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Shattered

Page 32

by Mari Mancusi


  But as the days passed, Emmy had started to change, right before Scarlet’s eyes. First she became more restless, more anxious. Then she became more reluctant to talk. On the fourth day she had stopped talking altogether, and when Scarlet entered her cage on day five, the dragon grew wild and frightened, backing into the corner, regarding the girl with wide, distrustful eyes, pillars of smoke puffing from her nose.

  It was a look Scarlet knew all too well. A look she’d seen a thousand times on her mother’s face. And suddenly she realized exactly what must be happening to the dragon at the hands of the monsters when she wasn’t in the room. And the helplessness that washed over her nearly took her breath away.

  Trinity had sent her here to protect Emmy. But what could she do? Once again, the monsters had taken the one she loved and she was powerless to stop them.

  And if the promised rescue didn’t come soon….

  “Please hurry, Trinity,” Scarlet whispered. “I don’t know how much longer she has left.”

  Acknowledgments

  It’s always scary when your acquiring editor leaves the publishing house mid-series, but in the case of Shattered, I had no reason to fear. Aubrey Poole and Jillian Bergsma stepped in like the literary superwomen they are and helped me sculpt the book into what it is today. There is no denying their brilliance. Not to mention the brilliance of Derry Wilkens, publicist extraordinaire, who worked tirelessly all year long to bring about world dragon domination! I can’t tell you how awesome it is to know she has my back. In fact, the entire Sourcebooks team has been totally Team Dragon since the very beginning, championing the series to booksellers, librarians, and, of course, readers themselves. I heart them all madly.

  I also want to thank my agent, Kristin Nelson, for her unwavering support and ability to talk me down off a ledge when things don’t go exactly to plan. I wish every author could have an agent like her on their team.

  And, of course, I want to thank my wonderful husband Jacob who, with each book, has become more and more a collaborator and partner. I know whenever I’m stuck on a plot point I can turn to him, and when my ideas get too crazy, he reins me in. Shattered would not exist as it is without his ideas and feedback.

  And a writer has to have her author buds. Diana Peterfreund, Simone Elkeles, Ally Carter, Alesia Holliday, Cindy Holby, Serena Robar, Victoria Scott, Cory Putman Oakes, PJ Hoover, Jo Whittemore, the Austin RWA and SCBWI crowd, and so many more that I don’t have space to name. And I can’t forget my awesome hairdresser Iana Wi at Hearts and Robots—the genius behind my dragon hair!

  And lastly to all the wonderful librarians and booksellers and bloggers that I met during promotional events over the year and later on tour. Your enthusiasm means everything to me and I applaud all the amazing work you do to put books in kids’ hands. You guys are the true superheroes of the written word.

  About the Author

  Mari Mancusi always wanted a dragon as a pet. Unfortunately the fire insurance premiums proved a bit too large and her house a bit too small—so she chose to write about them instead. Today she works as an award-winning young adult author and freelance television producer, for which she has won two Emmys.

  When not writing about fanciful creatures of myth and legend, Mari enjoys goth clubbing, cosplay, snowboarding, watching cheesy (and scary) horror movies, and her favorite guilty pleasure—playing video games. A graduate of Boston University, she lives in Austin, Texas, with her husband Jacob, daughter Avalon, and their dog Mesquite.

 

 

 


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