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In the blink of an eye, Aven pushed off the wall and stepped directly in front of her, trapping her in his gaze. His casual attitude was gone and the dangerous look on his face caused Alex to inhale sharply.

“Why do you think you’re here?” Aven asked, his voice soft but with a harsh edge.

Alex refused to step back despite the fact that he was well and truly invading her personal space.

“If I knew the answer, I wouldn’t have asked,” she stated. “It’s not like I can help you get into the Library and to Meya from here. We’re nowhere near the academy.”

Aven laughed derisively. “If I wanted to get into the Library today, I would have waited until you were back at Akarnae. No, that isn’t why I sought you out.”

He leaned closer and she struggled to hold her position. He looked even more amused, as if he knew exactly how uncomfortable he was making her feel.

“What I want is for you to know that at any time, in any moment, I can and will appear,” he whispered into her ear. “I want you to live with the knowledge that I’m watching you and waiting for the perfect moment to strike. I want you to know that when that time comes, my plans will succeed. And I want you to know thatyouwill be the reason for my success.”

Alex shuddered, but before she could reply, the door burst open and Aven pulled away. She whirled around to see D.C. and another cloaked figure standing in the doorway.

“Alex!” D.C. cried, running towards her.

Alex spun back to face Aven, but it was too late. He was already gone.

barrier.

Four

“I don’t want to hear your excuses,”King Aurileous said, pacing around his private meeting room. “I explicitly told you not to leave the palace today. You disobeyed my direct order, and because of that, you could’ve been hurt—or worse.”

“Father, please—”

“No, Delucia,” the king interrupted. “You need to understand how serious this is. If Warden Jeera hadn’t followed you into the city, who knows what might have happened!”

D.C. dropped her head, remaining quiet.

The king hadn’t taken the news of their visit into the city very well at all. Nor had he reacted calmly to the news of Aven’s threat. But something had to be done to tame his wrath before he decided to lock them both in the dungeons and throw away the key.

“It was my fault, Your Majesty, not Dix’s,” Alex said, attempting to defend her friend. “She knew how much I wanted to see Tryllin. We didn’t mean to cause any problems.”

King Aurileous stopped pacing and turned to face both girls.

“Your loyalty is once again commendable, Alex,” he said. “But my daughter should have known better—especiallywith the Meyarin on the loose.”

“I’m sorry, Father,” D.C. said quietly, looking at the floor.

The king sighed and opened his arms. “Come here, sweetheart.”

D.C. hesitated a moment, but then stepped forward into her father’s embrace.

“He almost took you from me once, my darling girl. I can’t bear the thought of it happening again,” he whispered.

Although the words weren’t meant for her, Alex had to swallow back tears at the raw emotion in his voice. Before she could decide if she should give them a moment alone, they ended their hug with watery smiles.

“We’re due to leave for the academy soon,” D.C. told her father, “but will you keep us updated about Aven?”

“My best Wardens are searching for him now,” the king said, looking at Alex thoughtfully. “I can’t believe he approached you in the middle of the day like that. And then just let you go. It’s… concerning. But I promise to let you both know if we find him or learn anything more.”

Alex thanked him, relieved that he seemed to have calmed down.

He kept his eyes steady on her and asked, “You’ll look after my baby girl this year, won’t you, Alex?”

She blinked with surprise. “Um, sure. I mean, yes, Your Majesty. As much as I can, anyway. When I’m with her—which is most of the time.” She snapped her mouth shut in an effort to keep the words from continuing to spill out, but it was too late, and both the king and D.C. were already laughing.