Read Dorothy Must Die Novella #7 for Free Online

look. “What?”
    â€œNothing,” she said. “It’s all right. I understand.”
    â€œI thought you would.” He nodded. “You’re doing well. Better than I’d expected considering the state you were in when you got here and your lack of any kind of training.”
    â€œBetter than Holly and Larkin expected, I guess,” she said.
    He sighed and pushed his dark hair out of his face. “Holly and Larkin can be difficult, but they’re good fighters, and we need them. It’s better to just ignore some of their . . . quirks.”
    Is that what they are, Lanadel thought sourly. Where she was from, treating other people like garbage was more than just a “quirk.” It was a crappy thing to do. But Nox was right. If she’d just met the entire Order—well, it was hardly an intimidating army, even if Mombi, Gert, and Glamora were witches and Melindra was the best fighter in Oz. It was hard to imagine the ragtag bunch defeating Dorothy’s forces and restoring peaceto Oz. But as far as she knew, the Order was the only game in town—and going up against Dorothy alone would be suicide.
    Training with the Order was the only chance she had to avenge her family. She didn’t care if she died trying, but the more fighters she had at her back, the further she would get. Besides, she wasn’t here to make friends. She was here to learn how to become a killing machine, and Nox and Melindra were the only people she’d met who seemed like they could teach her. She’d seen way worse than anything Holly and Larkin could do, she reminded herself. They were just minor distractions.
    â€œWhat are you doing here?” she asked suddenly. “Leading the Order, I mean.”
    He smiled. “I’m hardly the leader,” he said. “I leave that up to Gert and Mombi.”
    â€œBut you’re basically in charge of the trainees.”
    He shrugged. “I know how to fight.”
    â€œMelindra does, too.”
    â€œMelindra’s our best,” he agreed. His expression was neutral. As usual, it was impossible to tell what he was really thinking. “But she’s impulsive. Gert and Mombi needed someone with more control to train new members.” Impulsive? Was he talking badly about his girlfriend? Was Melindra his girlfriend? And why did she even care? It’s none of your business, she told herself.
    â€œIs that why you don’t have emotions?”
    He looked surprised and then he laughed. “I have emotions,” he said. It was the most honest, unguarded thing she’d ever heard him say. As if lurking under his harsh, controlled exteriorwas a completely different person. Someone who knew how to smile, and laugh, and think about things other than fighting and death. Was that the person Melindra got to see all the time? Or was he this difficult with her, too?
    â€œNot any that you show.”
    â€œI’ve been fighting for a long time,” he said, his face closing down again. “And Oz teaches you that nothing is ever what it seems. It’s not a good idea to show people your true self or relax your guard.”
    â€œEven here?”
    â€œEspecially here.” He was suddenly distant again. Now she really wanted to know what he was talking about. Did he mean he didn’t trust Melindra? Did he mean she shouldn’t trust Melindra? Was he just jealous of anyone else building up a relationship with Melindra?
    Out of all the Order, Melindra seemed the most untouched by all the horror of Oz. Somehow she had remained honest and open, while the rest of them toted around their scars. She wanted to ask Nox about her. If he was in love with her. If he was capable of being in love with anyone. But any chance she’d had of getting through his defenses to catch a glimpse of the real Nox was gone. “You should get some rest,” he added. “Real training starts tomorrow. You need to be