I nodded and, together, we left the alley in silence. As soon as we stepped onto the brighter main street, a woman appeared in front of us.
Mary, my witch friend. Her magenta eyes were wild, and her pink hair messy. She wore a glittery silver dress that was more suited to midnight than the middle of the day, but the witches marched to the beat of their own drummer.
“Hi, Mary.”
“Carrow.” Her tone was frantic. “You need to help me. Beth has been taken.”
“Beth?” I hadn’t seen the other witch in a few days. “Taken? What do you mean?”
“She was taken right off the street.” Her voice shook. “We’re looking for her, of course, but nothing is working. It’s just been so . . . so . . .”
Her words trailed off, and her wild eyes searched the alley around us.
“Come here. Let’s sit down.” She really needed a seat. So did I. Beth was one of my friends. Worry made my heart race. I gestured for her to follow me toward a small garden that was nestled between two buildings across the street. A bench beckoned.
All around the bench, roses climbed up the wall of the tiny garden. A little fountain burbled in front of it and, as we sat on the bench, dozens of roses unfurled, opening to the late-afternoon sun. Faerie lights sparkled inside of them, glowing with magic as their heavenly scent filled the air.
Grey followed, his brow creased. He hovered at the entrance to the garden, watching us with concern. He really should have been on his way back to his place, but I didn’t have the heart to tell him to scram. Not like I could control his actions anyway. And he knew what was at stake.
“Tell me what’s wrong.” I searched her frantic eyes.
Mary drew in a shuddering breath. “Beth was abducted. The whole guild is trying to find her, but we need help.”
“Abducted?” No. Not Beth. Fear pierced me, cold and horrible. And two in the same night? And both on my doorstep? “From where? By whom?”
“We were out partying. It was late, and we were walking home. Beth thought she might be sick, so she dipped into Hangman’s Alley. She was only there a moment when a bloke with red eyes nabbed her. Dragged her right through an orange portal.”
Holy crap.
Serial kidnappings.
There was no way the two were unrelated. Not with the red eyes and orange portal.
Grey leaned forward from his spot by the garden entrance. “Red eyes, you say?”
Mary nodded frantically. “Unlike anything I’ve ever seen. They burned like fire.”
Recognition flashed in Grey’s eyes.
“You know something about this?” I asked, hope flaring.
Mary cringed back, as if recognizing the Devil of Darkvale for the first time. Her voice was tremulous when she said, “You.”
“Not I, if that’s what you’re implying,” Grey said. “I did not kidnap your friend. It is not quite the business I am in.”
Her pale face did not regain any color, and it reminded me of Grey’s reputation around town. I’d gotten to know him well enough that I didn’t think much of it any longer, but he was still the most powerful kingpin in all of Guild City. Also, the most feared.
I turned back to Mary. “Is there anything else you can tell me about the abduction? Anything left at the scene, perhaps?”
“No, I checked. Then the whole guild checked just for good measure. Not even a shard of the transport charm on the ground.”
“They vaporize when used,” Grey said.
“Right.” Mary nodded. “There was nothing. Beth was there one moment and gone the next.”
I leaned back against the bench, my mind racing. I needed leads. More than just red eyes and orange portals. There was already a lot at stake, but with Beth also
abducted . . .
This had become so much more important.
My gaze flicked to Grey, who was clearly chewing on something inside his mind. He recognized something about this.
I rubbed Mary’s shoulder. “Beth wasn’t the only one abducted last night, and I’m already trying to find who’s responsible. What are you and the guild doing?”
“Searching spells, mostly. We’re scrying to try to find her, but it’s not working.”
“Keep it up,” I said. “Anything helps. And I’m going to start looking for Beth immediately.”
“Thank you, Carrow.” She hugged me tight. “I knew you would.”
“Of course. Beth’s my friend.”
Mary stood, still shaking, and disappeared down the street.
Grey moved aside so he could leave the garden but didn’t come to sit next to me. I stood, staring at him. “What do you know?”
“I know who’s responsible for the kidnappings—or at least, whose goons did the dirty work.”
Elation jumped. “Tell me!”
“Not here.” His gaze flicked to the wall of roses behind me.
I looked back at the gorgeous flowers, my skin prickling with wariness. The walls have eyes. The old saying came to mind, and I rose. “Come on. We’ll go back to my place. I’m waiting for Mac to come back from the other crime scene.”
He nodded, and together we strode down the street toward my flat. We walked in silence, which was for the best.
About halfway to my flat, I said, “We’re not far from Hangman’s Alley, are we?”
“Only a couple streets over.”
“Let’s check it out real quick. Maybe I’ll get something.” I cut through the streets, grateful for my sense of direction. I didn’t know the entire town yet, but I knew a lot of it, especially the part around my flat.
Hangman’s Alley was a tiny little thing, an empty alley devoid of shops or bins. I definitely wasn’t surprised that it was frequently used as an impromptu loo by drunken kids.
We reached it a moment later, and I slipped into the cool, dark space. It was only a few feet wide, so narrow that it seemed pointless. And, of course, it smelled of wee.
I held my nose and ran my hands along the stone wall.
Please, please show me something.
4
Carrow
The alley wall was rough under my fingertips as I used my magic to try to read the stones.
What happened here last night? Who abducted Beth?
Red exploded in my mind, brilliant and violent, the color so blinding that it made my brain ache. Amongst the swirling bright red fog in my mind, a figure stood. I couldn’t see them clearly, but they were there. The power that radiated off the figure nearly sent me to my knees.
Screams of pain and the clash of steel sounded in my head, bringing with it the scent of mud and blood.
War.
A connection formed, something fierce and strong that pulled me toward the figure.
“Come to me.” The voice was deep and low in my head, blasting through me. Violence made audible.
Repulsion filled me.
I couldn’t go to this figure. Never. It would be the death of me. The death of so many.
Suddenly, the redness faded. Calm descended, white and pure. There was still a figure hidden amongst the mist, but they remained invisible.
“You must resist.” The voice was no longer terrifying. Instead, it was desperate. “You must stop this.”
What the hell was going on?
Two strong hands appeared on my shoulders, pulling me back. The connection broke. I gasped, stumbling against Grey’s strong chest. He clutched me close, keeping me upright.
“What happened?” he asked.
I pulled away, mourning the loss of the connection, and turned to him. “I don’t know. I just had the strangest vision. Like I was standing with someone.”
“You went totally still, like you went somewhere else.”
I turned back to the wall. “Maybe I did.”
His hand lightly touched my shoulder. “Your magic has grown.”
I shivered, feeling it race through me. Whatever had just happened had been different than the other times I’d used my skills. But why? My power was growing in such a weird, convoluted way. There was no pattern.
I looked at Grey. “I don’t what I just saw, but it has to do with the kidnappings.”
“And it made your power grow?”
I shivered, worried. “I don’t know.”
“But this is linked to you, somehow.”
“I don’t know.” My throat felt tight. “It was all so fast. It’s all just feelings. How am I supposed to learn anything from that?”
“Powerful magic follows no rhyme or reason, somehow.”
The words were no comfort. But I had to get Beth back. If that terrible voice was somehow connected to these kidnappings, I needed to find her soon. I looked up at Grey. “Let’s get back to my place. I want to hear what you know.”
Together, we hurried through the city. By the time we arrived at the street across from my flat, my skin was prickling with anticipation. The kidnappings and Grey’s presence fought to dominate my thoughts. We might have broken the fated bond between us, but we hadn’t broken the attraction.
I stepped off the pavement and into the street, my gaze on my flat. The motorbike came out of nowhere, going so fast that it seemed to appear from the blue.
Grey moved like lightning, gripping my shoulders and spinning me around, putting himself between me and the bike.
It nearly hit him, missing by a margin of inches. My heart thundered as I panted, looking up to meet his gaze. Concern flickered in the depths.
“Are you all right?” he breathed.
“I don’t know where my mind was.” On you.
We stood so close that the heat of him radiated through me, his firelight and whiskey scent wrapping around me like a blanket. Protectiveness radiated from him.
He swallowed hard and stepped back, letting go of my arms. “Come.”
He turned and looked both ways. The street was clear, so he crossed. I hurried after him, my gaze riveted to his broad back.
He’d put himself between me and danger always.
I knew it like I knew my own name. The bond between us was broken. It had taken with it some of the familiarity that I felt with him, some of the natural fit that we felt.