A.

rella's lying.

She has to be. There's no way Os would . . .

The thought stops cold as I remember what Os told me about hungry winds. And as I watch Arella rub her pale, sickly arms, I realize there's a thin dust sweeping off her skin that I hadn't noticed. It floats toward the walls like a sheer mist and disappears into the swirling sand.

"Relax," Arella tells me as I run for the metal curtain blocking my exit and try to pry it open.

Stupid thing won't budge. And when I pound on it, it swallows the sound.

I can't breathe.

"Calm down!" Arella shouts as I wobble on my feet. "The Maelstrom only affects me. I'm the one it was built for. Do you really think Os would bring his king here otherwise?"

I guess that wouldn't make sense.

I may be driving the Gales crazy, but they definitely need me alive.

But still, if it's affecting Arella, then she's . . .

I drop to the ground and put my head between my knees, trying to keep myself together.

"So you're . . ."

"Dying?" Arella asks when I can't finish.

I force myself to nod.

She holds out her hands, staring at her fingers. They're practically skin and bone, so it shouldn't surprise me when she says, "Yes." But I still have to fight off another dizzy fit.

Arella is dying.

Audra's mom is dying.

"How long do you have?" I whisper.

"It's hard to say. I've never experienced anything like this before. But if I had to guess, I'd say probably a few more weeks."

"Weeks?"That's a lot less time than I was expecting. I don't know what to say except, "I'm sorry."

"No, you're not."

No . . . I guess she's right.

I have to remember-Arella's not just a murderer. She's a serial killer. Even humans have the death penalty for crimes like that. Why should sylphs be any different?

But I hate it.

I hate knowing about it, and I hate that I'm wondering if I have the power to stop it, and I especially hate that I'm sort of responsible for it.

If I hadn't turned her in and made sure the Gales knew what she'd done, she'd . . .

Still be crazy and killing people.

This is her fault-not mine.

She stays quiet after that, and I close my eyes, trying to make this awful night worth it. If I don't get some sleep, Os might make me stay here again, and I'm pretty sure I will lose it if that happens.

But every pa.s.sing minute makes the ground harder and the air thicker and my skin itchier. So I'm ready to cry with relief when the mesh curtain to my cell finally opens and Os walks in.

He frowns as he looks at me. "You don't look rested."

"This isn't exactly the most relaxing place."

"No. But I'd hoped you'd find a way."

"I can think of one," Arella offers.

Os glares at her until she backs away from the chains. "Are you up for the journey back?" he asks me.

I'm wiped, and the freeway part's going to suck, but I am so ready to get out of here.

"Vane," Arella calls as I make my way to the exit. "I know I have no right to ask this, but I'm hoping you'll tell Audra to come see me. It'd be nice to say goodbye."

The plea in her eyes is hard to ignore. It looks too much like a last request. "When she comes home, I'll try."

Arella straightens. "Audra's gone?"

"Yes," Os grumbles, and I want to kick myself for being so stupid. "She's been gone for weeks. Searching for the mysterious third Stormer."

Arella glances at me and I shake my head, begging her to drop it.

I've never been a very good liar, and when the Gales demanded to know where Audra was, the best story I could come up with was that she was out hunting down the Stormer I'd knocked out of the sky when I escaped. It seemed like a believable enough excuse. Until they found his body. Then Fang cornered me about it and the only thing I could think of was to say that I'd meant a third Stormer who'd been part of the attack.

"We never found any trace of a third Stormer," Os says, looking at me the same way they all look at me when they point that out.

"Well, you wouldn't have," Arella jumps in, tossing her greasy hair. "I was the only one who could detect him."

"You?" Os repeats.

She flashes her most dazzling smile and for a second she looks more like the old Arella I remember. "You know I have a gift."

Os nods, actually believing her.

"Can we go now?" I ask, needing to get of this place before I go crazy and start trusting Arella.

She did just help me, though.

Big-time.

We make the long walk back to the surface, and it's twice as miserable the second time-and not just because I'm more exhausted than ever.

Everything I've just seen and learned feels like it's dragging me down, and I can still hear Arella's words in my mind, echoing with every step: Os crossed a line that shouldn't be crossed.

Is she right?

This place is beyond horrible. But . . . I can also remember how pained Os looked as he described the hungry winds to me.

And the scar carved into his face is a mark Raiden gave him to punish him for choosing the good side.

Plus, it's not like he locked an innocent person in his Maelstrom. He locked Arella-and I have to believe she deserves to be there, no matter how different she might seem.

Still, it feels especially eerie when we reach the open air and I notice all the giant black birds lining the rocks all around us. I remember seeing them on my way in, and I remember Audra telling me that birds are drawn to her mother-one of the few things the two of them have in common.

But I can see now that these are vultures.

I don't want to think about what they're waiting around for.

We race even harder on the way home-like both of us can't get away from the Maelstrom fast enough-and I draw what energy I can from the wind. But I wish I could feel Audra's trace.

The pull of our bond is so weak it's almost like it's not there, and that's not what I needed after all my crazy doubts.

"I have something special planned for you today," Os tells me as the Coach.e.l.la Valley comes into view-stretches of green and color that seem totally out of place surrounded by so much barren desert. "A new trainer."

"Really? I'm done with Fang?"

I can't say I'm sad. The guy blasts the c.r.a.p out of me every session.

But Os shakes his head. "Feng and Gus are still your guardians, and you will continue to train with Feng for the Northerlies. But it's time you start practicing with Southerlies."

He smiles as he says it, and it reminds me of my dad when he's about to make me do something I'm definitely going to hate but that he thinks will be "good for me."

But when I ask Os about it, he just steers toward the Gales' base-an empty field of sand with a row of scraggly pine trees shielding it from the freeway. Giant holes in the dunes are the only things that set it apart from the billion other desert fields around here, and it still b.u.ms me out that the headquarters for my sylph army looks more like the home of mutant gophers. But the Gales try to stay underground as much as possible, away from Raiden's searchwinds. And it's not like they need a lot of fancy equipment. All they need is wind.

"What's with the crowd?" I ask as I spot at least a dozen Gales gathered in the wash that cuts down the center of the field. It's more guardians than I've ever seen aboveground at once.

"You'll see."

My suspicions grow when we land in the wash and I see the way all the Gales are grinning. Even Fang looks ready to crack a smile, and Gus gives me a c.o.c.ky nod.

"Vane," Os says before I can ask Gus what the h.e.l.l is going on. "I'd like you to meet your Southerly trainer."

They all move aside, revealing a seriously gorgeous girl with blond wavy hair rustling in the warm breeze. She stares at me with shy, clear blue eyes, and her peachy cheeks flush pink.

I can guess who she is before Os introduces her.

Solana.

The one they all want me to marry.

CHAPTER 14.AUDRA.

I.

need a plan.

The second Aston finished his warning, he snuffed out all the winds and dragged me back to the cave.

I should've seen it coming.

Should've fought harder.

Should've . . .

There's an endless list of things I should've done. It's too late for any of them.

"And how's my new roomie doing?" Aston asks, reappearing in the cave's entrance.

He used sickly green drafts to tie me to a sharp-edged boulder and told me to get all my crying out of my system while he went to patrol his perimeter. But I haven't shed a single tear.

If I learned one thing from growing up with my mother, it's how to survive with a selfish, psychotic killer. I just have to stay calm and keep him distracted until I figure out a way to escape.

"Still sulking, I see," he says when I don't respond. "It's really not a good look for you. Almost as unpleasant as this."

He slips out of his cloak and I have to look away. The midday sunlight makes his wounds even more disturbing.

He laughs. "Don't worry, you'll get used to it. I certainly have." He waves his hands around, making the gaps in his arms whistle before he utters a string of unintelligible commands and the cave fills with salty ocean breezes.

"I figured you could use some fresh air," he tells me as he plops down across from me, "But don't do anything foolish. Then I'll have to hurt you-and contrary to what you may be thinking, I'm really not interested in torturing you. I never developed a stomach for that sort of thing. Especially with pretty girls."

"I'm not going to try anything," I tell him, ignoring his flirtatious smile.

Not yet.

Not until I'm sure I'll succeed.

Cool drafts whisk around me, filling the air with soft songs that promise a calmer time ahead. But I'm more relieved to feel the scorching pull of my bond again.

Vane's still safe-and still far away.

I'm not sure how much longer that will last.

Between the message I sent him and the way Aston keeps cutting off my trace from the sky, it's only a matter of time before Vane realizes I'm in trouble. And he would be no match against Aston if he came after me.

Sharp hisses bring me back to the present, and my heart aches as three of the drafts turn dull gray and coil around Aston's waist. "It's the only way to keep myself together," he explains as the winds vanish into the holes in his skin. "Another way Raiden tried to secure my loyalty. He wanted to be sure I could never escape, even if I wanted to."

"But you did, escape," I remind him.