Page 7 of The Burning Hand


  A loud whack hit the wall: wood crashing. “What are you? You don’t belong.” The wraith boy’s voice rose an octave. “Leave!”

  I threw open the music room door to find the piano bench in pieces and a gash torn in the wall paneling. James stood just a step away from the demolished bench, his chest heaving. “Wil.” He spoke between clenched teeth. “I think you should send Ferris for more guards.”

  The wraith boy’s posture shifted with unnatural quickness. One moment, he was huge and hunched, ready to grab the piano and hurl it at James. The next moment, he resumed his normal size and shape, and bowed his head. “My queen. Hello.”

  “What’s going on?” I forced the shaking out of my voice, keeping it low and dangerous.

  “This”—the wraith boy bared his teeth at James—“man is not what he says he is. He’s deceiving you, my queen. He’s not real.”

  I moved inside the room and stood beside James. Splinters of wood caught in my day dress, scraping the floor. “James is my friend, and he’s in charge of palace security. If he sees you as a threat, he will not hesitate to force you to leave.”

  The wraith boy sniffed. “Only my queen commands me.”

  “And I would agree with him. Behave.” I spun and exited the room, head high, but my heart thudded painfully against my ribs.

  James closed the door after him, softly. “This is a problem. No one bothered him last night once he hid under your bed, but what if they had? What would he have done?”

  “I don’t know.” My head buzzed with adrenaline. “What do you think he meant about you? You’re not who you say you are? As far as I can see, you’re the only one of us who is exactly what he says.”

  “I wish I knew.” Worry and confusion crossed his eyes, but he said nothing more. I wasn’t his confidant after all. “Give me a moment while I have the hall cleared. Then let’s get this over with.”

  BACK ADS

  DISCOVER

  your next favorite read

  MEET

  new authors to love

  WIN

  free books

  SHARE

  infographics, playlists, quizzes, and more

  WATCH

  the latest videos

  TUNE IN

  to Tea Time with Team Epic Reads

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  PHOTO © HOUSDEN PHOTOGRAPHY

  JODI MEADOWS is the author of the Incarnate series. She lives and writes in the Shenandoah Valley, Virginia, with her husband, a cat, and an alarming number of ferrets. She is a confessed book addict and has wanted to be a writer ever since she decided against becoming an astronaut. You can visit her online at www.jodimeadows.com.

  Discover great authors, exclusive offers, and more at hc.com.

  BOOKS BY JODI MEADOWS

  Incarnate

  Asunder

  Infinite

  Phoenix Overture

  The Orphan Queen

  The Hidden Prince

  The Glowing Knight

  The Burning Hand

  COPYRIGHT

  Katherine Tegen Books is an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.

  THE BURNING HAND. Copyright © 2015 by Jodi Meadows. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.

  EPub Edition © October 2015 ISBN 9780062377074

  ISBN: 978-0-06-237707-4

  10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

  FIRST EDITION

  ABOUT THE PUBLISHER

  Australia

  HarperCollins Publishers Australia Pty. Ltd.

  Level 13, 201 Elizabeth Street

  Sydney, NSW 2000, Australia

  www.harpercollins.com.au

  Canada

  HarperCollins Canada

  2 Bloor Street East - 20th Floor

  Toronto, ON M4W 1A8, Canada

  www.harpercollins.ca

  New Zealand

  HarperCollins Publishers New Zealand

  Unit D1, 63 Apollo Drive

  Rosedale 0632

  Auckland, New Zealand

  www.harpercollins.co.nz

  United Kingdom

  HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.

  1 London Bridge Street

  London SE1 9GF, UK

  www.harpercollins.co.uk

  United States

  HarperCollins Publishers Inc.

  195 Broadway

  New York, NY 10007

  www.harpercollins.com

 


 

  Jodi Meadows, The Burning Hand

 


 

 
Thank you for reading books on BookFrom.Net

Share this book with friends