Page 99 - Fourth Wing

Leavingtheriders. Just so Mom. Canthrowmeback. I’m. Staying.” I turn my

head and the room spins as I look for Nolon. “Mend me…but justthisonce.”
“You know it’s going to hurt like hell and will still ache for a couple of

weeks, right?” Nolon asks, sitting down in the chair beside my bed and

staring at my shoulder.
I nod. This isn’t my first mending. When you’re as brittle as I was born,

the pain of mending is only second to the pain of the original injury.

Basically another Tuesday.
“Please, Vi,” Dain begs quietly. “Please switch quadrants. If not for you,

then for me—because I didn’t step in fast enough. I should have stopped

her. I can’t protect you.”
I wish I’d figured out his plan before taking Winifred’s potion, so I could

have explained better. None of this is his fault, but he’s going to shoulder
the blame just like he always does. Instead, I take a deep breath and say, “I

made mychoice.”

“Get back to the quadrant, Dain,” Nolon orders without looking up. “If
she was any other first-year, you would already be gone.”

Dain’s anguished gaze holds mine, and I insist, “Go. I’ll findyouat
formmmmation inthe morning.” I don’t want him to see this anyway.

He swallows the defeat and nods once, then turns and walks through the

separation in the curtains without another word. I sincerely hope my choice
today doesn’t end up destroying my best friend later.

“Ready?” Nolon asks, his hands hovering above my shoulder.

“Bite down.” Winifred holds a strap of leather in front of my mouth, and I
take it between my teeth.

“Here we go,” Nolon mutters, lifting his hands over my shoulder. His

brow furrows in concentration before he makes a twisting motion.
White-hot agony erupts in my shoulder. My teeth slice into the leather as

I scream, bearing down for one heartbeat, then two before blacking out.

…