“I owe you.” One day, Maurice would come calling for a favor, and I’d need to be ready to pay.

If I was still alive, of course.

He nodded, then waved me out the door.

I left his shop and made my way across London, moving quickly. The midday sun was hidden behind thick gray clouds, and the chill in the air bit into my skin.

By the time I reached the docks, it was early afternoon—likely a quiet time for the gang, which would be good for me.

As with all of the docks in this part of town, it was gated off and protected by guard shacks that admitted a slow trickle of cars and lorries. But there was no way that the gang handed over their ID every time they wanted to get into their headquarters.

There had to be another way.

I hurried around to the west end of the docks like Maurice had said. It was a massive area shoved up against some old warehouses, only half of which still had the glass in the windows. The chain link fence that separated me from the docks was tall and topped with barbed wire. Towers of shipping containers sat on the other side of the fence with no one in sight.

It was the perfect place to cross.

Perhaps there was a way through somewhere—a hole, or even a little door—but I wouldn’t waste time looking for it. Instead, I climbed, moving swiftly up the fence to the barbed wire. It would have been difficult for a human to get past the spiked barrier, but I made quick work of it, using my shifter strength and agility to launch myself over without getting cut.

I landed silently on the other side, then darted into the shadows of one of the shipping containers. For the briefest moment, I listened, using all my senses to determine if anyone was near.

It was quiet.

I set off across the lot, sticking to the shadows of the containers as I patted my pocket to make sure there was still a transport charm within. I was here on recon, but I’d be vastly outnumbered if I were discovered. Speed was vital. I could have brought backup, but we weren’t here for a fight. Just information.

When I reached the end of the row of containers, I spotted the docks themselves. Massive freighters were roped off to the pylons, one of them rusted and ancient.

That had to be the Mary Sue or whatever it was called. Dock space here had to be expensive, and one wouldn’t leave a worthless ship tied up in this port.

To my right, about fifty yards down, a group of men maneuvered a collection of large boxes toward one of the vessels. Other than that, the coast was clear.

I headed toward the men, who looked like deckhands rather than gang members. The downside of approaching during the day was the light. I needed a disguise.

I passed the men, who ignored me as expected, and found a small office built into a shipping container with one glass wall. I ducked inside and grabbed a white hard hat and clipboard. The disguise might not work, but it was worth a try. At the very least, they’d hopefully approach me before attacking.

I left the office and strode across the dock, moving back toward the ship that hopefully housed the gang. I passed two other men in hard hats, both of whom nodded at me, and then I turned onto the slip that housed the freighter. The vessel towered to my left, rising at least fifty feet in the air.

At the end of the dock, a ladder led up to the deck. A man stood at the base of it, arms folded across his chest. He turned and spotted me, a frown creasing his face.

“Oy, what’re you doing here?” he called.

“Inspections.” I raised the clipboard, not slowing my pace toward him.

“You know you don’t do that here. All you blokes know.” He strode toward me, fists clenched. “Now get out of here before I throw you out.”

I smiled. “I’m sure there’s a mistake. I’m new, you see, and—”

The man reached me and swung. I ducked, avoiding the punch, then lashed out and struck him in the gut. He heaved out a breath and doubled over. One more punch to the head, and he was unconscious.

Quickly, I dragged him into the shadows behind a shipping container that sat near the edge of the dock. He slumped like a ragdoll as I tore a strip off his shirt to gag him and bound his wrists with his belt and his ankles with his shoelaces.

Finished, I brushed off my hands and headed toward the ladder, leaving the helmet and clipboard behind. My ruse had worked as long as it was going to.

The dock was still empty as I climbed the ladder to the top deck. I slipped over the railing, tension prickling along my skin.

Would I find Garreth here?

Part of me wanted to, part of me didn’t. We knew he was in league with these bastards, but I didn’t want to face down the idea of him willingly working for them.

The deck was quiet as I searched it, moving between the high stacks of shipping containers. No doubt anyone who was on board was down below. I found an entrance to one of the cabins and slipped inside the austere hallway.

There had to be an office somewhere, perhaps with information. Maybe even a person I could question.

A noise sounded from behind me, and I spun around. A skinny lad with a tattoo under his eye and a torn leather jacket stared at me for a split second, shocked, then shouted, “Intruder!”

Damn it.

I charged toward him, but he turned tail and ran. I followed, deciding that Plan B was my best bet now—grab one of the men and transport him out of there to be questioned later.

The lad disappeared down a hallway, but another figure appeared.

Shocked, I nearly stopped running.

Garreth.

My brother looked skinnier than he had before, with shadows under his black eyes and a pallor to his skin that made my heart ache.

“Garreth.”

“Lachlan.” He backed up, putting space between us. “You need to get the hell out of here. There are nearly two dozen guys on this ship.”

“Come with me.”

“Can’t, mate. Not yet.”

Footsteps pounded behind me. A lot of them.

Garreth nodded to an exit just behind him. “You can get out that way.”

“Come with me. Help me stop this.”

“Grab one of the others if you need answers, but I can’t come. Not yet. And I can’t be seen near you.” He sprinted down the hall, away from me.

I wanted to follow—to drag him back—but my pursuers had turned the corner. Nearly a dozen of them crowded into the hall, then rushed me.

How the hell was I going to take them all in such a small space?

As if in answer to my prayers, a man appeared through a doorway to my right. He wore glasses and the tired look of someone who spent a lot of time doing research.

I grabbed him, plunged my free hand into my pocket for my transport charm, then hurled the thing to the floor. It exploded upward in a poof of silver smoke, and I lunged inside, dragging the man with me.

The ether sucked us in and spun us around, spitting us out in the courtyard in front of my guild tower. I braced myself, waiting to see if anyone had followed us.

They hadn’t.

The man struggled, trying to break away from my grip. “I don’t know nothin’! Let me go!”

“Of course you do.” I pulled him toward the castle. “Now, come on. I have some questions for you.”

12

Eve

 

* * *

 

We visited Liora for the second time in almost as many days.

As she opened the door, confusion sparked in her blue eyes. She was the age my mother would have been if she were still alive, but a combination of sunscreen and magic kept her looking far younger.