I was almost done painting the symbols Patrik needed to fuel his spell. I’d gone through the city, keeping a low profile, wrapped up in a dark brown cloak, and did a decent job of mingling with the locals. I’d done nine rounds of symbols on all four points of each level.

One round was left, on four walls at the top of Azure Heights.

My stomach tightened as I cast the brown cloak aside, thankful the awnings were out and providing enough shade, so I wouldn’t have to cover my head. The Five Lords’ mansions were heavily guarded by Correction Officers—a new measure that had most likely gone into place after Minah’s murder. They were all wearing their blue badges on their arms, visible enough to make themselves easily recognizable.

There were four stationed outside each main entrance, with two more doing the rounds. They noticed me as I reached the top of the stairs, the symbols list tucked in my back pocket and the paint mix tin can in my hand.

I walked over to the Correction Officers guarding the Roho mansion. Their grayish gazes settled on my face as I gave them a brief nod and pointed at the southern wall of the house, wearing my cool, downright nonchalant expression.

“Hey guys,” I said. “I’m going to paint a symbol on four walls on this level, for a protection spell.”

They didn’t answer.

“Okay.” I shrugged. “Just thought you should know. I really don’t like weapons drawn on me, so I’d appreciate it if you let me do my job of protecting this city, and I’ll happily let you all live to do yours. M’kay?”

I put on a faux grin and walked over to the southern wall. The Correction Officers didn’t react, but they didn’t let me out of their sight either. I painted a symbol with my bare hand, then went back to the front of the Kifo mansion, giving the Maras a sideways glance.

Caspian’s home was right in the middle, and its front wall was perfect for a west-facing swamp witch symbol. The four Correction Officers posted outside the main door straightened their backs as I reached them, holding my can up, along with three paint-smeared fingers.

“This is perfectly reasonable vandalism, I promise.” I winked and drew another symbol right next to the front door, large and dark red with purple shimmers. I took a couple of steps back to admire my handiwork and couldn’t stop myself from grinning. It looked terrible on that pristine white façade. Caspian was probably going to have a stroke, provided he saw it before it dried up and turned invisible. “Yep, looks fabulous!”

I moved to the north side and painted the third symbol on Farrah’s mansion, then went behind the massive estate, where the stables lined the entire eastern side. A dark forest rose beyond them, before the steep drop into the ocean. There were several narrow spaces between the stables, leading into the woods, blocked by waist-high iron fences, most likely meant to ward off animals that might spook the horses.

The two patrolling Maras were at the front of the Five Lords’ estate, and I was on my own back by the stables. I rushed over to the back wall of the Kifo mansion, biting the inside of my cheek to stifle another grin as I painted the last symbol. It was the perfect east-facing wall for Patrik’s spell, after all.

Not my fault it happens to be Kifo’s.

I heard horses neighing behind me, and hooves clacking over the pebbled road. I turned around and instantly thought of rushing out of there before anyone could see me, but it was already too late.

“Harper, is it?” Amalia’s crystalline voice made me freeze on the spot.

She dismounted her indigo horse, gently guiding the animal back into its stable. It was a beautiful mare with a long black mane and strong muscles. I would’ve loved to ride that creature over the plains—the ones back on Calliope had left me breathless and exhilarated after a few races around Luceria.

I suddenly felt like a kid caught vandalizing the neighbor’s wall, my hands behind my back, clutching the paint can.

Technically speaking, you did vandalize the neighbors’ walls. One of them twice. And you enjoyed it a little too much.

Amalia gave me a warm smile as she reached me, taking her black velvet hood and cover off to reveal her elegant, dark green riding outfit and knee-length, brown leather boots. Her pale blond hair was caught in a low ponytail, and her blue eyes glimmered with curiosity.

“Yes, Harper Hellswan,” I managed, my tone surprisingly firm for how nervous I felt. “Of GASP.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you.” She smiled, then took her gloves off and extended a hand.

I instinctively reached out and shook it, then stilled when I realized I’d used the hand I’d painted with. Amalia’s hand was left with smudges of Patrik’s red paint mix. My eyes nearly popped out, and my cheeks caught fire.

“I am so… so sorry about that,” I croaked, wishing for the ground to split open and gobble me up.

She was delicate and refined, so ladylike and beautiful. I felt like a scrappy kid in front of her. Her laughter befuddled me even more, as she looked at the paint on her hand.

“Oh, it’s okay!” she replied, then glanced at the wall behind me, visibly amused. “I know Caspian was exceptionally rude last night, but do you think painting symbols on his house will make him change his ways?”

I blinked several times, then shook my head.

“This isn’t… This isn’t what it looks like.” I sighed. “It’s for a spell. Our Druid is putting together a protective shield for the city tonight, and he needs these symbols painted on specific walls.” I then pointed at the wall behind me. “This one just happens to be one of those… specific walls.”

“As was the façade, right?” Amalia grinned. “I saw your artwork when I came up…”

“Not my fault if Kifo built his mansion in the middle.” I shrugged.

Amalia seemed pretty cool, from where I stood at this point. Elitist, but friendly and nice. Didn’t exactly look down on me, but I didn’t see her bending over backward to accommodate me as a guest at her regular tea parties. At least she wasn’t snide and stuffy, like most upper-class creatures I’d met on Earth.

“It’s okay, Harper. I won’t tell him you did it.” She chuckled.

“Nah, by all means, please do,” I replied with a smirk. “You can even describe the face he makes later. I know I’ll enjoy it.”

She laughed again, but quickly turned serious, her brows slightly furrowed.

“Harper, about last night,” she said, her voice low. “Please accept my apologies on behalf of the Five Lords for what Caspian said. I didn’t know your hearing was that good. I knew we shared some crucial similarities, despite our different species, but I really didn’t think you could hear us, so… I’m sorry. I would’ve stopped him sooner, before he made a fool of himself…”

That was an interesting fact to learn. Neither Jax nor Heron had ever told me the reach of their hearing ability, but Amalia had just clarified that for me. I made a brief mathematical calculation in my mind, and stored the result somewhere in my memory palace, knowing it would come in handy at a later date. I then gave her a half-smile and a polite nod.

“There’s no need to apologize on Lord Kifo’s behalf,” I replied. “He’s a big boy. He can do it himself, if he wants to. Although, to be honest, I don’t care—and his elitism means nothing to me. It means even less to GASP. We’re not here to dress nice and pretend we like you. We’re here to help and protect your people.”

I must’ve hit her hard with my statement, based on the brief flicker of pain in her expression. She took a deep breath, then nodded.

“You are absolutely right, Harper. Will you at least accept my personal apology for not shutting him up, regardless of your physical presence at the time?”

“I do. It’s okay,” I said. “We come from different worlds. I know very little about yours, and you know even less about mine. There’s bound to be a cultural clash, sooner or later.”

“You know,” she chuckled, “Caspian isn’t usually so rude and mean. He’s actually very kind, honorable, and noble. I think he likes you, and that’s why he acts like such a—”

“Jerk?” I offered with a raised eyebrow, prompting another chuckle from her.

“Well, yes. And he seems to be very interested in you. I’m not sure if he’s just curious or if he’s attracted to you, though. It’s too early to tell with him, because he always puts on this brooding and quiet mask. Caspian is a good Mara, but he’s not very good at expressing his emotions.”

My heart started beating a little bit faster, enough to tell me that I wasn’t indifferent to the idea of Caspian’s interest in me. But that was very difficult to digest, as a premise, especially after all the things he’d said and that motherlode of glares he’d reserved exclusively for me. I scoffed and shook my head, once again annoyed by what he’d said last night.

“Please don’t go there,” I replied dryly. “First of all, I highly doubt Caspian has any interest in me whatsoever, unless it involves pissing me off, in which case he’s first in line. Second, I wouldn’t touch Caspian with a ten-foot pole, especially given his rotten behavior from the very moment we landed on Neraka.”

Amalia stared at me for a few seconds, looking genuinely confused. She clearly hadn’t expected me to reject the idea, though I wasn’t sure what part of my behavior had made her think I might like him.

“Excuse me, but I need to go back to the infirmary now.” I decided to end our little exchange there. “Thank you for your kind words, though. I appreciate it.”

I gave her another curt nod, then turned around to leave and bumped into something tall and solid. I moved back and felt my temperature drop below zero in an instant, then spike to volcanic levels.

Caspian stood before me, elegant in dark blue, his hands behind his back, glaring at me.

Judging by the muscle twitching in his firm jaw, he’d heard everything I’d just said. His jade eyes drilled into my soul, and I felt terrible. He’d sort of apologized earlier in the morning, but my anger had yet to subside. Nevertheless, I had to admit, at least to myself, that I’d been a little too harsh with my ten-foot pole reference.

The embarrassment burned through me, but my ego refused to subside, not in front of Caspian. He raised a critical eyebrow at me, and it was all I needed to swiftly regain my composure and raise my chin in defiance.

“You can make that a twenty-foot pole, in fact,” I announced primly, before walking off.

I turned the corner without looking back and headed down the stone stairs, eager to put more distance between myself and the mansions. Well, between myself and Caspian. It was too late to take back what I’d said, and my heart was jerking frantically beneath my ribcage. I needed to get away from him so I could think clearly again. I couldn’t even focus anymore.

The sound of footsteps behind me made me turn my head. Two Correction Officers were following me, keeping at least ten yards between us. I rolled my eyes and kept walking.

“Of course, because that’s what I needed most—your henchmen shadowing me,” I muttered as I reached the level below.

I quickly pulled my head cover on, along with my mask and goggles, then made a sharp left turn through a narrow alley, then a couple more, and quickly climbed the wall of a house, crouching on the edge of the roof and watching as the Correction Officers ran farther down. They’d already lost me.

I scoffed, shaking my head, before continuing the rest of my descent leaping from one roof to another. I broke a few shingles in the process, but no one saw me as I moved through the levels, hopping over houses and stores. The afternoon sky turned from orange to deep violet, the sun slowly dissolving beyond the gorges.

The Correction Officers were well behind and unable to track me by this point, probably lost somewhere on the upper levels, while I cat-jumped my way to the sturdy roof of the Broken Bow Inn, sliding down awnings where the terraces were too wide for me to simply jump over.

I gently slipped down the southern side of the wall, nicely shaded by a patch of pine trees growing from the side of the mountain and stretching their thick branches over the inn. I couldn’t help but chuckle at Caspian’s Correction Officers.

He’d brought more of them out since Minah’s murder, but I still wasn’t impressed. If anything, they were a little too easy to lose. I turned to get to the front of the inn and take the rest of the stairs to the infirmary… but bumped into Caspian.

He was still firm and solid like a rock, and his head was cocked to one side, an amused glimmer in his eyes. I took my head cover, goggles, and mask off in a single move, given we were both under the trees’ shade, and gawked at him for a long moment.

What was he doing here, and how had he traced me? I hadn’t caught a single glimpse of him on the way down, and I found myself stunned.

“Caspian.” I exhaled sharply. “What brings you to this side of the neighborhood?”

“Well done, Miss Hellswan.” He smirked. “That was impressive.”

“What was impressive?”

I wondered if playing dumb would annoy him. I felt like pulling his strings for a bit, because I didn’t like how he’d managed to follow me without me seeing him. It made me feel vulnerable to an attack, and I hated feeling that way. I’d spent my whole life building up my defenses, and I didn’t enjoy watching Caspian tear them all down.

“You’re quite agile and light on your feet,” he replied. “My COs are generally not to be toyed with, and yet you did exactly that.”

“Not to be toyed with? I think you’re overestimating your henchmen.” I scoffed, then crossed my arms over my chest and took a step back. My temperature felt like it was rising with only a couple of inches between us. I needed air. “Why were they trying to follow me?”

“It’s for your protection.”

I laughed hard, as if I’d heard the best joke ever.

“Yeah, I’m not buying that,” I retorted, regaining my composure. “At least try not to take me for an idiot. I may not be of high society, but my brain has top-notch synapses. Don’t insult my intelligence.”

Caspian took a step forward, getting dangerously close and lowering his head. I could see my reflection in his jade eyes.

“Despite my general conduct, which you might refer to as ‘abrasive’,” he said, his voice low and deep enough to make my spine tingle, “I really don’t want anything to happen to you or your friends. I must now reiterate that you consider leaving this place behind and head back to Eritopia. You can even go tonight. I’ll bid the Lords farewell on your behalf, and get them to agree on relocating Azure Heights.”

I held my breath, finding it hard to navigate my thoughts with his lips so close to mine. I didn’t yield, though, and poked his chest with my index finger.

“You know, the more you say that,” I shot back, “the more suspicious you come across. I’m not going anywhere until I find out what it is you’re hiding, Lord Kifo.”

He frowned, his gaze so intense it could probably be harnessed as a laser.

“You shouldn’t stick your nose where it doesn’t belong, Miss Hellswan,” he replied. “You might—”

“Stop underestimating me. Stop underestimating my team, too.” I held my own, my muscles tight and buzzing, and my fists balling at my sides. “We’ve already uncovered more in one day than you self-assured snobs managed in two years!”

I’d made him angry. He scowled at me, his nostrils flaring and his jaw clenching, moving forward another inch—enough for his hot breath to warm my nose and lips.

“Watch yourself,” he hissed, “or you’ll get yourself and your friends killed.”

“Is that a threat?” I murmured, my voice weaker than my stance.

“No, it’s just a fact. One I’m not eager to see occur.”

He left, leaving me there in utter silence. My whole body trembled from his proximity. I realized then that my heart had been banging itself against my ribcage. I took several deep breaths just to regain full control over my senses.

What did he mean? Was he warning me? Did he really know something that I didn’t, something that, if uncovered by GASP, would jeopardize us? Or was he simply trying to intimidate me because of some dark secret that he was hiding?

I groaned, then walked back down to the infirmary, unable to get Caspian and his words out of my head. Was he connected to the daemons or Sienna’s disappearance? Or was he a witness, too, genuinely trying to warn us?

I cursed under my breath.

What the heck is going on here?