Page 576 - Fourth Wing

“Deigh’s gone,” I cry to Xaden, my voice a trembling mess. “Liam is

dying.”
“No.” I feel his terror, his sorrow, and his overpowering anger wrap

around my mind, mixing with my own until it hurts to breathe.

Minutes. We have minutes.
“Just hold on,” I whisper to Liam, fighting not to cry as he looks up at me

with those sky-blue eyes, wide with shock and pain. After everything Liam

has given up for me, this is the least I can do for him. I can get him to Deigh
the same way I know he would carry me to Tairn or Andarna. Tairn lies

down completely, flattening his massive frame as much as possible as I

unstrap my thighs. Then I wrap my arms around Liam’s bulky frame and
we slide down Tairn’s side, hitting our feet on the rocky hillside far from

the trading post.
Deigh lies a couple of dozen feet away, his body folded at an unnatural

angle.

This isn’t fair. This isn’t right. Not Deigh. Not…Liam. They’re the
strongest of our year. They’re the best of us.

“Can’t make it,” Liam says, stumbling forward and tripping.
I rush to catch him as he goes down, but his substantial weight is too

much for me, and we both fall to our knees. “We can make it,” I force out

through my tightening throat, trying to hook his arm over my shoulders.
We’re so close.

If a venin comes along, then I’ll deal with it.

“We can’t.” He crumples against me, sliding down my side. I fall back on
my heels and his head lands in my lap as his body goes limp. “It’s all right,

Violet,” he says, looking up at me, and I shove my goggles on top of my

head so I can see him clearer.
He’s struggling to breathe.

“It’s not all right.” I want to scream with the injustice of it, but that won’t
help. My hand trembles as I slide his riding goggles up to his forehead, then