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Somewhat strangely, given my occupation, I'm not much for violence, though I can defend myself. Alva made sure to teach me a few dirty tricks, but my strength is stealth and efficiency, not combat. Imightbe able to take on one guard, with some luck, but he'll make noise and call the other two. And because we're uptown, there's a chance at least one of them might be enhanced, or worse, a demi.
If that's the case, I'm so, so screwed.
I’m as common as it gets, like most people from the undercity. There isn’t so much as a drop of magik in my blood. Grandma Lyn was like me, but she managed to learn a bit of alchemy from whatever books she could afford to buy, and even got enhanced enough to be able to handle minor brewing. Balms that cure small ailments, like eczema or acne. If I’m very lucky, I’ll eventually be able to do the same. Fancy combat magiks are something people like me can’t even fathom.
The air's far less heavy uptown, but suddenly I shiver, almost cold. The eerie sensation isn't unwelcome after a month of sweating my tits off, but it's nevertheless strange on a summer night.
"One minute." I barely catch the guard's low, smooth timbre. "That's how long you have before you freeze to death, squirrel."
My next breath's a frozen cloud pluming out of my nose and mouth.
Shit.
"Come out and play. I promise I don't bite." The guard lies back on the bench, casual as ever.
I thought he was lazy. Turns out he's far worse.
In a heartbeat, the temperature drops considerably. Only a coldblood could have done that.
I remember Alva joking we could do with one of those on our team about a week ago, when the sun had been at its zenith. I’d agreed. Now, I’m biting my words back.
I assumed they’d be able to manage a small breeze or conjure up a bowl of ice. Not this devastation. Every plant in this garden is dying because he willed it so, effortlessly.
"Thirty seconds."
The fountain stops running, turning into ice, and the rose bushes frost over. In just a few instants, the pleasant garden has morphed into a frozen wonderland, gorgeous but no less deadly.
I could attempt to run back out, but demis tend to be athletic on top of everything else. Besides, thanks to Frost Man, I’m not sure the thinner branches could hold my weight now that they’re frozen over.
"Ten. Nine. Eight."
I don't have much of a choice, so I stop procrastinating, and leap off the oak tree on unsteady legs, staying in a low crouch.
As my gaze lifts to his, I catch my first clear glance of the demigod who almost killed me.
Everything about him takes me aback. He doesn't look much like a guard. He's too young, too casual, and far too beautiful. Wild white-blond hair frames a sharp face with cheekbones cut like blades and a strong square jaw. The guards I spotted also wore black, hence my assumption, but his shirt is silky, with four buttons open, far less formal. "There you are."
Piercing blue eyes too bright in the darkness bore into mine and don't let go.
The man's dangerous, I can sense that. More dangerous than anything I've ever seen. The urge to run fights my instinct to stay still to avoid provoking the predator.
He pushes up his feet and strides toward me."Not a squirrel, then. We have ourselves a vixen."
"Stay away." I'm glad to hear my voice come out firm, rather than shaking.
His footsteps are crisp against the frozen blades of grass he snaps beneath each step. "Now why would I do that, thief?”
He's right to call me that, and in most instances, if I were found on a random property in the middle of the night, it would be because I intend to steal something.
Today, the only thing I'm after is information.
"I'm not here to steal anything."
His laugh is low thunder that freezes my blood as surely as his devastating magik.“Mmkay.”
"This is my mother's house," I finally croak.
The demi stills. His head tilts as he studies me slowly, from my folded legs to my messy hair.
