Page 3 of The Tracker's Dawn: Sunderverse

Tiredly, Eric glanced up from his cup of coffee, looking annoyed at the mage. “He does this sometimes. He knows a way around the house’s protection spells since he’s the one who installed most of them in the first place. I warned him one day he might get mauled, but he won’t listen.”

Damien Ward was wearing his top hat and satin-lined cloak, and dabbing at his face with two fingers, his mouth twisted in disgust. His hair was perfectly white and recently trimmed. “Besides ungodly amounts of grease,” he said, “bacon contains nitrates, did you know that? They are terrible for your health. You should think about that before you...” He gestured toward our plates.

Right after his short stint as a cat, Damien had seemed a bit subdued, but he was quickly getting back to his original self. I was starting to miss Blaze.

“What are you doing here?” I asked.

He exchanged a look with Eric as he removed his hat, neatly folded the cloak, and deposited his ridiculous attire on the center island. “Eric said something about tracking Rosalina, so I figured I might be of some assistance.”

Damien felt guilty for Rosalina’s disappearance. He had been in his cat shape when Mekare came for us at Eric’s cabin. At the exact time, he had been out in the woods chasing squirrels, possessed by his feline instincts, which had come and gone at random times, driving him completely wild and leaving him unable to hold onto any of his human qualities. When he came back to the cabin, we’d been gone and only the sour scent of magic had lingered behind. He knew immediately who was responsible for our abduction. I just wished he also knew why we hadn’t found Rosalina yet.

“I’m not tracking Rosalina, but Prince Kalyll’s cousin,” I said.

Damien walked to the coffee machine, picked up the carafe, lifted it against the light, and swirled it around, judging its contents. “I know that.” He sniffed the brew, then turned to Eric. “What brand is this?”

Eric crossed his arms. “The same one werewolves use to give mages enemas.”

The mage set the carafe back in place. “I know better. I should’ve stopped somewhere for a proper cup.”

“Jake will be here to help me,” I said, wondering if Damien’s presence would only cause a distraction. He and Eric were like an old married couple, always going on about one thing or another.

Damien sat across from me, his nose wrinkling as he examined the mountain of food on my plate. “Yes, well, then at least I can get the news as soon as you come out of your trance.”

“Also,” Eric put in, “if you come up with a location, Damien and I can go straight away.”

It seemed they’d been making plans behind my back. I shook my head. “No, you’re not going anywhere without me.”

Eric set down his fork. “But you might be incapacitated for hours.”

“I’m going.”

“I think you should stay here with Jake.” Damien smoothed one of his white eyebrows and rubbed his thumb and forefinger together as if he were really removing bacon grease from his face.

“I said I’m going,” I insisted.

“Time could be of the essence,” Damien argued.

That was true. Still, I wanted to be there. If we found her—no,whenwe found her—Rosalina would want to see a friendly face, not Eric’s or Damien’s.

I stared pointedly at the mage. “She thinks you’re dead. If she sees you, she’ll freak out.”

Eric nodded. “She has a point.”

“That won’t be a problem. I can change my appearance.”

“But—”

Suddenly, my cell phone started ringing in the back pocket of my jeans. My heart and my lungs froze at the customized ringtone, one I hadn’t heard in twelve days. Hands trembling, I stared at the screen in his belief. My thumb fumbled erratically as I tried to pick up.

“What is it?” Eric and Damien asked in unison.

The caller ID showed a name that seemed to flash, leaving me like a deer in the headlights.

I met their curious stares and said, “It’s Rosalina.”