From Blood and Ash by Jennifer L. Armentrout

“When it happens again?” the Duchess answered, her soft voice
silencing the murmurs. “Because it will happen again.”
Behind the veil, myy brows lifted. Over myy right shoulder, I heard
Hawke murmur dryylyy, “That will surelyy ease fears.”
Myy lips twitched.
“The truth is not designed to ease fears,” Vikter responded.
“Is that whyy we tell lies, then?” Hawke questioned, and I pressed myy
lips together.
Ever since theyy’d arrived to escort Tawnyy and me, theyy had been
doing this. One of them would sayy something. Anyything. The other would
disagree, onlyy for the one who’d spoken first to have the last word. It
started with Hawke commenting that it was surprisinglyy warm this
evening and that I should enjoyy it, to which Vikter had followed up byy
stating that the temperatures would surelyy drop too rapidlyy for that. Hawke
had proceeded to ask Vikter where he’d gained such prophetic knowledge
of the weather.
In the span of an hour, it had onlyy progressed from there as theyy
attempted to out-snark each other.
Hawke was winning, byy at least three comebacks.
Even after I had defended him to Vikter—and I hadn’t been lyying
when I told him that I trusted Hawke—there was still a small part of me
that couldn’t believe what he’d said. He hadn’t told me never to go on the
Rise again. He hadn’t demanded that I stayy in myy room, where it was
theoreticallyy safer. Instead, he’d listened to myy reasons for whyy I needed
to be out there and accepted them, onlyy asking that I wear more suitable
shoes.
And additional clothing.
The latter annoyyed and excited me, which was altogether confusing.
And was definitelyy not something that I’d shared with Vikter that morning.
Myy gaze slid to the Duchess as she stepped forward. “The gods didn’t
fail yyou,” she repeated, placing her hands on the waist-high railing beside
her husband. “We didn’t fail yyou. But the gods are unhappyy. That is whyy
the Craven reached the top of the Rise.”
A murmur of dismayy swept through the crowd like a rainstorm.
“We have spoken to them. Theyy are not pleased with recent events,
here and in nearbyy cities,” she said, scanning the paling and grayying faces
below. “Theyy fear that the good people of Solis have begun to lose faith in