“As it turns out, you’ve landed smack dab in the middle of a mission the Minister’s sent us on,” I said as Iannis and I settled onto the couch across from Elnos.

“What?” Elnos’s eyes widened. “Do you mean to say that the Federation has taken a special interest in the Resistance compound here?”

“Be quiet a moment,” Iannis warned, lifting his hand. He muttered a Word and snapped his fingers. My nose twitched as the scent of magic laced the air, shimmering around us for an instant like a pearly soap bubble.

“There,” Iannis said, sitting back and making himself comfortable. “No one will be able to overhear us.”

“Really?” I arched a brow, and filed away the Word he’d muttered for later use. “That’s a nifty trick.”

“I should have thought to do that. Sorry.” Elnos sighed, scrubbing a hand over the lower half of his face. “I’ve just been so… frazzled, these past few days.”

“Yeah, you mentioned that you and Annia had been separated,” I said, my mood dropping. “What happened?”

“About ten days ago, the Resistance transferred Noria out here to work on some highly classified project,” Elnos began. He took off his shades, exposing the dark circles beneath his worried gaze. “It was pretty clear she wasn’t coming back to Canalo any time soon. When Annia and I weren’t able to wangle a transfer to Noria’s new location, we deserted.”

“So you made your way to Osero on your own?” Iannis asked.

“Yes. We obtained Noria’s location from a Resistance soldier using suggestion magic, then traveled by boat to Parabas. We arrived four days ago, and, from the soldier’s description, we were able to locate the compound quickly enough. It is an underground bunker hidden under a wooded hill, on the outskirts of the town.”

“So it must be within walking distance,” I mused, glancing out the window.

“Yes,” Elnos confirmed. “Unfortunately, things grew more difficult from there. Security around the bunker is tight. Worse, there is some sort of ward surrounding the perimeter that prevents any mage from entering.”

“So Doctor Mitas wasn’t lying.” Iannis’s brows drew together. “They really do have a way to keep mages out. I will have to investigate this ward myself, to identify the spell and perhaps dismantle it.”

A server in a grey dress and apron came to our table then, and I ordered meat pies for all of us. “I hope you can break that ward, Lord Iannis,” Elnos said fervently after she’d gone, “because Annia is within those walls, and I’m not sure if they’ve taken her prisoner or executed her.”

“How did she manage to get caught?” I demanded.