Page 114 of Starting a New Life

A shiver ran through my body, tension seeping into my muscles, locking them up. My chest drew tight. I couldn’t breathe and then… “Holy shit,” I gasped, grabbing Angelo’s arm. I needed something to hold on to. Howling sounded in the distance, longer now, a symphony of blood and wrath.

“The fight has begun?” Angelo asked.

I nodded.

“Fuck.” Heath grabbed me and started running towards a gated house. No, not a house. A freaking mansion. It looked as out of place as a building could possibly look in the middle of a small Canadian town. White pillars, golden adornments, and marble statues on the fucking front lawn.

It was gaudy as hell.

“Guards?”

Angelo inhaled deeply.

“Can’t smell anyone. What about the mage?”

Good question.

Damn. I should’ve searched for him right from the start instead of healing myself. I could survive exhaustion. Getting Callum out was more important.

I reached for the well inside me and closed my eyes, focusing solely on the building in front of us as I sent my magic out, searching for a magic signature.

I briefly skimmed the first floor. No one in their right mind kept a prisoner at ground level. The better options were either underground—but I couldn’t detect anyone there—or higher up. That’s where I finally found it. An aura. Muted, but there. At first glance, it almost appeared human, but when I brushed against it, a faint electricity ran up my arm.

I gasped, sending out another wave, stronger this time, and got the same reaction. Faint electricity danced over my arm until it dispersed. “Third floor.”

He felt…

Damn. I couldn’t read his aura. Couldn’t feel whether he was in turmoil or calm. It was as if his aura was hidden behind a curtain. I could make out a silhouette, but that was it. No colours, no swirling.

Angelo nodded. “Okay. That’s what Connie figured. How do we do this? I know we wanted to pick the lock, but we’re in a time crunch.”

Heath rolled his shoulders.

“You’re sure there’s no one close?”

I nodded, then grimaced. “I mean, there are people across the street, but I have the shield that’s keeping us hidden and…”

I didn’t get to finish.

Heath started in the direction of the mansion, swiftly ripping open the metal gate. I ran after him to keep him and the gate within the confines of my shield. Fuck. This wasn’t what we’d talked about.

“Wait…”

The shield stretched; Angelo watched us for a moment, then ran up to me while Heath continued running along the short driveway to the front door.

“Heath, you can’t…”

Wood splintered as Heath ripped the front door out of its hinges and threw it across the snow-covered front yard.

I flinched as it hit one of the marble statues, knocking it off its base. Desperate, I tried extending the shield, but I didn’t reach it in time. The clang was clearly audible in the silent winter night, though fortunately, the statue hitting the snow-covered ground wasn’t more than a dull thud.

Still… I looked at the neighbouring houses, holding my breath as I waited for lights to be turned on, but… nothing.

“What are you doing?” Angelo shouted, walking up to Heath and gesturing at the hole where the door was supposed to be.

“We’re running out of time,” Heath said with a shrug. “That fight won’t last forever. I mean sure, Gray’s gonna buy us some time, but he can’t fight for hours. We need to hurry.” He turned to me, eyes burning as he levelled me with a stare. “Look. I know this is not how you want this to go, but… can you subdue the mage?”

“Can I what?”