Wings (A Black City Novel) by Elizabeth Richards

congregation chants as Patrick tears off the girl’s clothes and drags her into the pool beside Mrs. Hope’s body. The congregation pushes toward the water’s edge, nearly knocking me and Catherine into the water too. I grab her before she falls in. She buries her face against my chest as the Lupine girl is dunked under the water. Her mouth opens in a silent scream as she thrashes against Patrick, Harriet and Drew, trying desperately to resurface. Tendrils of white hair ripple around her naked body, and for a brief moment she’s like a beautiful sea nymph, her luminous eyes gleaming up at us through the water.
    “Cast it out!” the congregation chants.
    “Stop this!” Grandfather yells.
    The Howler frantically flays about under the water. My chest tightens and I can’t breathe, like I’m the one drowning. Her silver eyes widen and with a terrified gasp she sucks in a fatal breath. It’s over. They pull her out of the pool and dump her body by my feet. Splashes of water drip on my boot. Grandfather stares grimly down at her body.
    “Let this be a warning to the Lupines,” Mr. Langdon says. “For every life they take, we will take one of theirs.”
    “So sayeth His Mighty,” everyone chants.
    Catherine throws a guilty look in my direction. I glance down at the Howler girl, shame squirming in my stomach.
    “So sayeth us all,” I say.

7.
    EDMUND
    P ATRICK AND DREW PICK UP the girl’s limp body and carry her outside while the rest of the congregation files out of the chapel. Mrs. Langdon looks adoringly up at her husband as they walk down the aisle. Tears glisten in Catherine’s eyes as she obediently follows them.
    Outside, the October air is crisp and fresh, the ground still damp from last night’s downpour. Women lift their bustle skirts to prevent their hems from getting muddy as they gossip to their friends about tonight’s dance and what they plan to wear, the conversation polite and forced. In the center of the town square is a large wooden cross, more than eight feet high.
    During the Misery—a yearlong conflict between the Darklings, Lupines and people of Amber Hills that resulted in hundreds of deaths—any citizens caught associating with a Darkling would be tied to the cross, on the Guild’s orders. They’d be left up there for days. Many would die from exposure or starvation. It hasn’t been used in almost two decades, until today that is. Patrick binds the dead girl to it as a warning to any more of her kind if they come back here searching for another victim.
    Mr. Langdon strolls over to Grandfather, his wife still hanging off his arm. He can’t be much older than thirty-six, but his sandy beard makes him look older. All the kids in Amber Hills have young parents, as it’s common to marry at eighteen and have your first child at nineteen. I look longingly at Catherine, who is outside her house with some kids from school.
    Eric Cranfield—the boy Catherine was hoping would take her to the dance—strolls over to her. He’s lanky in a way that’s stylish rather than awkward, with a sprinkling of freckles over his nose and auburn hair. He dips his head and whispers something in her ear before placing a consoling arm around her shoulders. Jealousy flares inside me.
    “Fine service today, Hector,” Mr. Langdon says, drawing my attention.
    “Thank you,” Grandfather replies coolly. “The ending was certainly eye opening.”
    Mr. Langdon gives a forced smile. “It’s important to show our strength in these terrible times. We can’t let the Howlers think they can take our people without consequence.”
    Grandfather scowls. “Is it really worth starting a conflict between our species over four people?”
    “If you ask me, the Howler got what was coming to it,” Mrs. Langdon chimes in, ignoring the fact that no one asked for her opinion. She looks just like her daughter, with the same brunette hair, pale skin and heart-shaped face. “If I had my way, we’d put them all down. We have