Dropping my leather pack from my shoulder, I open the main compartment and pull out my heavy black wool cloak. I slip out of my sweatshirt and settle the cloak over my shoulders, even though it’s a bit much for a late February morning in the Arizona desert. It’s a fashion choicewith my long-sleeved T-shirt, jeans, and hiking boots, but depending on where this door leads, I’ll appreciate the warmth once I’m through to the other side. And it’ll help me blend in where I’m going—if this works. I open the front flap of the backpack, pull out my phone and keys, and hand both, along with the sweatshirt, to Val. “Wipe the phone and sell it. Or keep it. It’s yours now, along with the car.” I glare at him. “Don’t wreck my baby.”
Val’s laughter rings out over the rocky terrain. “You act like it’s a sports car of some kind. Trust me, I won’t be out joyriding in a 2020 Kia Sportage.” His grin fades to a soft smile. “Though I do thank you for giving it to me. And I promise to take care of it.”
I close my pack and sling it over my shoulder as I stand, then pull him into one more hug. “You’ll be okay trekking back by yourself?”
“I’ll be fine. As long as I avoid twisting an ankle on a geode or getting bitten by snakes while I haul my ass about twenty minutes east, find the dirt bike, and avoid getting arrested by border patrol while riding back to Tumacácori. Easy.”
Damn, I’m going to miss his sarcasm. “Take care of yourself, brother. And watch out for Ronan. If heiswho we think he is, they’ll eventually come after him.”
“I’ll protect him with my life.” It’s said matter-of-factly, with no drama, which is unusual for Val, and once again, I wonder if there’s something going on there. Either way, he’ll make sure Ronan is safe. It’s what we were trained to do. Like me, he was acquired at a young age to become a Shade, a shadow assassin for the secret arm of the OnyxGuild. It was kill or be killed, literally, from the moment training began. Those of us who survived bonded like brothers.
I squeeze him once more and kiss his cheek. “Alright. Let’s see if this works.” I step up to the archway, turn the ring so the gem is facing down, and place my palm against the stone. A low hum rumbles from the structure. It vibrates through the ring, into my palm, quickly spreading through my whole body, making the hairs on my arms and legs stand on end. I glance at Val, who stares, wide-eyed. He shoots me two thumbs up. Laughing, I flip him off as the gateway opens with a whoosh. Turning around, I stare at the rippling image of the world on the other side. It’s nighttime there, and I shade my eyes, trying to adjust for the difference in light. Based on the massive pillars and the sloping tiled roofs on the buildings, it looks like Seiiki City in Heisei. It’s the wrong continent from where I want to be, but at least I’ll be in the right world. I turn to Val. “It’s somewhere in Heisei. So not too far off. I’m sure I can find a translocation circle to get me to Amal.” I hold his gaze for another minute, my heart wanting to both stay and go. “Love you.”
He puts his hand over his heart. “Love you too, brother. Be safe.”
I take off the ring and toss it back. Then, firming my resolve, I face the gateway and step through.
Chapter 2
The Hunt Begins
Easing into the open-air market, I trail after Leonardo as he dodges between the various stalls, avoiding the multitude of colorfully garbed people finishing their day’s shopping. Even this late in the day, there are several Amethyst Guild members in their light green Healer tunics, stocking up on medicinal herbs and haggling with merchants over the price of bemweed and rosewort. Typically, the spring market would be an excellent place to lose a shadow, if the effort is put in and the person doing the shadowing isn’t me. But Leonardo is being sloppy. It’s like he’s blatantly ignoring the years of training that earned him his ranked position in the Shabah. More likely, he’s complacent now that the Onyx Guild is in bed with certain powerful people in the government.
I drop back, blending in with a cluster of shoppers as Leonardo sidesteps a woman and her small child. The damn fool isn’t even using a cloakingspell. It’s obvious when the mother glares directly at him as she pulls her child against her legs. Not that it would do him any goodwith the way he’s bumbling through the crowd. The spell doesn’t make you invisible. It only deflects attention. And it only helps if you avoid running headlong into people. They’ll notice being knocked aside, or on their ass, no matter how strong the spell is. Leonardo rushes on, not even sparing a second to apologize or make sure the child is alright. What a prick. I stop next to the mother, dropping to a knee in front of her child. “Hey. Are you okay? That man knocked you around a bit.”
The male-presenting child is maybe five or six, average build for someone his age, with big green eyes and warm brown skin. He’s left-handed, not hiding any weapons, and no threat. He leans into his mother, who is about five feet, two inches, slight of build, with deep brown eyes and brown skin matching her son. She’s right-handed, unarmed, and a minimal threat. The boy nods in response to my question. “I am fine. Thank you.”
His mom brushes her fingers through his short black hair and smiles down at him. “Thank you for stopping to check.”
“You’re welcome. Have a pleasant evening.” I hurry after Leonardo, who hasn’t gotten far. Keeping my distance while remaining alert, I move with the ebb and flow of the crowd.
One of the first lessons we learned in the Shabah was disappearing in plain sight. As young children of six or seven, we’d practiced over and over, with and without spells, until we became the shadows our lowly rank was named for. Once we mastered that, we graduated to Ghosts, the Guild’s pickpockets, and thieves, sent on scavenger huntsthrough the market for random objects. At least that’s how it seemed to a much younger me. Now I’m pretty sure they were sending us after objects they needed for one reason or another. It was good practice for us, but the Guild doesn’t do anything without a reason or an ulterior motive. And itisa useful skill. None of us understood how important it would be to our survival. Watching Leonardo now, it’s apparent he never learned any of that or didn’t retain it.
I glance around the market, making sure no one is following me. It’s another habit ingrained during our training. There are only two individuals near me who stand out in the crowd of mostly unremarkable people. One is a young male-presenting person in his late teens, wearing the deep blue kimono of the Sapphire Guild. Blond hair, pale skin, left-handed, no weapons, minimal threat. He’s haggling with the local gem merchant over a star sapphire pendant that radiates strong augury magic. It’s not a threat to me, but out of habit, I focus on the onyx in my tattoos and blades, comforted by the pulse of my cloaking spell around me.
The other standout is a female-presenting person, dressed in the blue and silver of House Durov, in her mid-thirties, shoulder-length dark brown hair, olive-toned skin, right-handed, five foot, eight inches tall, armed with a short sword and a dagger, both sheathed. The way she moves indicates she’s physically aware of her surroundings, graceful, and knows how to use the weapons at her side, which makes her a medium-level threat. She practically runs into Leonardo when he abruptly stops in front ofher. Whatishe doing? Is he drunk? Why isn’t he cloaking? True, therearepeople withClear Sight, but it’s rare. To someone with that magical talent, no level of cloaking will keep a person or thing from being seen. And that’s the biggest risk for me, being in the market in broad daylight.
Though I’m pretty sure I’m not detected. The Guild thinks I’m dead. No thanks to Leonardo, who was the assassin sent to kill me. Well, sent to kill Kas. I happened to be there too. And when I survived the attack and faked my death, Leonardo didn’t try very hard to verify that. Maybe this lax behavior isn’t a new thing after all. Then again, the Guild never sent anyone else to verify my death, so maybe I’m overestimating my value to them. But I suppose since Kas was their real target, and they had a body to prove he was dead, they didn’t much care to follow up on one stray Protector who might still be alive. That doesn’t mean if someone recognizes me and that information gets to the Guild, they won’t come after me. It’s why I’m being incredibly careful now that I’m back.
When I finally make my move, Leonardo will be on the list of those who’ll suffer painfully. But taking him out will cause a ripple effect, and I’m not ready to set that wave in motion. Not until I have all the pieces lined up. For now, I’ll do my homework, and eventually, the time will be right. Then every person involved in Kas’s death will die—agonizingly slowly, andsovery painfully—but only whenI’mready.
Leonardo pauses next to a booth selling communication mirrors, and I slip behind an adjacent stall, hiding in the late afternoon shadows. He glances left and right beforecontinuing on. Given where we are and what’s around us, it’s easy to guess which way he’s going, so I duck into an alley at the back of the market. Hugging the cool stone facade of the old Merchants Guild building, I glance up and down the empty side street before grasping a rung of the decorative ironwork affixed to the outer wall and giving it a strong tug. It doesn’t budge and should hold my weight. I’m not a large man. A fact that often has people underestimating me. Always to their detriment.
With a quick glance in all directions, I leap, rapidly climbing to a second-story balcony. I slip over the stone balustrade as Leonardo appears at the mouth of the alleyway. He pauses, glancing left and right before following after me. The fool is a complete disgrace to his training. All new Shabah recruits learn to lookeveryway, including behind and above. He is so lucky I’m not planning to attack him today.
He used to be unmatched in skill. He came to Amagi from Sicily on Earth as a refugee. His coven was under attack by religious zealots loyal to The Holy See. The Watchers on Earth identified the coven as at risk, and the specially trained witches from the Onyx Guild brought them all here to safety. Even as a young man, Leonardo showed signs of being a bruiser and was recruited almost immediately into those very same Protector ranks of the Onyx Guild. His size and fighting skills worked in his favor, and he rapidly rose through the ranks. By the time he turned twenty-one, he’d been assimilated into the Shabah. There haven’t been many Earthborn who’ve accomplished that. Or survived thetraining.
Back then, hehadbeen as quick as he was deadly and had a reputation for taking great pleasure in torturing his targets. As well as any recruits unfortunate enough to have him as their mentor. I was one of those unfortunates. I rub my left forearm, and my fingertips catch on the jagged scar beneath the soft linen of my tunic. There will come a time in the not-so-distant future where Leonardo and I will meet again, face-to-face. And I’ll take great pleasure paying him back, slowly and in kind.
In a laughably delayed flash of his training, he furtively glances over his shoulder into the market. Idiot. With one large hand, he pulls the hood of his cloak lower over his face before hurrying deeper into the dimly lit alley, passing directly beneath me before stopping in front of a plain, unmarked wooden door. He knocks once, follows with two quick taps, then waits.
Bright light and laughter spill onto the street as the door swings open. A mountain of a man fills the doorway, peering closely into Leonardo’s hood before stepping aside, allowing him to enter.
The establishment is one of several Pleasure Houses in Panah city. The Carnelian Guild’s pleasure houses are common in all medium- and large-sized cities of Amagi, but unlike those on Earth, here they’re respected businesses. There’s no stigma associated with frequenting pleasure houses and no shame in being a Companion.
With one last glance at the door, I move back to the balustrade and swing my leg over. Leonardo will be occupied for the foreseeable future, so there’sno point in lingering. I’ve learned what I need to and confirmed what I suspected, and now I have other preparations to make.
Rapidly descending to ground level, I once again melt into the shadows and slip back down the alley, staying along the edge of the market, searching for the most expeditious path through the milling crowd. The flash of a pitch-black cloak catches my eye, and I slow my pace, lingering behind a group of gossiping shoppers. The Protector crosses the street, generally moving in my direction, though I don’t think they’ve seen me. Especially with my cloaking spell active. They aren’t someone I recognize, but that’s not unexpected. I rarely worked with recruits or the lower ranks of the Protectors. There’s a very strong chance they wouldn’t recognize me even if I wasn’t cloaking myself and they stared right at my face. But better safe than sorry. Lingering is asking for trouble I don’t need. If the Guild discovers I’m back in Amagi, I’ll be dead before the end of the day, and I most definitely have other plans for my future.
