Page 102 - Fourth Wing

live, because Violet is watching. You can’t let her see you fall.

Brennan.

Tears prick my eyes, but I blink them back. “It’s just his journal,” I lie,
thumbing through the pages. I can hear his quippy, sarcastic tone as I skim

over his words, as though he’s standing here, making light of every danger

with a wink and a grin. Damn, I miss him. “He died five years ago.”
“Oh, that’s…” Rhiannon leans in, her eyes heavy with sympathy. “We

don’t always burn everything, either. Sometimes it’s nice to have
something, you know?”

“Yeah,” I whisper. It’s everything to have this, and yet I know Mom will

toss it in the fire if she ever finds it.
Rhiannon sits back on her bed, opening her history book, and I fall back

into Brennan’s history, starting on the third page.

You survived Parapet. Good. Be observant the next few days, and don’t

do anything to draw attention to yourself. I’ve sketched a map that shows

you not only where the classrooms are but where the instructors meet, too. I

know you’re nervous about challenges, but you shouldn’t be, not with that

right hook of yours. The matches might seem random, but they’re not. What

the instructors don’t tell you is that they decide challenges the week before,

Mira. Any cadet can request a challenge, yes, but instructors will assign

your matches based on weeding out the weakest. That means once the real

hand-to-hand starts, the instructors already know who you’ll be up against

that day. Here’s the secret—if you know where to look and can get out

without being seen, you’ll know who you’re fighting so you can prepare.

I suck in a breath and devour the rest of the entry, hope blossoming in my
chest. If I know who I’m fighting, then I can begin the battle before we