CHAPTER SIX
Etta heard no remarks as she walked back to her tent. Exhaustion weighed her down, making every step harder than the one before it. The crowd parted for her, a stunned wariness among them. Etta wasn't supposed to survive the first round. Certainly not against one of the crown's own guards.
Maiya and Pierre followed at a distance, for which Etta was grateful. She did not have any words for them. She craved the solitude of her woods, the calm company of Vérité. Her magic pulsed in her fingertips, wanting an escape. Fingertips that were now stained red.
When Etta pushed into her tent, she could still hear the commotion from the arena. A new fight started. Her breath wheezed in her chest and she clutched at her armor as the adrenaline left her body and reality came crashing in.
