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Probably, but— “There are no spells.” His mouth was so dry, he could hardly speak. “We don’t know what’s in there.”

“So look,” she prompted. He stared out at the dark building, so distracted by all the shadows that he forgot for a moment that she was watching him. “Are you okay?” she asked him.

“I’m fine.”

“I can look instead—”

“I will.” He blinked the black into his eyes and scanned the building thoroughly. The traces of auras here were a few days old, and he didn’t pick up on any that belonged to monsters.

Safe, then. But it still didn’t erase that it was almost full dark out.

“Shadows?” Shay said quietly, tipping her head to try to catch his eye. “I really want to have a look around, but if you think it’s not safe—”

“It’s clear.” He opened the center console, grabbed a handgun, and tucked it into the waistband of his pants. He grabbed another and handed it to Shay. “Be aware,” he said as she took it, her fingers grazing his. “Don’t get distracted, no matter what we find.”

She checked the safety before tucking it into the back of her denim shorts.

They got out, softly closing their doors behind them, and crossed the parking lot, moving carefully to lessen the crunch of gravel under their feet.

“I’ll go in first,” Roman mouthed as they approached the worn, concrete steps that led to the front doors. “Cover me.” They drew their guns and crept up the steps.

Roman eased open the door, the creak of the hinges scraping against scorched walls. It smelled of burning flesh and chemicals in here, the scents fairly new.

As they began to look around, it quickly became apparent that this wasn’t a cristala plant—it was a front for something else.

There was no company name on anything, but there was a symbol: a Phoenix with three overlapping circles behind it.

“What is all this?” Shay stepped up to a giant, free-standing room that looked more like a chamber or a metal box. The door had a small window in it, the kind that reminded Roman of a sauna. A symbol was bolted above the door—a red metal flame. There were warning signs all over the walls, telling people to keep their distance and the door shut.

Down the hall sat a similar chamber, but this one looked more like a tank. You’d have to climb the ladder on the side of it to reach the door in the top. The glass was cracked, so no water was inside, but there was a symbol by the warning signs, just like the flame. This one was a water droplet, though.

Roman watched as Shay brought her fingers to the tiny tattoo on her cheekbone.

“What do you think all this is?” she whispered, dropping her hand.

Roman was about to speak when sound came from behind them—the creak of the front doors, and the crunch of glass under shoes.

He instructed Shay to hide, and then he rallied his magic with a hard blink, nostrils flaring.

A lone man strode past the fire-resistant chamber, but he didn’t get any farther than that before Roman’s shadows lashed out, ensnaring his limbs and pinning him to the wall.

Shay waited in the darkness, disguised extra well by her illusion magic, as Roman stepped up to the man he’d pinned to the cement wall with his shadows.

Watching the scene unfold before her—the man struggling under Roman’s immovable grip, and the Shadowmaster who approached with vicious, drawn-out movements that hinted at how much he enjoyed killing people—reminded Shay of that night several days ago, when Roman had done that very same thing to her.

Had it really happened such a short time ago?

“Who are you?” Roman’s voice was low and deadly. It was strange to watch him slip this mask back on, after she’d got a glimpse of the man behind the smoke. “And what are you doing here?” Gods, that voice was so cold and remote, it sent a prickle up her spine.

“I’m Doctor Brennan Rowe,” the man squeezed out. The smell of his sweat permeated the air. “I used to work here.”

“What is this place? And don’t even think about lying to me.” Roman tightened his shadows. “I know it isn’t a cristala plant. What are those tanks and chambers for?”

“This was an undercover magic facility. That was its name: The Facility. We used the chambers to hone a person’s magic.”

“Willing or unwilling?”

No answer.