Cover of The Gilded Blade

The Gilded Blade

by Jennifer Lynn Barnes


Genre
Young Adult, Mystery, Thriller
Year
2026
Pages
353
Contents

CHAPTER 93: LYRA

Overview

From a helicopter, Lyra and Nash witness Vantage obliterated, with no safe landing. Authorities bar them, but Bowen Johnstone-Jameson walks through the barricade. Alisa restrains Nash and promises to make calls. Nash insists he would know if his brothers were dead, and Lyra clings to hope for Grayson.

Summary

Lyra surveys catastrophic destruction from a helicopter, staring at a crater where most of Vantage once stood. Overwhelmed by fear and love, she fixates on the ordinary future she wants with Grayson and refuses to believe he is dead.

Nash pilots and manages a perilous landing despite the devastation. Authorities immediately swarm them and force Lyra, Nash, and Alisa Ortega behind a barricade on the isthmus, denying access to the disaster zone.

As Nash prepares to force his way through, Alisa steps between him and the blockade, urging him to think of Libby and his daughters and promising to make calls. A poised British man—Bowen Johnstone-Jameson, Jameson’s uncle—arrives and crosses the barricade unchallenged, further inflaming Nash, whom Lyra helps Alisa restrain.

With the crowd pushed even farther back, Alisa works her contacts. Nash meets Lyra’s eyes and declares he would know if his brothers were dead, insisting they are alive. Lyra echoes his conviction, silently promising Grayson that she will not give up, and holding to hope amid the ruins.

Who Appears

  • Lyra
    POV; devastated by Vantage’s destruction, helps restrain Nash, and clings to hope that Grayson is alive.
  • Nash Hawthorne
    Pilots and lands the helicopter, tries to breach the barricade, insists he’d know if his brothers were dead.
  • Alisa Ortega
    Lawyer who blocks Nash from charging in, promises to make calls, and attempts to negotiate access.
  • Bowen Johnstone-Jameson
    Jameson’s uncle; arrives and walks past the barricade unchallenged, provoking Nash’s frustration.
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