With close-cropped black hair, he carried a staff with an iron claw fixed to the top and had an imperious manner, obviously in charge. But most striking was his disfigured face: two thirds of it was burned, leaving ripples of pale scar tissue. With a curl to his lip, he glanced at Chloe, peering into her eyes, before looking away dismissively and roving his gaze over the room.

A sorcerer, Chloe realized.

The magus’s eyes alighted for a moment on Chloe’s staff, leaning against the wall, but fortunately it was still without its silver device, and he continued to scan the room. He finally nodded to himself and approached Liana, still hunched over the bed with her face pinned to the linen.

‘Let me see her,’ he said in a rasping voice.

The soldier rolled Liana over, the eldran’s chest heaving as she stared at the approaching magus with wide-eyed fear. The sorcerer peered into Liana’s grass-green eyes and appraised her from head to toe, taking in her pale skin, delicate features, and henna-dyed hair.

‘Almost certainly,’ he said. He glanced at Chloe. ‘The other is human. She means nothing. But this one . . .’ He reached down to Liana’s delicate throat, below the iron collar, lifting her necklace between two fingers, before yanking it hard enough to break it. He tossed the necklace onto the floor. ‘She may not realize it, but I will be surprised if she doesn’t have eldran blood.’

‘Leave her alone,’ Chloe said. ‘She doesn’t know what you’re talking about.’

‘Most likely she doesn’t.’ He smiled. ‘But the eyes don’t lie, and soon we will know without the slightest doubt.’ He nodded to the soldier holding Liana. ‘You have your orders.’

‘Yes, Magus Tarik.’

The soldier twisted Liana’s arms painfully behind her back, and with the collar pressed tightly against the skin of her throat, she gasped as he forced her to move. Chloe felt the cold grip of fear on her heart as Liana cast a terrified look in her direction, knowing that there was nothing she could do. She heard Liana being manhandled down the stairs before the man guarding her finally moved away, but he was immediately replaced by the sorcerer.

He looked down at her. ‘Be careful about the company you keep. You will not be seeing her again.’

Staff in hand, the magus left the bedchamber, heading back down the stairs as the soldiers dragged Liana out into the street.

Slowly climbing to her feet, for a long moment Chloe felt frozen into place, taking in the empty room. It had all happened so quickly. Her senses were still reeling.

Then she set her jaw and moved into action.