I hear the efrit again. \u003ci\u003eReaper walking\u003c\/i\u003e!\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Memories of the Third Trial jolt through my head. Tristas dying upon Dex’s sword. Demetrius falling. Leander falling.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e A shout from ahead returns me to myself. \u003ci\u003eThe field of battle is my temple\u003c\/i\u003e. My grandfather’s old mantra comes back to me when I need it most. \u003ci\u003eThe swordpoint is my priest. The dance of death is my prayer. The killing blow is my release. \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Beside me, Laia pants, her body dragging. She is slowing me down. \u003ci\u003eYou could leave her\u003c\/i\u003e, an insidious voice whispers. \u003ci\u003eYou’d move faster on your own\u003c\/i\u003e. I crush the voice. Besides the obvious fact that I promised to help her in exchange for my freedom, I know that she’ll do anything to get to Kauf Prison—to her brother—including trying to make her way there alone. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e In which case, she’d die. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Faster, Laia,” I say. “They’re too close.” She surges forward. Walls of skulls, bones, crypts, and spiderwebs fade away on either side of us. We’re far south of where we should be. We’ve long since passed the escape tunnel in which I hid weeks’ worth of supplies. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The catacombs rumble and shake, knocking both of us down. The stench of fire and death filters through a sewer grate directly above us. Moments later, an explosion rips through the air. I don’t bother considering what it could be. All that matters is that the soldiers behind us have slowed, as wary of the unstable tunnels as we are. I use the opportunity to put another few dozen yards between us. I cut right into a side tunnel and then retreat into the deep shadow of a half-crumbled alcove. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Will they find us, do you think?” Laia whispers. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Hopefully no—” \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Light flares from the direction we were headed, and I hear the staccato clomp of boots. Two soldiers turn into the tunnel, their torches illuminating us clearly. They halt for a second, bewildered, perhaps, by the presence of Laia, by my lack of a mask. Then they spot my armor and scims, and one of them releases a piercing whistle that will draw in every soldier who can hear it.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e My body takes over. Before either of the soldiers can unsheathe their swords, I’ve impaled throwing knives into the soft flesh of their throats. They drop silently, their torches sputtering on the damp catacomb floor.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Laia emerges from the alcove, her hand over her mouth. “E-Elias—”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e I lunge back to the alcove, pulling her with me and loosening my scims in their scabbards. I have four throwing knives left. \u003ci\u003eNot enough.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “I’ll take out as many as I can,” I say. “Stay out of the way. No matter how bad it looks, don’t interfere, don’t try to help.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The last word leaves my lips as the soldiers who were following us come into view from the tunnel to our left. Five yards away. Four. In my mind, the knives have already flown, already found their marks. I burst from the alcove and let them loose. The first four legionnaires go down quietly, one after the other, as easy as scything grain. The fifth drops with a sweep of my scim. Warm blood sprays, and I feel my bile rising.\u003ci\u003e Don’t think. Don’t dwell. Just clear the way.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Six auxes appear behind the first five. One jumps onto my back, and I dis­patch him with an elbow to his face. A moment later, another soldier rushes me. When he gets a knee to the teeth, he howls and claws at his broken nose and bloody mouth. \u003ci\u003eSpin, kick, sidestep, strike.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Behind me, Laia screams. An aux hauls her out of the alcove by her neck and holds a knife to her throat. His leer turns into a howl. Laia’s shoved a dagger into his side. She yanks it out, and he staggers away.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e I turn on the last three soldiers. They flee.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e In seconds, I collect my knives. Laia’s whole body shakes as she takes in the carnage around us: Seven dead. Three injured, moaning and trying to rise.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e When she looks at me, her eyes grow round in shock at my bloodied scims and armor. Shame floods me, so potent that I wish I could sink into the ground. She sees me now, down to the wretched truth at my core. \u003ci\u003eMurderer! Death himself! \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Laia—” I begin, but a low groan rolls down the tunnel, and the ground trembles. Through the sewer grates I hear screams, shouts, and the deafening reverberation of an enormous explosion. \u003cbr\u003e “What in the hells—” \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “It’s the Scholar Resistance,” Laia shouts over the noise. “They’re revolting!” \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e I don’t get to ask how she happens to know this fascinating tidbit, because at that moment, telltale silver flashes from the tunnel to our left. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Skies, Elias!” Laia’s voice is choked, her eyes wide. One of the Masks approaching is enormous, older than me by a dozen years and unfamiliar. The other is a small, almost diminutive figure. The calmness of her masked face belies the chilling rage that emanates from her. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e My mother. The Commandant. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Boots thunder from our right as whistles draw even more soldiers. \u003ci\u003eTrapped. \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The tunnel groans again. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Get behind me,” I snap at Laia. She doesn’t hear. “Laia, damn it, get— \u003ci\u003eooof—\u003c\/i\u003e” \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Laia dives straight into my stomach, a graceless, desperate leap so unex­pected that I topple back into one of the wall crypts. I punch straight through the thick cobwebbing over the crypt and land on my back atop a stone coffin. Laia’s half on top of me, half wedged between the coffin and the crypt wall. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The combination of cobwebs, crypt, and warm girl throws me, and I’m barely even capable of stuttering, “Are you cra—” \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003e BOOM\u003c\/i\u003e. The ceiling of the tunnel we were just standing in collapses all at once, a thunderous rumble intensified by the roar of explosions from the city. I flip Laia under me, my arms on either side of her head to shield her from the blast. But it is the crypt that saves us. We cough from the wave of dust unleashed by the explosions, and I’m keenly aware that if not for Laia’s quick thinking, we’d both be dead.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The rumbling stops, and sunlight cuts through the dust. Screams echo from the city. Carefully, I lift myself away from Laia and turn toward the crypt entrance, which is half-blocked by chunks of rock. I peer out into what’s left of the tunnel. Which isn’t much. The cave-in is complete—not a Mask to be seen.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e I scramble out of the crypt, half dragging, half carrying a still-coughing Laia over the debris. Dust and blood—not hers, I affirm—streak her face, and she paws at her canteen. I put it to her lips. After a few swallows, she pulls herself standing.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “I can—I can walk.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Rocks obstruct the tunnel to our left, but a mailed hand shoves them away. The Commandant’s gray eyes and blonde hair flash through the dust.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Come on.” I pull up my collar to hide the Blackcliff diamond tattoo on the back of my neck. We clamber out of the ruined catacombs and into the cacophonous streets of Serra. \u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003e Ten bleeding hells.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e No one","brand":"Razorbill","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46303433752805,"sku":"NP9781101998878","price":21.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9781101998878.jpg?v=1767720874","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/es\/products\/a-torch-against-the-night-isbn-9781101998878","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}