Hey everyone! FIREDRAGON RISING is out tomorrow! Here's a little sneak peek to when your appetite...
The sinister droning of the patrolmen’s motorbikes behind her suddenly swelled, the noise crashing over her like a wave. They must have turned a corner, navigating around the buildings that had filtered the sound before. That meant they were closing in on her. She was sure that if she were to look back, she would see their shadowy figures, but she resisted the urge to glance over her shoulder. At this speed, she needed to keep both eyes forward or risk crashing.
And none of the patrolmen activated their alarms, which meant they hadn’t yet realizedshe was their target. But if they tried to signal her as one of their own, she wouldn’t know how to respond. She pushed against the handlebar, though her vehicle couldn’t go any faster, and wished she could will it into accelerating.
Spotting an intersection ahead, she made the snap decision to turn left, and her knee briefly scraped the ground as the motorbike veered at an abrupt angle. Maybe that would throw her pursuers off. Maybe it was a dead giveaway that she wasn’t who they thought she was. Either way, it seemed like a better idea than going in a straight line.
She got her answer about three seconds later, when a trio of loud, wailing noises ripped through the darkness—the patrolmen’s alarms. Activating them meant they’d spotted their target and were alerting the others to their location. Cold sweat broke over her brow, and she cursed herself for her mistake. That was so stupid! I should’ve known better!
Gritting her teeth, she shoved the thoughts out of her head. She didn’t have time to worry about how she’d screwed up—she had to fix it. Focusing on her ears, she tried to detect the noise of motorbike engines beneath the blaring sirens. That would tell her where her pursuers were, at least. She didn’t hear anything from the road ahead of her, which meant she still had a chance at escaping before the ones behind her caught up. Another intersection was coming up fast, and the street to her right would be parallel to the one she’d been traveling down. That meant it would be a straight shot to the perimeter.
She barreled around the corner, almost tipping her vehicle in the process. As she straightened her course, she heard more sirens join the commotion. Back up for the patrolmen had arrived, then, but she wasn’t giving up yet. The silver haze marking the edge of the city was once again visible ahead, and if she could make it past the perimeter before they found her, then she had a fighting chance.
Sinister plots. An underground rebellion. And a treacherous road filled with monsters and enemies unknown.
It's been three months since Aurelia survived the International Challenge—an elite monster-fighting competition. And the Triumvirate has been keeping a close eye on her ever since … as if they expect her to cause them more trouble.
They’re right.
Now that she knows about the underground revolution—and the dark secrets of her own past—Aurelia is hell-bent on escaping the government’s watchful gaze and joining the rebels. Finally, she’s found a cause worth fighting for. A way for her kind, the Norms, to take back their freedom.
Then, when she overhears a Triumvirate official’s conversation, she learns that it’s even worse than she realized. The government knows about the rebels, and the rebellion. They’re searching for people who sympathize with the cause. And they’re coming after her next.
Suddenly the time for dreaming about the rebellion is over. Aurelia must make contact with the rebels and plot a quick escape … before the Triumvirate has a chance to capture her. But government forces and miles of monster-filled wilderness stand between her and the rebel headquarters, and dangers she never imagined lurk in the shadows.
Before she can fight for the freedom of her people, she must achieve her own—or die trying.
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