Page 100 of Ruby
We secure the first wing, then the second, anchoring them against her back with layered wraps that brace the joints without crushing them.
The next spasm hits.The bindings hold, and the hut remains intact.
So does she.
“We watch her,” I say quietly.
Ree settles near her head. Thivoll positions himself at the door.
And we wait for her to return to herself as I stare intently, willing her to be well, as afraid for her as I am pleased to see such strong, albeit strange, wings on her back.
She has grown.
And whatever hunts us next will not face a broken male and a fragile female.
It will face two creatures of the sky… even if only in spirit.
39
Ani
I wake to panic.
I can’t move.
Something is tight across my chest. My hips. My thighs. My back is on fire—no, not fire—cramping, throbbing, splitting in two.
I thrash instinctively, a scream ripping out of me before I can stop it.
“Let me go! Let me—”
Strong hands catch me before I pitch sideways off whatever I’m lying on.
“Ani. Ani.”
Szhe’ka’s voice. Close. Steady.
I blink. The hut swims into focus. Night air. Damp ground. The smell of water.
“Why am I tied down?” I gasp, heart racing. “What happened? My back—”
I try to twist and the cramp explodes again, shooting through my shoulder blades.
“Oh my God.”
Szhe’ka carefully pats me. “You have wings now,” he says.
I stare at him.
“…What?”
He moves to stand, then picks me up gently, Thivoll moving to the side so Szhe’ka can carry me out to where multiple people are gathered, staring at me like they have been holding a vigil.
After placing me down onto my unsteady feet, holding me so I don’t fall.
“We are going to have so much fun, Ani,” Kira drawls as she points at my back.
Something brushes the ground behind me. I turn my head slowly.
