hush was about. When the map flashed on the screen I committed it to memory and shut off my comm. I had no doubt if they could get something like this into my hands it would be wiped remotely from afar. I shoved it in my bag and sat at the edge of my seat waiting for the lecture to finish. I needed to get a wrist comm, like the locals used. It would go a long way to me not losing it.
I shot up the moment it was done, heading back to my room to change. I felt like an idiot as I stared at the few things hanging in my closet, mostly old tees with metal tech logos. I pulled on a black one and some jeans. Sneaking around was not my strong suit. At six foot three, I couldn’t hide anywhere. Besides, people stared at me anyway because of my otherworldly features.
I left my room and took off toward the less traveled parts of the city where the map began. I followed the imprint in my mind, knowing it was the long way around to a building in the heart of the abandoned city. I could have taken a more direct route from memory alone, but I figured this was some sort of test. If I really thought about it the route was probably meant to suss out any tail I might have. There was none. I was too boring to draw the attention of anyone past the excitement of my proclaimed genius the first few days. I was old news. I guessed they wanted me to come alone, not that I had anyone to tell. Colton would have been the only one, and well, he was light years away and wasn’t speaking to me.
The sun was low in the horizon when I had left, and by the time I neared the meeting place all trace of natural light had vanished. The worn streets glowed with the illuminating bricks used on all public streets here, giving me enough light to find my way and see the aging structures around me.
I couldn’t shake the feeling there were eyes on me. I scanned the buildings, but there was no one. It felt like I was walking into a trap.
It looked like I was in a warehouse district, long abandoned. I took the final turn into a dead-end and frowned. What the hell?
Walking to the end of the street I searched the buildings on both sides, finding no doors or even a window. It hit me—most people don’t look up when searching, so I scanned the walls. They stretched five or six stories into the sky, windowless, and without a means of entrance into the buildings.
Fear cut through me. I could be executed from a rooftop. This could have been a set-up.
I slid my communicator from my pocket and checked it. Five minutes until meeting time. I spun in a slow circle again looking for anything I might have missed. It had to be a false trail or a decoy because there was nothing here.
The full circle brought me back to the brick wall at the end of the alley, and where the bottom once met the ground now stood a staircase down.
I took a tentative step toward it, and there, imprinted on each was a tiny red star. My stomach flipped as I stepped down onto the first one then the next. An iron door stood at the end, and I knocked, unsure what to do next. The door swung open instantly, and I was swept into blackness.
Chapter Twelve
Jocelynn
“Jocelynn.” The Baron’s voice rang out, drawing me from my thoughts.
“Yes, sir?” I straightened in my chair, keeping my hands folded in my lap as I looked over at him. Etiquette dictated all my actions at such events, but the gestures and movements were so ingrained it was harder for me to break protocol at this point than to abide by its strict rules.
“Wasn’t it lovely to have the daughter of Lord Arbor here for the opening ceremony?” He fixed me in a hard stare. His eyes were the color of mine, deep blue, but his hair was black. Gray streaked away from his temples, and down into his full beard. It was impossible to deny the Akillie blood held strong genes. He would have been a handsome man, except for his harsh eyes, which instilled fear in most of his subjects as well as advisers. Some argued a good ruler needed such
I shot up the moment it was done, heading back to my room to change. I felt like an idiot as I stared at the few things hanging in my closet, mostly old tees with metal tech logos. I pulled on a black one and some jeans. Sneaking around was not my strong suit. At six foot three, I couldn’t hide anywhere. Besides, people stared at me anyway because of my otherworldly features.
I left my room and took off toward the less traveled parts of the city where the map began. I followed the imprint in my mind, knowing it was the long way around to a building in the heart of the abandoned city. I could have taken a more direct route from memory alone, but I figured this was some sort of test. If I really thought about it the route was probably meant to suss out any tail I might have. There was none. I was too boring to draw the attention of anyone past the excitement of my proclaimed genius the first few days. I was old news. I guessed they wanted me to come alone, not that I had anyone to tell. Colton would have been the only one, and well, he was light years away and wasn’t speaking to me.
The sun was low in the horizon when I had left, and by the time I neared the meeting place all trace of natural light had vanished. The worn streets glowed with the illuminating bricks used on all public streets here, giving me enough light to find my way and see the aging structures around me.
I couldn’t shake the feeling there were eyes on me. I scanned the buildings, but there was no one. It felt like I was walking into a trap.
It looked like I was in a warehouse district, long abandoned. I took the final turn into a dead-end and frowned. What the hell?
Walking to the end of the street I searched the buildings on both sides, finding no doors or even a window. It hit me—most people don’t look up when searching, so I scanned the walls. They stretched five or six stories into the sky, windowless, and without a means of entrance into the buildings.
Fear cut through me. I could be executed from a rooftop. This could have been a set-up.
I slid my communicator from my pocket and checked it. Five minutes until meeting time. I spun in a slow circle again looking for anything I might have missed. It had to be a false trail or a decoy because there was nothing here.
The full circle brought me back to the brick wall at the end of the alley, and where the bottom once met the ground now stood a staircase down.
I took a tentative step toward it, and there, imprinted on each was a tiny red star. My stomach flipped as I stepped down onto the first one then the next. An iron door stood at the end, and I knocked, unsure what to do next. The door swung open instantly, and I was swept into blackness.
Chapter Twelve
Jocelynn
“Jocelynn.” The Baron’s voice rang out, drawing me from my thoughts.
“Yes, sir?” I straightened in my chair, keeping my hands folded in my lap as I looked over at him. Etiquette dictated all my actions at such events, but the gestures and movements were so ingrained it was harder for me to break protocol at this point than to abide by its strict rules.
“Wasn’t it lovely to have the daughter of Lord Arbor here for the opening ceremony?” He fixed me in a hard stare. His eyes were the color of mine, deep blue, but his hair was black. Gray streaked away from his temples, and down into his full beard. It was impossible to deny the Akillie blood held strong genes. He would have been a handsome man, except for his harsh eyes, which instilled fear in most of his subjects as well as advisers. Some argued a good ruler needed such
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