The Crown of Gilded Bones (Blood and..

skating over the side of a coffin.
Confusion swirled through me as I stared up at him. “I…I
don’t understand. You’re a Descenter? You support the
Prince—?”
“I support Atlantia.” He moved fast, crossing the
distance in less time than it took a heart to beat. He knelt so
we were at eye-level. “I am no Descenter.”
“Really?” His superspeed sort of gave that away. “Then
what are you?”
The tight-lipped smile grew. His features sharpened,
narrowed, and then he changed. Shrinking in height and
width, the new body drowned in the clothing Jansen had
been wearing. His skin became tanner and smoother. In an
instant, his hair darkened to black and became longer, his
eyes lightening and turning blue.
Within seconds, Beckett knelt before me.