Page 67 of Beastkin
I ducked through, feeling a strange tingling sensation as I passedthrough the magical barrier. It was like walking through an electrified spiderweb, unpleasant, but not painful. On the other side, I found myself crouching behind a row of perfectly trimmed hedges at the edge of the property.
Elias came through next, followed by Wild, who collapsed against a tree trunk, breathing heavily.
“That was... harder than I expected,” he panted, wiping sweat from his brow. “Old magic. Very old.”
“You okay?” Elias asked, placing a concerned hand on Wild’s shoulder.
“Just need a minute,” Wild assured him. He glanced back at the wards. “Uh… I think I forgot your vampire friend.”
“Lila’s creating a distraction on the east side,” I whispered. “She won’t need to go through the wards with what she’s planning to do.”
As if on cue, a loud crash echoed from the far side of the estate, followed by shouts and the sound of an alarm blaring. Lights flashed on in that wing of the mansion, and I saw dark shapes moving quickly toward the commotion.
“That’s our cue,” Atlas said, his eyes gleaming gold in the darkness. “Let’s move.”
We crept across the lawn, staying low and using the topiary shrubs for cover. My heart hammered in my chest, each beat a reminder of what was at stake. I tried once more to feel for Phoenix through our bond, but there was nothing, just that same hollow emptiness that had been torturing me since he disappeared. He had to be here, I was sure of it. But now that I couldn’t feel him even inside the wards… I was beginning to wonder if we’d stepped into some sort of elaborate trap.
As we approached the house, Elias pulled out the scarf Lila had given us, Phoenix’s scarf with the little pumpkins on it, and began making motions in the air over top of it while chanting under his breath. In an instant the scarf burst into a million tiny pieces, like a sudden cloud of smoke hovering in front of Elias. Then they began to glow golden, each particle creating a thin thread of goldthat drifted upward toward a window on the near side of the house.
“He’s here,” Elias whispered, assuaging my unspoken fears. “The thread is weak, but it’s found the target. He’s got to be up there.”
My heart hammered against my ribs as I followed the golden thread with my eyes, tracing its path to a second-floor window where it disappeared into the darkness beyond. Phoenix was there, so close I could almost taste his scent on the air, yet still completely cut off from me.
“Third window from the left,” I whispered, my voice rougher than I intended. The beast inside me was clawing to get out, demanding I tear through the walls with my bare hands if necessary.
“I can see movement in there,” Caden murmured, his dryad senses picking up things the rest of us couldn’t. “Two... no, three people. One of them feels different from the others… they’re…warm.”
“That’s him,” I said with absolute certainty. The others had to be his parents, probably preparing to do gods knows what to his mind. “That’s the flame that burns inside him. His magic is nearly all fire based.”
Wild had recovered enough to stand, though he still looked pale. “Getting into the house won’t be too difficult. Most of their magical security is focused on the perimeter. But once we’re inside...”
“We stick to the plan,” Atlas said firmly, though I could see the tension in his shoulders. “Elias, can you mask our magical signatures?”
Elias nodded, already pulling ingredients from his pack. “I can create a dampening field, but it won’t last long. Maybe ten minutes, fifteen if we’re lucky.”
I watched him work, my claws extending and retracting involuntarily as adrenaline flooded my system. Every second felt like an eternity. What if we were too late? What if they’d already started the memory modification? The thought made my vision blur with rage.
“Karrick,” Caden’s voice cut through my spiral. “You need to breathe. Your magic is starting to leak out.”
I looked down to see frost forming around my feet and small wildflowers sprouting between the perfectly manicured grass. I forced myself to take a deep breath, pushing the magic back down. I couldn’t afford to lose control now, not when Phoenix needed me. But I wasn’t sure how much longer I could hold it back either.
“There,” Elias whispered as a shimmering veil settled over our group. “We’re hidden, but remember, no sudden movements, no loud noises, and whatever you do, don’t let your emotions spike. The dampening field is tied to our collective energy.”
The distant sounds of Lila’s distraction continued to draw attention away from our side of the house. I could hear shouting and what sounded like security golems being activated. Whatever she was doing, it was working.
“Side entrance,” Wild murmured, pointing to a service door partially hidden by ivy. “Servants’ quarters are usually warded more lightly.” I could hear the disgust in his voice. “Most rich families, my mother included, didn’t think the help was worth protecting.”
We moved as one, staying low and keeping to the shadows. My heart nearly stopped when a security light flicked on, but it swept past us without pause. Elias’s dampening field was holding.
Wild reached the door first, his hands dancing over the lock mechanism. There was a soft click, and the door swung open silently. He gestured for us to follow him inside. The service entrance opened into a dimly lit hallway that smelled of furniture polish and leather shoes. Every instinct in my body screamed danger as we crept forward, following the golden thread that still hovered in the air, pointing the way to Phoenix.
“Looks like the kitchen’s through there,” Elias whispered, nodding to a doorway on our left. “Staff quarters down that way. We need to find the main staircase.”
I sniffed the air, catching the faintest hint of Phoenix’s scent beneath the overpowering smell of expensive cleaning products. My heart lurched painfully in my chest. He was here, so close.
“This way,” Atlas murmured, his werewolf senses picking up thesame trail I had. We moved as silently as possible down the hallway, each of us hyper-aware of every creak in the floorboards.
The mansion was eerily quiet aside from the distant commotion of Lila’s distraction. The walls were lined with portraits of stern-faced witches, their judging eyes seeming to follow us as we passed. I hated everything about this place… the suffocating opulence, the cold sterility, and the way it reeked of privilege and prejudice.