His hand moved to stroke my hair, the gentle motion only pulling me further toward unconsciousness. "Sleep, then."
"You too," I murmured, already drifting. "S'comfortable here."
The last thing I registered before sleep claimed me was the press of his lips against my forehead and his whispered, "Goodnight, my mate."
I dreamed of hands holding mine. A thread glowed red-gold in the darkness, tying me to something that somehow needed me as much as I needed it. In my dream, I cradled that thread carefully, knowing I would fight to keep it whole.
A harsh electronic sound sliced through my dream, shattering the peaceful images. I jerked awake, disoriented in the near-darkness of an unfamiliar room. Magnur's arms tightened reflexively around me, though his breathing suggested he hadn't fully awakened. The TV's screensaver provided the only illumination, a slowly drifting pattern that cast weird, shifting shadows across the walls.
The noise came again. My phone. I blinked, trying to clear the fog of sleep from my brain as I stretched out an arm, careful not to disturb Magnur, and managed to snag my phone off the table. The screen blazed to life, painfully bright in the darkness.
INTRUSION DETECTED.
I stared at the notification, my brain refusing to process it for a long moment. Then, with clumsy fingers, I tapped to open the app connected to my apartment's security system.
- Front door sensor triggered at 2:37 AM
- Motion detected in living room at 2:38 AM
- Motion detected in bedroom at 2:40 AM
- Current status: Motion ongoing
Someone was in my apartment. Right now. Moving around in my bedroom.
Trevor.
The security app pinged with an update. "Camera 1 disconnected." Then, seconds later. "Camera 2 disconnected."
I swore, that bastard was making sure I couldn't identify him.
A new alert popped up. "Smoke detected."
My blood turned to ice. Trevor was setting fire to my apartment.
"Magnur," I said, my voice emerging as a strangled whisper. I cleared my throat and tried again, shaking his shoulder gently. "Magnur, wake up."
He stirred, eyes searching for me in the darkness.
"What's wrong?" he asked, instantly attuned to my distress.
I held up my phone, the screen still displaying the multiple alerts from my security system. "Someone's in my apartment. They've disabled the cameras and now something's burning." My voice shook despite my best efforts to keep it steady. "It's Trevor. It has to be."
The change that came over Magnur's face was terrifying to witness, his jaw tight as he held out his hand.
"Show me," he said.
I handed him the phone with trembling fingers, watching as his eyes scanned the alerts.
"He's going to regret this," Magnur said softly.
Chapter ten
Trick of the Light
Magnur
“I’m going there now,” I said, already moving toward the closet where I kept spare clothes. “You stay here. The building has wards. You’ll be safe.”
