“To test your magic.” The answer doesn’t come from Walker, who leans back against the door; it comes from the far corner of the room, where a man steps out of the shadows.
Not just any man.
Jude.
I run my tongue over my bottom lip as I let that word take root.
Test.
A shiver runs down my spine as I recall the last kind of testing I received from The Sanctum. My gaze darts around the room again and Jude snickers.
“There’s no exit,” he states, and I glare at him from the corner of my eye.
“I’m not looking for one.”
“Then what are you looking for?” he asks, slowly inching closer toward me.
“Whatever you’re about to torture me with.” I don’t miss the way his brows furrow slightly.
“I said test, not torture,” he clarifies, and I scoff.
“This isn’t my first test,” I reiterate as he comes to a stop before me.
His hands slip into his pants pockets as he assesses me, head tilting to the left as he purses his lips for a moment. “The Sanctum?”
I don’t bother to answer. If he’s smart enough to put two and two together, he doesn’t need validation from me.
Amusement dances over his features as he nods toward the door. “Use your magic on Walker.”
I startle at his order, my head snapping back as I frown in confusion. “What?”
“You heard me,” he pushes, taking a step back this time as he nods toward the only other person in the room. Irritation takes root in my gut.
“No,” I blurt, shaking my head sharply as he rakes his teeth over his bottom lip.
“It wasn’t a question.”
Irritation heightens to anger as I snap my gaze to the man in question, only to find him a few steps behind me instead of by the door where he had been a moment ago. Walker lifts his arms wide at his sides, inviting me to come at him, and I scoff.
Anger burns into rage as every drop of pain this man has put me through comes to mind.
The suffering. The loss. The heartache.
My nostrils flare as I charge toward him, hands raised as I slam them against his chest, only for nothing to happen. Nothing. Not even a little backward step.
“Again,” Walker grunts, eyes narrowed on me.
I huff, retracting my hands only to slam them against his chest again a moment later, but still, nothing happens.
“Again.” The order comes from Jude this time, but I don’t bother to look at him as I heave a breath and repeat the motion. It’s no surprise to me when nothing comes of it.
A hand wraps around my shoulder, fingertips pressing into my flesh as I’m spun on the spot.
“Actually mean it,” Jude bites as I recall the lady’s words from earlier.
Gulping, I shuffle my feet so they’re shoulder-width apart. “It doesn’t work like that.”
“I said fucking mean it!” he growls, spinning me back to face Walker, and I quickly stabilize my feet like the woman whispered earlier.
