Chapter 10

  I ran faster closing the distance to the man holding the mage beacon. Thankfully, there weren’t many others around to see what was about to happen.

  Hearing my footsteps, the man spun toward me but saw nothing. Panic flickered across his face, his eyes darting up to the beacon light, now burning bright like a flaming torch.

  It almost wasn’t fair.

  Leaping up, I kicked the man in the stomach, doubling him over. Before he could recover, I drove my walking stick into his lowered head, crumpling him to the ground. The beacon fell, its housing smashing against the cobblestones, glass cracking with a sharp shatter.

  I followed up driving a final blow into the beacon, reducing its inner contraption to shards and splinters.

  I desperately wanted to study the device, but that wasn’t remotely possible out here on the street, especially with so many eyes nearby. I needed to keep moving.

  The clamor of my attack alerted others. I turned to see soldiers in Vale’s red uniforms charging toward in my direction, along with Motorized thugs in rough, unkempt leather. I had to assume they all knew how to deal with mages?—?even invisible ones.

  After all, this was Vale, the place where mage exterminations began. I had little time to think. So, I spun toward the prison and ran like a demon.

  I dodged in and out of narrow streets and twisting alleys, trying to make my path chaotic and unpredictable. My gaze darted around constantly, searching for other mage beacons. Sweat poured down my face and back, my breathing growing more ragged. I glanced down repeatedly to confirm my invisibility spell was still holding?—?so far, so good.

  After several frantic minutes, I slowed to a walk to catch my breath.

  The broken beacon was far behind me, but I knew invisibility might not save me if there were others up ahead. I had to assume the worst, which meant, there were surely other mage beacons around.

  Above me, toward the north, loomed the prison. The stout, four-story castle dominated the skyline now as I drew closer, casting long shadows over the evening streets. Beyond its northern wall stretched a sprawling collection of makeshift houses and hovels, clinging like barnacles to the valley’s mountain slopes, just outside the city.

  By my estimate, I had about ten minutes left to reach the prison?—?just by walking normally?—?though it ended up taking fifteen. I avoided more soldiers, thugs, and the telltale glow of mage beacons.

  The closer I got, I saw the prison itself was no grand structure. It stood two stories tall, a blocky fortress surrounded by head-high stone walls. Rumors, passed along by Dirk, spoke of deep dungeons carved into caverns below ground, featuring a variety of prison cells, rooms, and labyrinthine corridors.

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  A tall wooden gate stood open at the front, two guards loitering casually nearby, cradling crossbow-rifle-like steam contraptions. At this moment, the gate stood ajar, soldiers walking in and out somewhat casually as though changing shifts.

  I grimaced.

  The wound in my side throbbed again painfully, feeling damp and hot. With blood? Or sweat? It was hard to say. Either way, I already felt tired, and my time was running short. I probably needed some more thorough healing, and some rest.

  Scanning the battlements, I spotted two thugs pacing the bulwarks atop the prison. Climbing the wall was out of the question though due to a lack of handholds anywhere I could see. My best option was simply to walk through the front gate.

  I took a deep breath, holding it for a beat as I timed my entrance into the front gates. The two guards had turned toward each other, muttering and chuckling as they ogled a woman passing by. They ambled closer together, grinning like idiots.

  I stepped forward. It was too late to turn back now.

  With the barest gust of wind signaling my passing, I slipped between them. My breath caught in my throat. If they noticed anything, I could only hope they chalked it up to the breeze.

  Once inside the gates, I found myself in the prison’s outer grounds. Open-air alleys stretched between the keep itself and the surrounding walls. The castle loomed directly ahead. I glanced left and right?—?the alleys were clear of men, but there was no obvious entrance to the prison building.

  Taking a chance, I moved to the left.

  “Be on your guard!” someone shouted. “Mage present!”

  I froze. That’s when I saw it: a beacon light, glowing like a torch just inside the castle grounds. I’d been so focused on the guards, I hadn’t seen it.

  I cursed myself for the oversight.

  Reaching into my pouch, I grabbed a small granite rock and hurled it at the Mage Beacon. It shattered with a satisfying crash, glass raining down.

  Before the guards could react, I sprinted down the left alley, desperate to find a way inside. The path led me to a stable, where a single horse stood chewing at a pile of hay. In the back of the stable, I found a small entrance leading to an equipment room?—?mercifully empty.

  I went through the door, closed it behind me, and bound the door quickly with a wall of air.

  The door from the stables, led into a kitchen. A lone cook stood whistling to himself as he chopped some vegetable of some sort, utterly oblivious. I slipped past him and out into what appeared to be a kind of dining hall.

  Thankfully, the invisibility spell still held.

  Dozens of guards were scattering around the room, their half-eaten meals abandoned as they scrambled toward the courtyard beyond. I stood motionless, barely breathing, as the last of them ducked through a door on the far side. This was going to turn bad in a moment, if I bumped into one of these soldiers.

  The room now empty, I moved quickly for another door.

  This door led to a foyer at the front of the keep. Tapestries hung from the walls, and decorative suits of armor stood in staged poses. On the opposite side, a stone staircase wound upward.

  I ran for it, seeking a place to catch my breath.

  I had barely started up the first step when a soldier appeared coming down, leaping down steps with a scowl on his face. He didn’t see me soon enough.

  We collided, my breath exploding from my lungs as I stumbled to the side. The soldier staggered, his hand darting for a hand railing to keep himself from falling to the ground.

  “What was that?!” he barked, spinning in place, eyes wild as he drew his sword.

  Heart pounding, I retreated into the shadows of the foyer. Reaching into my pouch, I closed my fingers around a piece of iron.