Page 105 of Fall into Place

Tess put her ear to the door to try to get any bit of sound, any information at all as to what might lie behind it. But after a few minutes, there was nothing—and it wasn’t like she really had any other choice but to keep going. So Tess gripped the dagger in one hand and turned the door handle with the other, pushing it open the tiniest bit—

She immediately smelled cool night air and evergreen trees, and the noise of the party seemed very far away. She pushed the door open a little farther, then almost cried with relief—it was a pathway that led to the forest. She’d have to be lucky to avoid Felix’s guards, but maybe she could make it to the compound, find Nantale, and try to figure out what the hell to do next.

As quietly as she could, she stepped through the doorway, pulling the door shut behind her. She looked up—guards were stationed along the castle’s battlements, keeping an eye out for possible intruders. She’d just have to try to act as normal as possible and hope she could slip past without notice. She concealed the dagger in the folds of her dress, then cursed herself as she realized she’d left her mask in Isobel’s room. Ah, well. She supposed it was probably better to have a knife. She took a deep breath, then set off down the path in a leisurely manner. She took ten paces, then twenty. So far, so good—she was just a few feet from the forest—

“Hey! You there!”

Fuck. She turned to see a guard waving down at her.

“Me?” she asked as innocently as she could.

“Where are you going?”

“Oh, just feeling a bit peckish,” she lied quickly. “Thought I’d go find a snack. Thanks for checking on me, though! Can’t be too careful!”

She waved goodbye and turned to continue walking, praying that would be the end of it, but in seconds she heard a whoosh of movement, and the guard was right beside her. He was shorter than he’d seemed from high above, and scrawnier too—he was living his immortal life as a pimply teenager, which struck Tess as terribly unfortunate. But he wore the same black robes as Felix’s goons who’d taken Callum away, and Tess knew better than to underestimate him.

“What’s this about?” she snapped, trying to channel Octavia. Clearly, being friendly hadn’t dissuaded him, so maybe this would. “I’m on my way out to hunt, not for idle chitchat with the help.”

“I’m sorry to be a nuisance.” He took a step back—clearly chastened. “But Felix said there might be intruders tonight.”

“If you can use your putrid little brain for just one moment,” Tess said coolly, “you might recall that intruders come in to the castle, not out. So if you’ll step aside and let me be on my way? Or do I need to take this up with Felix? What’s your name? I want to tell him exactly which little brat in robes tried to ruin my night.”

The guard hesitated, clearly terrified of getting in trouble. Tess could almost feel sorry for him, if she weren’t quite sure he would murder her on the spot if he knew she was human.

“I guess it’s okay…”

“Good.” Tess sighed. She set back off toward the forest without waiting for more, but then—

“Hey, is that Isobel’s dagger? Why do you have that?”

Fuck, fuck, fuck!!

Tess turned back toward him, trying to think—

But before she could speak, someone rushed past her, so fast they looked like a shadow—and then the guard was on the ground, sliced open from neck to navel, blood spurting out of him, struggling to breathe.

“Come on.” Nantale took Tess’s arm. “We have to move. Leave the dagger.”

Tess dropped it, and then Nantale scooped her up and sped into the forest—and it wasn’t like when Callum carried her, because Nantale was even stronger, even faster, she moved so smoothly it felt like flying. They streaked through the forest, then the air was open and they were back in front of the compound, where Artie was tethered and waiting.

“Artie!” Tess exclaimed as she caught her breath, and he nickered happily.

“What happened?” Nantale demanded. “Where’s Callum? Did Felix kill him?”

Tess shook her head, not even sure where to start—

“It was a trap, it was all a trap. Felix put the diamond on Callum and used him to open a portal back to New York—Octavia was there with Konstantin, who I guess isn’t dead? Felix went through the portal with Callum along with a dozen of his men, and he said the rest of the clan all knew I was human. I thought for sure I was going to die, except then this tarot card I have—”

“Stop, that’s enough.” Nantale cut her off. “Callum is gone?”

“Yes.” Tess’s eyes welled with tears. “And the diamond is gone too, so I don’t know how any of us can get out of here, especially since someone blew up the crystal bridge—”

“Not ‘someone,’ ” Nantale corrected. “Me.”

“You?” Tess was flummoxed. “Why?!”

“Did you really think I’d put the future of my clan in the hands of a human without monitoring you?” Nantale raised an eyebrow. “As soon as I learned you’d taken a horse, I assumed you were trying to escape, so I went straight to the bridge to head you off. When I saw you approaching, I did what I had to do. I didn’t blame you for wanting to leave, all of us trapped here would do the same. But I am responsible for the safety of my clan, and I knew that your presence here was our best chance to find a way home. So I hope you understand why I couldn’t let you go.”