“Tell me everything.”
The vision was blurry, and I could only catch snippets of the images.
“She’s entered a house, no, a cabin in the woods. It’s got wooden walls, and it’s really run-down. She’s messing with something. I can’t make it out—like red cables.”
What the hell were those?
“Describe every detail. Is there a demon summoning circle?”
“I can’t see, she’s moving around the cabin. There’s another person, but I can’t identify them. Wait, she’s picked something up and is heading outside. There’s lots of trees. Tall pines, but I can see blue. It’s a lake! She’s walking to a lake.”
“What’s she carrying?”
I didn’t have the right angle to see clearly. “A box of vials or bottles. Maybe potions? Okay, she’s down at the lakeshore. It’s all white limestone cobbles. There’s a boat with someone in it. She’s taking the box to a man in the boat!”
My heart pounded against my chest.
Jaxson’s voice was low and controlled. “Savannah, look for any landmarks. Could this be her home or a base of operations?”
I tried to look around, but I could barely control my vantage point, and my vision swirled like I was on a carousel. I suddenly felt sick to my stomach. Something caught my eyes, and I tried to focus. “There’s a lighthouse nearby.”
“Describe it, quick, before the vision ends.”
“It’s on a promontory or spit. I think it’s abandoned—the light might be broken. It’s tall, smooth, cylindrical…a white tower with a rusted red roof. There’s a fence around the top.”
“Excellent.” Jaxson pressed his hand on the small of my back and gently squeezed, and elation shot through me. “Do you see who she’s handed the box off to?
I pivoted my view, and the world spun. I felt myself sliding off my chair, but Jaxson’s hands caught me and held me upright. The spinning stopped, and finally, I was able to get a fix on the boat.
My attacker waded into the lake, picking her way carefully over the slippery, greenish, algae-covered stones. When she reached the edge of the waiting boat, she lifted the box up. I held my breath and strained my mind. I needed to see who was there.
A man reached down and took the box. “I see him, but…”
My stomach dropped, and horror trickled through me.
“But what? Tell me, Savannah.”
The man’s face was a black hole. Swirling darkness leaked around from the edges of his body, distorting the air like grease over water. Confusion and panic tore through me as my mind tried to make sense of what I was seeing.
“His face is a blank. It’s like he’s got no face. Just darkness.”
“He has an anti-scrying charm. Try to concentrate, try to break through. You can do this.” Jaxson’s breath was soft on my neck and sent power vibrating through my body. Every word of his was confident, cloaked in certainty. He believed in me without question.
I strained as hard as I could, imaging what my magic had felt like, trying to call the sensation forth, to force my way through the darkness. Suddenly, the man snapped his head up and looked directly at me with that horrifying, blurred-out face.
“Holy shit, he sees me!”
“Not possible,” Jaxson said.
Adrenaline surged into my veins, and my heart hammered against my chest.
The faceless man slowly tilted his head, and words formed in my mind: No peeking, Savannah.
Then there was only pain.
32
Jaxson