“Too well.” Amari tracked her every movement.
Samara zipped the jacket halfway, examining herself in a nearby mirror. “How do people move in these things? It’s so restrictive.”
I moved behind her, adjusting the collar of her jacket. Our eyes met in the mirror, and for a moment, I glimpsed the princess who’d once looked at me with fascination and love.
“I doubt I’ll keep it once we’re back in Inferna.” She turned to face me, close enough that I could feel her breath on my chin.
“A shame.” My fingers lingered on the zipper. “I was looking forward to removing it later.”
Before she could respond, Amari’s growl reminded us we weren’t alone. “If you two are done playing dress-up, we need a plan. It’s getting darker.”
I should have been happy about that, but as I caught my reflection in the mirror behind Samara, I noticed my eyes were darker than usual, my pupils blown wide.
Dangerous. This place made me dangerous in ways Inferna never did.
My body tensedas we stood at the back door of the shop. It was dark now, but I still had the prickling feeling from the sun on my skin.
Or was that my senses readying for a hunt?
Amari was standing outside the door, his hands on his hips. “You said we’d walk straight out of here. There’s a wall, and none of us are house mages.”
Samara rubbed her index finger over her lips in thoughtand stopped to glare at him. “I can see the wall, Amari. We’ll have to go around.” She adjusted the straps of the bag on her shoulders.
She’d put the sparkling pink one into a duller brown bag; once we got back to Inferna, we did not need to attract any attention.
We took off down the pathway toward the street where cars were zooming past. We would need to be careful because the last thing we needed was for one of us to get hit.
Amari and Samara were both silent as we rounded a corner onto the sidewalk and made our way in the direction we needed to go. I wasn’t as shocked as they were, but still in awe of what I was seeing.
Samara slipped her hand into mine. “There’s so much light and noise.”
And scents.
The scents were overwhelming as we walked past a crowd that waited outside what looked like a tavern. I instantly regretted breathing, as more than just food scents filled my nose.
I squeezed Samara’s hand tightly and glanced at Amari, who was watching me closely. If I snapped, he’d stop me.
We walked for what felt like an hour, though I couldn’t be certain. The streets had grown darker and more crowded, and the scents remained suffocating. Every time a human passed too close, my fangs ached, and I had to focus on keeping my breathing even. Samara must have felt my tension because her grip tightened on my hand.
Amari walked a few paces behind us, his gargoyle senses working overtime. His shoulders were tight, and his muscles were coiled like he was ready to spring into action at any moment.
I understood the feeling.
There was much blood pumping through these humans,and none of them had any idea how vulnerable they were. My mouth watered as a woman in a tight red dress stumbled past, her pulse visibly throbbing in her neck.
Focus.
I forced my gaze forward, counting the lights as we passed them. One, two, three...
“Are you okay?” Samara whispered, tilting her head up toward me.
I grunted in response, which seemed to satisfy her. Or she didn’t want to push me further.
A man stepped out of a doorway we’d been about to pass, blocking our path with a cocky smile. He was young, with messy hair and a leather jacket. His eyes slid over Samara with an appreciation that made my blood boil.
“Hey, beautiful. What’s a girl like you doing walking with these losers? Why don’t you give me your number and let me show you a good time?”
My lips pulled back, revealing the barest hint of fangs. “Walk away.”
