We finished eating, and then filed out of the hall.
As we all walked to the housing area, silence accompanied everyone’s understanding of the new rules moving forward. I took the long way back to my bungalow by way of the Cloudwell. Truth be told, I wasn’t really keen on going back to sleep by myself after what we’d just been through. And after having shared the barracks together in Limnos and the cave to at the Hearthstone Forge at Limnos, I felt uneasy sleeping alone.
I backtracked toward the Megaron then over to Headmistress’ office. I needed to ask her something. Surprisingly, I noticed that almost everyone had congregated over there. We knocked on the door.
Rhea answered the door with a smile. “All right, fine.” She chuckled. “Everyone move their beds into the gymnasium. Tomorrow, we’ll work on a more permanent solution.” She shook her head and grinned. “Crazy kids. This is why I love each and every one of you. But no funny business.”
“Eww,” Meter screeched. “As if …”
“Oh, and Poseidon,” Rhea said, “you must have at least one bed between you and Amphitrite at all times. That goes for Zeus and Metis, too. Don’t test me on this.”
“Yes, Headmistress.”
“Trust me,” Hera said. “I got this.”
I trekked back to my bungalow to grab my bed. I wanted to believe that all our troubles were over, but something about the way Kronos had said I’ll be seeing you around just didn’t sit right with me. As I entered the gymnasium and saw the others arranging their beds and themselves, I genuinely smiled for the first time in a long while. It seemed like we were finally all reading from the same scroll. We would definitely need that solidarity moving forward.
<<< THE END >>>
Acknowledgements
I thank my loving family for supporting me through my late-night groaning and #5amwritersclub sessions that it takes to bring a dream to fruition.
As a reminder, I first conceived The Sky Throne in 2011 at the SCBWI International Conference in New York. Again, I am so glad I joined SCBWI. The Sky Throne was first nurtured in the NV SCBWI critique group and their renowned Mentor Program. The High Court is the second book in the series. But, one can never forget where they come from.
Additionally, I want to recognize all the critique partners, BETA readers, and others who ever helped on the story: Heather Petty, Tracy Clark, Ellen Hopkins, Dawn Callahan, Temoca Dixon, Jenny MacKay, Julie Dillard, Caryn Neidhold, Kim Harnes, Naomi Canale, Lisa Marcusson, Stacey Rice, Amanda Tremblay, Joel Pettipiece, Amy Cook, Jason Roer, Nikki Mann, Marissa Graff, Martina Boone, Melpomene Selemidis, and Maria Bitar all helped to shape the characters and story in The Sky Throne so I can’t forget them and all of the help they gave me.
More specifically to The High Court, I want to thank Linda Boyden, Tracy Clark, and Kim Harnes who BETA read this story. I am eternally grateful for their varied perspectives. Big shout out to my editors, Laura Whitaker and Michelle Millet for helping me to hone this story like a sword in the forge. And finally thank you so much to Georgia McBride and Glendon Palmer for taking a chance on Zeus.
CHRIS LEDBETTER
Chris Ledbetter grew up in Durham, NC before moving to Charlottesville, VA in 11th grade. After high school, he attended Hampton University where he promptly “walked-on” to the best drum line in the conference without any prior percussion experience. He carried the bass drum for four years, something his back is not very happy about now.
After a change of heart and major, he enrolled in Old Dominion University and earned his degree in Business Administration. He’s worked in various managerial and marketing capacities throughout his life. He taught high school for six years in Culpeper, VA, and also coached football.
He has walked the streets of Los Angeles and New York City, waded in the waters of the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, and climbed Diamond Head crater on Hawaii and rang in the New Year in Tokyo, Japan. But he dreams of one day visiting Greece and Italy.
His writing awards include: Evernight Publishing Readers Choice: Best YA Book of the Year 2015, Library of Clean Reads Best Reads of 2015, USA Today HEA Blog Must-Read Romance 2015.
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