Chapter 93

• I ran as fast as I could away from the cemetery and toward the palace. The large thorns grew out of the ground and wound their way around the palace walls. They were moving slowly, snaking around the building, squeezing it tight. I could hear distant echoes of windows breaking, stone walls cracking, and, worst of all, people screaming through the smoke and chaos.
• I can only hope that those screaming people were not trapped inside the palace itself.
• I push on, fighting the burning wind that blew smoke and hot ash in my face. The snow had long vanished, leaving only heat and darkness. It was difficult to tell how far I was from the palace.