Page 6 of Enchantment of Silver and Sea
“Get up.”
CHAPTER TWO
The voice sounded like it belonged to a female. It was deep, and there was something melodic in it. But above all, it was commanding.
I did as it ordered and scrambled out of bed.
The figure spoke again. “Are you listening?”
I wasn’t sure my voice would work. “Yes,” I managed to choke out.
“Good. I’m not here to hurt you, but I will if I have to. There’s something that I need from you, and it involves us having a calm, civil conversation. Are you following me so far?”
“Yes,” I repeated.
“Obviously, it would be ideal that we continue this conversation in the darkness, to conceal my identity. But there are some things I need to show you, so that isn’t an option. Are the candles on your desk the only means you have for light?”
“Yes.”
Most Cyllene citizens used lanterns. But even after losing my home to fire, I still preferred candles. They reminded me ofhow Irene and I would read by candlelight every night before bed. She was always bringing home new books, and as far back as I could remember, I understood they were something secret and special and forbidden. I knew better than to ask how she came to be in possession of them.
I tried to visualize that I was back with Irene on one of those nights, curled up under our comforter with a tattered paperback. It seemed as good a memory as any to be my final one, fresh in my mind when this woman killed me.
“I’m going to light the candles,” the woman continued. “But I need you to understand that trying to remember my face to identify me later is only going to backfire on you. As I said, I don’t want to hurt you, but I will if I have to. If you tell your Enforcers anything that happened here tonight, including what I look like, myself or one of my partners will come right back here, and we will not hesitate to kill you. Do you understand me?”
As terrified as I was, my thoughts still snagged on her choice of words—“your” Enforcers. What did she mean by that?
I wasn’t about to question her. “Yes.”
At that, the woman stalked over to my desk, yanked a match out of its box, and began lighting the candles. With each flame that flickered to life, I began to get an idea of what she looked like.
She appeared to be in her early twenties and was tall for a woman. Her toned arms and legs looked like they had carried her through many years of physical exertion. She was wearing a green tank top and tan cargo shorts, both of which were faded and rumpled. Her ankle-high boots had a slight heel on them, adding to her height. Her raven black hair was gathered into manybraids, which in turn were gathered into one thick ponytail that hung down her back. Her rich brown skin was nearly the same shade as her eyes, which regarded me impassively. Although her clothes had seen better days, her face had the glow of health and vitality that comes from time spent in sunshine and fresh air.
“Sit down,” she ordered, pointing to my desk chair. “And I’ll show you what I need your assistance with.”
I did as she instructed.
“Okay,” she began as she slid a faded blue backpack off her shoulders. “I’m going to show you a map.” She cleared her throat. “I apologize in advance for how rudimentary it is.”
The woman pulled a giant sheet of paper out of the main pocket. It had been folded and crumpled in several different ways in order to make it fit. She tried to spread it out in front of me, but all the creases and wrinkles prevented it from lying flat. She sighed.
“While I’m straightening this out,” she continued as she tried again to smooth it out. “Go ahead and tell me what you know about marsh wolves. And how to take down a pack of them.”
A long silence followed.
“I’m sorry…what?” The first words I’d said other than “yes.”
“Marsh wolves,” she repeated. “Tell me what you know about how to take down a marsh wolf pack.”
The terror I had been feeling dissipated for a moment, replaced by utter confusion. “I don’t understand. Is this related to my research assignment?”
“No.” Her tone made it clear that no further explanation would be given.
I was pushing my luck, but I couldn’t help myself. “The nearest marsh wolf pack is at least twenty miles from here,” I said. “Has there been a recent sighting?”
The woman looked like she was considering how she wanted to respond when there was another thud on the balcony. I jumped at the sound. She just narrowed her eyes.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” she muttered, stalking to the door. She reached to open it, but the person on the other side opened it first and brushed past her.
