We throw back round after round, losing track of time and basking in the anonymity of the crowd. When my hair begins clinging to my neck with sweat, I breathlessly hop down from the table, eager for some fresh air.
I eventually make it outside to the cool relief of the night air. The breeze kisses my fevered cheeks as I close my eyes and tip my head back against the uneven stone. Through the wall, I can hear the muffled, rhythmic stomping of feet mingling with the sound of crickets coasting toward me from the empty field across the way.
A sudden laugh spills from my lips as the absurdity of my current situation flashes through my mind. I thought I was crazy to stay here in this strange world. But now the only thing that seems crazy is going back to a life of ignorant bliss.
A world without magic.
I may never get back to the girl I was before I lost everything that mattered. And maybe that’s okay. Because I can slowly feel myself becoming someone new.
I can feel myself healing.
It’s a strange andbeautiful thing.
A slight movement pulls my attention toward a skinny stray cat lingering by the corner of the building. I approach it, extending a gentle hand. The harmless-looking creature works up a nasty hiss and scurries away.
“Alright, then.” I straighten and turn to find that I’m no longer alone.
Standing at the opposite end of the building is a tall, hooded figure. Even though their face is concealed, I’m certain from the height and imposing form that it’s a male. A dark energy rolls off of him, and I immediately get the sense that this isn’t just another city dweller looking for a bit of fun inside an ale house. He stands eerily still, with definitive purpose.
I stare at him, paralyzed, like a deer in headlights. When he takes his first step toward me, I break into a sprint, tearing around the corner and into a crowded alleyway. I bump into people as I brush past, earning a slew of angry glances and curses. My stalker weaves through the crowd, determined but unhurried. I can tell that if he wanted to, he could catch up to me in three easy strides.
But he’s hunting me like prey.
Knowing I can’t outrun him, I mentally prepare myself for a fight. Jace has taught me well. All I need to do is buy myself enough time for the others to notice I’m missing. Enough time for them to hopefully find me.
I brace myself to turn and meet my hunter and instead collide with a hard body.
Blinking, I gape up at Jace.
“What in the seven hells are you doing?” he says sternly, gripping my shoulders.
“Someone’s following me.” I glance back toward where the hooded figure is now darting away. Jace instantly brushes past me, barreling after him. My legs fight to keep up with their fae speed as they round the corner and duck inside the bar. I spillthrough the door after them and spot the dark hood bobbing through the crowd, pushing and shoving carelessly. We trail him up a set of stairs and scan the congested hall. But the figure is nowhere in sight.
“He can’t have gotten far,” I pant, winded from the chase.
“Go downstairs. Get Zadyn and the others and go,” Jace commands, something dangerous darkening his golden eyes.
“But—”
“Go, witch. I’m serious,” he snarls, exposing two glittering white fangs. He darts around a corner and disappears, not bothering to make sure I obey. I turn toward the stairs, but something clamps down around my mouth and hauls me backward.
A split second is all it takes for my attacker to drag me through the nearest door. My screams are muffled beneath the tight grip on my mouth. I wriggle my face upward enough to bite down on the leather-gloved hand with all my might. Blood coats my tongue as my assailant curses and jerks his hand away. I throw a quick elbow to his rock-hard torso, but he absorbs it unflinchingly, dragging me backward around the waist toward the open window.
“Jace!” I scream.
A millisecond later, the door flies open, and Jace bursts in. The figure releases me abruptly, causing me to trip backward over his cloak. A small scrap of fabric tears free, trapped beneath my heel, before he leaps gracefully out the window. Jace wrenches me back before I careen down after him.
“Are you hurt?” His concerned eyes roam over me. I shake my head, still stunned. We simultaneously dash to the window, but there is no sign of him below. He’s gone. Vanished.
I bend to scoop up the scrap of cloak, turning it over and fingering the silky maroon underside stitched with gold.
“We’re leaving. Now.”
The patch slips from my hands as Jace tugs me toward the hall and down the stairs. “I leave you alone for one second, and you manage to pull trouble from thin air.”
“It wasn’t my fault. He was following me,” I shoot back defensively.
“You shouldn’t have wandered off in the first place,” he growls, still gripping my arm.
