Windwitch (The Witchlands #2)v(119)

Seeing what he’d wanted to see.

His story, though, just like the two brothers’, had a happy ending. He was still here, wasn’t he? And Kullen was still out there too—and maybe, just maybe, both he and Kullen could still be saved.

Ryber had told Merik she knew how to heal him. How to stop this strange, half-cleaving that had taken hold. She’d said the answer waited in the Sirmayans, and since Merik had nothing to lose—and everything to gain—by trusting her, he’d packed up his supplies and set out.

Cam, of course, had refused to be left behind.

At the memory of Cam’s stubborn jaw and pursed lips, Merik’s shoulders unwound. His breath loosened.

He straightened, listening to the dusk around him. Crickets, owls, nightjars—they drifted into his ears. The sounds that he and Kullen had grown up with. The sounds they would listen to again one day soon.

“Sir?” Cam murmured, approaching. Her … no his dark eyes shone with worry—so familiar and yet so unknown. He’d forgiven Cam for hiding the truth of Garren and the Nines.

But this is the secret of Queen Crab’s long reign:

she knows what all fishes want.

The lure of the shiny, the power of more,

the hunger we all feel for love.

Merik had forgiven Ryber too, for leaving him in the Nihar Cove. For keeping her secrets, and even for claiming Kullen’s heart, Kullen’s time, Kullen’s love.

After all, both Cam and Ryber had come back for Merik when no one else had.

Well, no one but Vivia.

He smiled at them then. He couldn’t help it.

“Come,” he said, slinging his bag onto his back. For the first time in weeks, he felt alive. “We’ve a long way to go, and the sun will be gone soon.”

Then Merik Nihar set off, content with no riches, no gold, and no crown, as long as he had friends by his side.





ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

They say it takes a village, and never was it more true than with this book. I simply could not have written it without the support of so many incredible people.

First and foremost, I must thank my editor, Whitney Ross. This book is as much hers as it is mine, and she went above and beyond. Thank you, Whitney. Fighting!

Dear, dear Sébastien, thank you for your patience, for your love, and for your unflappable good nature. Je t’aime.

Joanna Volpe and the rest of the New Leaf gang: I could not function without you. Thank you for all you do, day in and day out.

For my incredible team at Tor: you’re the hidden stagehands working tirelessly behind the scenes to turn my drivel into something real. Thank you, thank you. There would be no Windwitch without you.

To my wifey, Rachel Hansen: I never could have reached The End without your help. Thank you. (P.S. The hand flex is for you. P.P.S. Make haste!)

I must also thank, from the bottom of my heart, some amazing writer/reader friends. When I called, you immediately answered: Amity Thompson, Erica O’Rourke, Mindee Arnett, Melissa Lee, Leo Hildebrand, Akshaya Ramanujam (Aks Murderer!), Madeleine Colis, Savannah Foley, Kat Brauer, Elise Kova, Biljana Likic, Meredith McCardle, Leigh Bardugo, Meagan Spooner, Amie Kaufman, Elena Yip, and Jennifer Kelly. (Like I said, this book took a village.)

Oh yeah, and to Erin Bowman and Alexandra Bracken—I have only one word for you: #cattleprod.

For my friends at Fabiano’s, especially Sensei Jon Ruiter and Sensei Brant Graham, thank you for letting me beat you up in the name of a good fight scene.

For my dear, dear #Witchlanders, you are my patronus. Real talk here: you are my guardians against the darkness. You’re the reason I keep writing every day, the reason I didn’t give up even when this book almost killed me, the reason I want to tell this story at all. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

For Mom and Dad, you’re my heroes and always have been. I aspire every day to be more like you.

And finally, to David and Jenn: Sorry I wasn’t always the best big sis. Like Vivia, it took getting comfortable with myself before I could get comfortable with you. I hope you know though, that I will do anything for you—yes, even plummet to my death in a valley filled with seafire. Though let’s avoid that if we can.