Inesa stared at the blonde boy. He’d been looking for her too? But why? And if so, how had it taken so long to cross paths?

  The boy was staring at her like he was waiting for a response, but now that he was before her, Inesa didn’t know what to say. She couldn’t ask him about the book and the portals in the middle of a busy dining room.

  “Move,” one of her fellow servers said, swinging a large tray over her head, “you’re blocking the entrance.”

  Inesa stammered an apology, looking around for a place to go. She was still meant to be working, but she also couldn’t let the boy disappear again.

  “It’s my fault,” the boy said, giving the other server a winning smile. “If you’ve got a quiet table, I’ll get out of your way.”

  The other girl smiled back. “No problem,” she said, her voice now honey sweet. “Inesa, there’s a table that just opened up near the counter. You can give him that one.”

  Neither of them tried to speak as Inesa led him to the indicated table.

  After he was seated, she listed off the dishes they were offering that night as though he were any other customer, and she hadn’t spent all her free time trying to track him down.

  “I’ll have the roasted pork and a pint of ale,” he said.

  When she turned to go, he grabbed her wrist. “What time does your shift end?”

  Had he been anyone else, this action would have sent a stab of fear through her heart. If the innkeeper overheard, he would have the boy thrown out, but a quick glance over her shoulder revealed that the innkeeper was currently distracted with another customer.

  “Late,” Inesa said. “We close after midnight.”

  The boy released her and asked, “Are you free tomorrow?”

  Tomorrow. Tomorrow was when she’d planned to leave Daralis behind and head for home. All that had changed now. She could stay another day if it meant she’d have help finding the answers to free her father.

  “Yes,” Inesa answered. “I only work the night shift.”

  “Good. I’ll meet you tomorrow morning. Two hours after dawn. Find me out back by the stables. There are some people very interested in meeting you.”

  She hoped it was the magic group he belonged to, so she could ask them about Sterling’s book and this magic world she was tasked with finding.

  “Tomorrow morning,” she agreed.

  They didn’t speak again for the rest of the night. She brought him his meal, which he ate in a hurry before leaving money on the table and disappearing into the night.

  After he left, the rest of Inesa’s shift passed slower than it ever had before. When the night was finally over and the last of the patrons had departed, Inesa headed up to her room. Normally, she would have fallen straight into bed, but tonight she found she couldn’t sleep.

  Instead, she lit the one small candle in her room and pulled out Sterling’s book. It had been days since she’d flipped through the pages, so maybe now she would see some clue she had missed before.

  Inesa woke in a panic with a terrible pain in her neck. Sterling’s book was still open in her lap, so she must have nodded off without realizing it.

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  As she massaged the cramp out of her neck, she caught sight of the sun outside her small window. It was already up in the sky.

  She was late.

  Inesa raced around her room, gathering her belongings. She took everything with her in case she didn’t return. If she’d missed her chance to speak with the boy, then she would leave for home. She couldn’t waste any more time here.

  She arrived out of breath at the stables to find the boy leaning against one of the peeling walls. Once again, he wore the same black robe that made him stand out from the people around him.

  “There you are,” he said, straightening up as she approached. “I was beginning to think you weren’t going to show.”

  “I’m sorry. It was a late night, and then I stayed awake—”

  “I was only teasing you,” he said, cutting her off. “I haven’t been waiting long. My name is Jalen, by the way. I don’t think I properly introduced myself before.”

  “Inesa,” she said, accepting his proffered hand. Once again, her eyes caught on the tattoo on his wrist when his sleeve moved.

  “Mage’s mark,” Jalen said when he noticed her stare. “All members of our group have one.”

  “I was hoping to ask you about them—your group, that is. I have a problem. I think maybe you could help me with it, or maybe someone in your group might know the answer.”

  “Well, they are eager to meet you,” he said. “That is why I’ve been trying to find you, actually. We’ve heard some whisperings about a girl who fits your description.”

  “What have you heard about me?” she asked.

  This was better than she had hoped. She’d expected to have to prove her abilities before he would take her to meet his group.

  “Let’s walk,” Jalen suggested, “and I will tell you.”

  She agreed, and he led her to the street already bustling with people.

  “Rumor has it,” he said, leading her into a part of the city she’d never explored, “the king has ordered a girl with a special book to find a portal to a magical world.”

  “Sounds like something from a story,” Inesa said, looking around for listening ears. She didn’t know how the information had gotten out. Maybe one of the guards who had been there that day had talked. Although if they had, she couldn’t imagine they’d remain in the king’s employ for long.

  “Indeed, and around the same time this was said to have taken place, I happened to run into a girl with a book.”

  “Not unusual.” Inesa wasn’t sure why this conversation was making her uneasy. This was what she’d wanted.

  “No, but what was unusual was that she admitted the book was about magic. She happens to be thinking about this book right now and was also thinking about it last night.”

  “Are you trying to tell me your group is interested in my book? I’m happy to show it to them if they think it might help me find this portal,” she said, giving up all pretense that the rumor wasn’t about her.

  “This way,” Jalen said, ignoring her question and leading her down a narrow side alley to a set of stairs disappearing into the ground.

  Inesa stopped at the top of the stairs. “Where are we going?”

  “This is where the group meets,” he explained. “Come on. Everyone will be waiting for us.”

  She looked over her shoulder. Behind her, the alleyway was empty. If this ended badly, there would be no one around to hear her scream.

  Oh, stop it, she admonished herself, Jalen has been nothing but kind to you.

  Still, she couldn’t shake that nagging feeling that something was wrong.

  At the bottom of the stairs, Jalen knocked twice on a rusted metal door before pulling it open and ushering her inside.

  It took a moment for her eyes to adjust to the dark space. It was lit only by the light of candles ringing the outer edge of the room. The walls were rough-hewn brick, and the floor was dirt.

  “This way,” Jalen said, taking her hand and leading her into the center of the space.

  Shadowy figures moved around the edges of the room, and one of them broke away from the others to meet them.

  “Is this the girl?” a male voice asked. His face was hidden under his hood.

  “Yes,” Jalen said. “This is Inesa.”

  “And she has the book? You’ve seen it?”

  “Show him,” Jalen told her.

  Inesa hesitated.

  “Go on. You have it with you, don’t you?”

  “And then you will be able to tell me how to find the portal?” She’d gladly hand the book over to them if they could tell her. Then she’d go straight to the king and free her father. The book wasn’t technically hers to give away, but she doubted Sterling would be coming back for it.

  “And have the king know how to access the other world? I think not,” the hooded man said. He snapped his fingers at Jalen. “Take care of this.”

  Inesa shook her head, backing away. Every instinct in her screamed that something was wrong. “You said you would help me find the portal,” she said as Jalen followed her, hands tucked behind his back.

  “I promised nothing,” Jalen said. “Now if you won’t hand over the book like he asked, we will be forced to do this the hard way.”

  Inesa’s back hit the brick wall. There was nowhere else to go. She clutched her satchel to her chest. “You can have the book, but I must know where the portal is.”

  “I’m sorry,” Jalen said, “but some secrets must be kept.”

  He pressed a foul-smelling rag over her face, and then Inesa knew no more.