The man stared at her, confusion locked on his face and his body frozen in his last position. Only his mouth moved as he answered her question.
“Upstairs, the third room on the right,” he replied, his voice afraid.
{Tell me where everyone else is in the house.}
“Ben is at the back door and Elyse is outside his door.” The man’s voice shook, but not a muscle in his body moved.
{Ignore any sounds you hear until morning. Forget that you saw and spoke to me.}
After finishing her instructions, Ena gasped for breath. That was the most commands she’d given using her Gift, and she felt the strain on her magic already, but she kept going.
The man instantly turned back to his book as if nothing had happened, and Ena walked quietly towards the back of the house. She saw Ben there, sitting in a chair that had been dragged next to the door, whittling something out of wood. She recognized him as one of the witches who’d been bringing her food the last few days, and he stood up at her approach, realization dawning on his face.
He moved to speak, but Ena was faster.
{Forget you saw me. Sit down and sleep until someone wakes you.}
He sat down in a trance and closed his eyes instantly.
Turning her back on him, Ena returned to find the stairs. She hoped her movements hadn’t already alerted the final witch’s Knowing, but that hope was dashed as she crested the top and heard Elyse speak.
{Aeris}
A gust of air threw her off balance and she fell halfway back down the stairs, landing awkwardly on the saddlebag she carried as it partially cushioned her fall. She scrambled to right herself, ignoring the throbbing on the side of her head where she’d whacked it on the banister, and looked up to see Elyse glaring down at her. Ena felt her Gift surge through her anew, her anger rising. Before Elyse could do anything else, Ena spoke.
{Lay down, close your eyes, don’t move.}
The woman froze, her face screwed up in anger, before laying down and closing her eyes. Ena righted herself the rest of the way and walked up the stairs to stand in front of her. She breathed heavily as she drew on her exhausted magic to finish the commands. She was dizzy from her fall, but she hoped this effort would cover her tracks.
{I was never here.When someone finds you, tell them a daemon came and forced you to unlock the door. Then he knocked you unconscious and left with the prisoner.}
The woman didn’t move or show any acknowledgement that she’d heard Ena, but she wasn’t asleep, so Ena hoped the compulsion would work as intended. She released her grip on her Gift in sudden exhaustion, then stumbled to the door of Ty’s room.
Her magic was nearly exhausted, even her Knowing seemed dimmed, but she dredged up what she could to feel for the metal in the lock on the door and spoke her spellword.
{Clavis}
Thankfully, she heard the lock click. She turned the handle slowly, and stepped into a dark room.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Asinglecandleburnedlow on a table. Ena squinted in the dark, trying to make out where the furniture was, and where Ty might be, when an arm reached out and looped around her waist from behind. She opened her mouth to speak just as a hand reached out and covered it.
She squirmed and mumbled incoherently into the hand, but he didn’t let go, so she bit him.
“Damn! Easy, viper,” Ty said from behind her. He released her mouth, shaking out his injured hand, but kept his arm still looped around her waist. “What are you doing here, Ena?” he asked in surprise.
“I need to talk to you,” Ena replied angrily. His arm finally loosened around her waist, so she spun to look at him. She could just make out his face in the dimly lit room, and it still took her breath away.
Somehow, in the days they’d been apart, she’d forgotten just how beautiful he was. Thick lashes framed his light-green eyes as they bored into her. His perfect, kissable lips were parted slightly as his dark brows lowered in confusion. The candlelightdanced in his beard, making the mix of lighter blond hairs glow against the darker browns and reds.
“Are you okay? Did they hurt you?” he asked, concern etched on his face.
“Asks the man who just grabbed me when I came in the room,” she said, still feeling a bit irked at his welcome.
“I wasn’t sure who you were at first. Myvenatordoesn’t work in here and I heard a commotion outside the door. Are you sure you’re okay? I’ve been asking about you, but they wouldn’t tell me anything.”
Her temper softened at his distressed tone. “I’m fine. They’re letting me go,” she said, giving him a small smile.
