Natalia stood, her wings unfolding. "I thought you should know, there's someone watching you from the trees."
I slanted a glance at the woods lining the trails. There was no movement that I could see. Nothing stirred in the deep shadows.
That didn't mean there wasn't anything there, just that they were better at hiding than most.
If Natalia was right and I was being watched, I could think of only one person who had admitted to being a stalker of late.
Connor.
I shook my head and groaned.
"Don't die, Aileen. You're a source of endless entertainment for the flock." Natalia sprang into the air, winging her way back to the others.
I scowled at her retreating back. "What does that mean?"
She lifted a hand over her shoulder in a wave.
"Natalia? You and your sisters aren't sitting around watching me, are you?"
No answer.
Damn it. They were.
"We'll revisit this conversation at a later time," I muttered under my breath as I stood, facing the woods. For now, I had a stalker to chase off.
*
I lingered on the running path, opening my senses to the world around me. My magic sight settled over me, overlaying the mundane world with its kaleidoscope of colors.
Magic, or at least some semblance of it, ran through most things. Often it was weak, no more than a spark.
My stalker might be good at going undetected, but I was willing to bet he forgot to shield his magic.
At the edge of my vision, power flared—a brilliant white. It reminded me of lightning, searing hot for an instant before it was gone again.
I smirked, my feet taking me toward where I'd seen the flash.
"Connor, you might as well come out. I know you're here," I called.
The forest rustled, the shadows moving as a man stepped onto the trail, an umbrella held over his head to shade his face.
I stumbled to a stop. I'd found something, but it wasn’t what I expected.
The stranger dipped forward in a bow. "You found me, my dear. Though I confess, I don't know who this Connor is."
I looked around uneasily.
This was a clever trap. The worse part was I'd blundered into it on my own, and I had no one to blame but myself. My overconfidence had made it easy for him to lure me into a quiet, secluded part of the path, the river gurgling only a few steps away and the trees shielding us from prying eyes.
“This is the second time we’ve met," I said, after a moment.
The umbrella man straightened. "Indeed."
"Why are you following me?"
Shadows stirred under the umbrella, darker shapes against the night. I squinted but couldn't pick out any details.
"To get your measure." His voice was cultured and deep with the faintest of accents.
