Page 60 of The Serpent and the Silver Wolf

She bent forward, arms wrapped around her ribs as if she could hold the memories inside by force.

They slipped through her anyway.

She howled. Shaking. Desperate.

I love you.

The words she’d never been able to say.

I’m sorry.

The words she’d never get to say.

The funnel roared, and her legs began to unravel, bones fragmenting into dust as they lifted from the ground.

Goodbye.

One last heartbeat.

Her mouth parted—she swore she could still taste him.

Then her teeth, her tongue, her voice were gone.

And she was nothing.

Part Two: The Silver Wolf, Over Fifty Years Later

Chapter eighteen

“Forfuck’ssake,guys.Just leave him alone already,” Aimee grumbled, pushing one of the younger students aside with ease. The cream-colored tunic clung to her corded muscles as she moved between them and the red-headed boy they were taunting.

“Oh, come on, Aimee! He shouldn’t even be here,” the kid whined, rubbing his shoulder. “He’s a joke!”

“You’re a joke!” the tiny imp yelled back. “I’ll be the greatest ninja the world has ever seen!”

He lunged forward, aiming a wild kick at the name-caller’s legs, but his foot missed by a mile, throwing him off balance. With a loudthud, he hit the ground, landing square on his butt.

Aimee shook her head, looking at the bully. “Kenta, you should worry about your own skills. Harato-Sensei nearly turned purple when you botched the basic kata. You’re lucky he didn’t have you running laps until the moon rose.”

Kenta’s face flushed crimson, his bravado crumbling as the group of kids around him snickered. He stammered, eyes darting to the ground,trying to save face, but Aimee had already turned her attention to the troublemaker.

“And Taiga.” She looked down to see him sticking out his tongue at the other kids, his hands on his hips as he made obnoxiousnah nah nahnoises.

“If you want anyone to take you seriously, you’ve got to stop acting like an asshole,” she scolded, crossing her arms.

“What?!” Taiga’s eyes widened as he scrambled to his feet. “Me? An asshole? Come on, Aimee. They were the ones being assholes!”

She couldn’t argue with him there. The way the locals treated this kid never sat right with her. Sure, he was loud and annoying, but the cruelty people directed his way went beyond typical playground bullying, especially from the adults. Still, she had to shake her head.

“But they’re not the ones trying to be the next Hi Seisho, are they?” Aimee’s voice held a teasing edge, but she knew the weight of that title. The Hi Seisho was the ultimate protector of Hi Haven, the one who could supposedly harness the elemental power of the Great Phoenix itself.

Taiga blinked, frowning for a second before his face brightened with determination again. He quickly wiped the dust from his pants and caught up to her.

“Yeah, but it’s not fair.”

“What about this world has ever struck you as fair?” Aimee snorted.

He frowned, his expression unusually serious for a moment. “It shouldn’t be this way.”