Salvage (44 page)

“Ava.”

“Luck.” I touch my forehead to his. “Promise me something.”

“Anything,” he says.

“Promise you won't leave any more of the boys behind.”

Shame passes over his face.

“You know what I'm talking on,” I say.

“I . . . I won't,” he stammers. “I never wanted to.”

“I know,” I say.

“Then stay,” he pleads. “Stay by my side. Help me remake this crewe.”

“I can't.” I am crying now, and true. “I will love you and love you. You'll always be my first love, but I can't. Not any more than you can give up the
Æther
.”

“Ava . . .”

I turn away. Soli stands back, aghast, and even Llell looks shocked as I walk out through the great doors, head high, tears cutting bright lines down my cheeks.

I look back as the door starts to close behind me, and blink my tears away. Luck holds up his hand.
Good-bye
.

And I hold up mine.
Good-bye
.

And then I turn and make my way out to Bhutto station, back to Miyole and Soraya and Rushil and the
Perpétue
, and everything my life is yet to be.

UNCORRECTED E-PROOF—NOT FOR SALE

HarperCollins Publishers

..................................................................

ALEXANDRA DUNCAN
is a writer and librarian. She lives in North Carolina.

UNCORRECTED E-PROOF—NOT FOR SALE

HarperCollins Publishers

..................................................................

This book is a work of fiction. References to real people, events, establishments, organizations, or locales are intended only to provide a sense of authenticity, and are used to advance the fictional narrative. All other characters, and all incidents and dialogue, are drawn from the author's imagination and are not to be construed as real.

S
ALVAGE
.
Copyright © 2014 by Alexandra Duncan.
All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.

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The text of this book is set in TK.

Book design by Sylvie Le Floc'h

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data TK

ISBN 978-0-06-222014-1 (trade ed.)

EPub Edition July 2013 ISBN 9780062220141

14 15 16 17 18
LP/RRDH
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

FIRST EDITION

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