Page 52 of Magic Betrayed

Except this time, the driver was unmasked and looking straight at the camera.

Adrenaline shot through me as I stared at the picture. It was a little blurry, true, but not so much so that this person would be unrecognizable. She was probably about my age, with medium brown skin and dark hair either pinned up or in braids. Her expression was grim—almost hunted—and something… something about her seemed familiar, even though I didn’t think I’d ever seen her before.

But even if I hadn’t, someone had to know who she was, which meant…

We had a new lead.

A long sigh escaped me as my head fell back and my eyes shut once more. This wasn’t over. Wasn’t a complete disaster as I’d feared. I could rest, knowing that there was still a way.

Sleep claimed me, with a tiny smile on my lips, and my fingers resting gently on Callum’s hair. I might regret my boldness later, but I was too tired to move.

Right.

That was the only reason…

* * *

The next timeI woke up, I was in a bed that wasn’t mine.

Again.

Sunlight was glimmering through the slats of modern looking shutters, leaving patterns on the gray bedspread. The rest of the room seemed sterile and unlived in—also completely unfamiliar.

Again.

I really had to stop doing this.

“You’re awake!”

At least the voice was someone I knew.

Kira was leaning into the room, gripping the door frame for balance and watching me with wide, hopeful eyes.

“How are you feeling?”

Battered. Anxious. Sore. But most of all…

“Is Callum okay?”

A faint smirk appeared on Kira’s lips before she seemed to catch herself and smooth it away. “He’s fine.” She straightened and strolled into the room. “The double shift just wiped out his energy stores, but he’s up and growling at people.” Her head tilted to the side and her eyes narrowed. “And his first question whenhewoke up was whetheryouwere okay. Is there something you’d like to share with the class?”

Her question took me straight back to the moment Callum had touched my face. Demanded to know if I was okay, and told me he trusted me to have his back.

True, it was far from a declaration of love, and some might not even find it all that romantic. But my heart kept insisting that his actions meantsomething.

“Like what?” Part of me wanted to spill everything and ask her for advice. She’d already confided that she thought there might be something between us, and that the idea, for whatever reason, delighted her. But how embarrassing would it be if I poured out my heart and my hopes and then found out that Callum had no actual interest in me?

“Raine.” Kira crossed the room and sat on the foot of the bed. “Have the two of you not talked about this at all?”

I shook my head tentatively.

“Then I’m going to smack my brother upside the head until he starts behaving like a grownup.” Her frown grew decidedly fierce. “The vibes between you two are so thick, they’ve started to feel like…” Her words trailed off.

Like what? I was desperate to know, while being simultaneously terrified to ask.

“Anyway, he’s here.”

Thank you, for dropping that bomb while I was still wrestling with my wayward heart.

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