Flashback ( PDFDrive )

finally started cooperating, and Bullhorn scurried back to his favorite
spot under my desk.”
“Wow,” Sophie mumbled, the word sour and broken.
Elwin’s pet banshee only acted like that if someone was almost out
of time.
“Yeah, it’s not a moment I want to live again anytime soon,” Elwin
admitted, snapping his fingers and forming an orange orb around her
torso. “Those shadows were like poison. If Tam hadn’t rushed over
when I hailed him . . .”
“It’s a good thing I actually had my Imparter with me,” Tam added
quietly.
He and Linh had spent years on their own after the Council
banished them from the Lost Cities because Linh’s untrained ability
had earned her the nickname “the Girl of Many Floods.” So staying in
contact wasn’t really a habit for them.
“Well . . . thank you,” Sophie told him. “All of you,” she added,
taking a careful sip from the bottle of Youth Elwin pressed against her
lips and wondering if it would ever not feel awkward to thank people
for saving her life.
It was the kind of moment that deserved some sort of deep,
impassioned speech. But everything still felt too shattered.
“How long have I been here?” she whispered.
Elwin made her take two more swallows of the cool, sweet water
before he told her, “Not that long—about eighteen hours.”
That was shorter than she’d expected. But still plenty of time for
horrible, life-changing things.
She could almost feel that monster of fear stirring.