“Too much risk, Gwinifer,” replied Barracus without moving his stare. “For all we know, others have seen the human, too.”
“What did you say?” I asked, certain I’d heard him wrong.
Gwinifer sighed. “Then we might as well tell her.”
The older woman stared at me, her lips tight, her voice calm but stern. “You’re not in the Capital anymore, Miss Darling. You’ve crossed into mage territory.”
I frowned. “Is that supposed to mean something to me?”
“Allow me to introduce myself. I’m Cerridwen Cobweb. This is Barracus Crow, and this is Gwinifer Wicklow. We’re descendants of magekin, commonly known as mages, and you are in our territory.”
I couldn’t bring myself to react.
Before I could make sense of it, the doors to my right burst open. A figure strode toward us with swift, confident steps.
As Gwinifer stepped aside, I flattened my lips, my neck stiffening with a fear I couldn’t name.
He stormed past the others and halted just inches away, his broad shoulders blocking out the rest of the room.
The man’s voice bristled with hostility, his eyes sweeping over me from head to toe. “You’ve made a mistake wandering into our territory uninvited. Now, you can’t leave.”
CHAPTER 2
The stranger fixed me with ice-blue eyes beneath strong brows, taking my measure. A tight flicker ran through his square jaw, a strain that pricked at my instincts.
I stepped back.
“Excuse me?” I said. “What do you mean I cannot leave?”
He was tall. Even with space between us, I still tipped my chin to meet his stare and sensed the strange brush of air that seemed to come from him.
I searched for what made him different, taking in the muscular build and the straight dark brown hair that fell loosely across his forehead. Yet I could not pinpoint whatever clung to him, and the menacing tone he used didn’t give me time to wonder.
“That. I mean that,” he answered, turning his back to me, giving a view of the rumpled white button-up clinging to his broad back. “Did she say how?”
Cerridwen shook her head once.
“I don’t understand,” I said, feeling my palms sweat. “Who are you, and where is this place?”
The man stared at me with an impassive look. “You’re in Mountheim Hall, the castle of the northern estate in the mageborn territories.” The other three figures moved closer, as if granting themselves permission to approach now. “But you were not supposed to know that. Humans are not supposed to wander here.”
I swallowed hard and tried to steady my voice. “Humans? As opposed to...” My hand lifted before I realised how awkward it looked. “Right. Whatever this is, I want no part of it. I apologise if I trespassed on your land. I just want to leave.”
The door behind me gaped open, and I made for it without waiting for their answer. Perhaps the next station would be the right one. It would be a relief if anything made even the slightest sense today. But the memory of the creatures outside slid through my mind, and before I reached the threshold, the entrance door slammed shut.
My steps faltered, and a strange, heavy weight pressed against my legs.
I couldn’t move. Couldn’t lift my feet, almost as if unseen forces held them down. That same ghostly hold crept over my shoulders until I stiffened, my pulse quickening as I twisted at the waist.
The figures watched in wary silence, and the tall one began to stalk toward me.
“I told you. You cannot leave,” he said, his stance poised as though he meant to catch me the moment I tried.
Alarm flared through me, my nails sinking into my palms. If these strangers forced me to stay...
My thoughts muddled the moment I noticed his hands, noticed the veins beneath his skin gleaming as though someluminous substance coursed through them. A pale, unnatural light threaded along his fingers, gathering at the tips.
I braced and tried to lift my feet again, but my body was locked in place.
