Page 162 of The Last Hope

Realization strikes me now. Someone else is in the room. Invisible—but here with us.

The only person I know who can cloak themselves is a teeny-tiny baby. Last I saw, she was strapped to Court.

Court.

Blood rushes back to my head, and then Henna drops to the floor in a seizing fit. The otherRomuluscadets shoot to their feet and try to stalk an invisible enemy.

One second later, Igor’s head twists brutally, and he slumps to the ground. Out cold.

Court is fast and lithe with his attacks.

Just three left.

The tall, freckle-faced cadet.

The tattooed boy who hovers near Zimmer.

And Jolee.

She starts swinging the battle-ax aimlessly in the air like she means to hit Court. My nerves ricochet and I yank hard at the metal that chains my wrist to the bed.

The wooden leg cracks and breaks cleanly in two.

As soon as I free my hand, the freckle-faced cadet edges back to the wall. He hoists the long rod out in front of his tall frame.

No one is touching me.

I fumble with the metal locks on my ankles. Trying to unlatch these binds.

Jolee is still swinging her ax, and with enough force, Court’s head could be rolling clean off if she slices through his neck.

Urgency clings to me. Fear claws at me.

I’m not letting him die here.

Not for me.

Not like this.

I bellow, enraged spit flying and tears combining with snot.Snap.I look up at the harsh noise.

A body has hit the floor.

Not Court, please, not Court.

I quickly spot the boy with the hornet tattoo, slumped against an ornate dresser. Eyes shut.

“Demon!” the freckle-faced boy screams, the only word he’s spoken. He opens his mouth to yell again, but suddenly, a shard of sea glass appears in the side of his neck. Blood spews, and he chokes and falls to the floorboards.

“Show yourself!” Jolee screams, her mane of blond hair whipping as she spins around with the battle-ax.

She’s the last remaining cadet.

… and then I see Court.

In the corner of the suite, he appears from thin air, standing with the baby strapped to his chest. His hands are stained crimson and his carriage rises and falls heavily. He whispers to the infant. As though coaxing her to make them invisible again.

Jolee is about to spot Court.