I didn’t ask. Some things are better left unsaid.

He looked at me and I shivered. I never get enough of him. Never will.

He lives.

I breathe.

I want. Him. Always.

Fire to my ice. Ice to my fever.

Later we would go to bed, and when he rose over me, dark and vast and eternal, I’d know joy. Who knew? Much later we might fly a couple of Hunters to the moon.

While I waited for our dinner company to come up the stairs, I stared at the city. It was mostly dark, with only a few lights flickering. It wasn’t remotely the same city I’d met last August; still, I loved her. One day she would be filled with life, teeming with craic again.

Dani was out there in the streets somewhere. Soon I would go looking for her.

But not to kill her.

We’d fight back to back.

Sisters and all.

I think Alina would understand.

The good guys and bad guys aren’t as easy to tell apart as I used to think they were. You can’t look at someone with your eyes and take their measure.

You have to look with the heart.

The end …

 … for now.

This novel would never have reached readers’ hands if not for my brilliant dynamo of an agent, Amy Berkower, nor would it have been remotely what it is without all the wonderful people at Random House. Special thanks to Gina Centrello, for listening and for being there. Words can’t express my gratitude! And to Shauna Summers, my fabulous editor and biggest fan, and to the rest of the team at Random House: Libby McGuire, Scott Shannon, Matthew Schwartz, Sanyu Dillon, Gina Wachtel, Anne Watters, Kristin Fassler, the art department for the sensational cover, the sales team for getting my books out there, and the booksellers for hand-selling the series with so much enthusiasm. Thanks to my first readers who see the manuscript before anyone else and give me their unflinching critique: the talented and amazing Genevieve Gagne-Hawes, and my husband, Neil Dover (chef, musician, editor, and my inspiration in so many ways!)—I couldn’t do it without you two. Thanks to Leiha Mann, for making all things cyber-Fever and event-related run smoothly and feel magical. Last but by no means least, thanks to YOU, dear readers, for your feverish commitment that has made the Fever series such a success, and allowing me to do what I love most every day.

New York Times bestselling author KAREN MARIE MONING is the author of the Fever series, featuring MacKayla Lane, and the award-winning Highlander series. Her events draw fans from all over the world, and her novels have been published in fifteen languages. She has a bachelor’s degree in Society and Law from Purdue University, and is currently working on a new series set in the Fever world and a graphic novel featuring MacKayla Lane.