Her breathing deepened as the magic flowed through her, and her features seemed much more relaxed. Maybe I was doing her a favor. Maybe a night of solid sleep would help her in tomorrow’s competition. Little did she know she’d soon be the only girl competing. Backing away, I cast my own spell, wrapping my body in invisibility. I put as much magic as I could into it, making sure it would last a while and not be easily broken.

Once that was in place, I knelt in front of the curtained doorway and crept under, careful not to disturb the fabric. Out in the hall, a guard with a gun stood nearby, stifling a yawn. He clearly didn’t expect much of a disturbance tonight. I walked past him easily, right over to an open window, and climbed out into the darkness, off to explore the depths of the Warriors’ camp.

CHAPTER 16: ADRIAN

CHAPTER 16

ADRIAN

I HAD TROUBLE SLEEPING after Sydney left. I couldn’t shake my fears about what kind of dangers she was walking into and how I couldn’t be there to protect her. It didn’t matter that she was brave and clever and competent—and probably better at protecting me than I was her. The urge to look out for her was just too strong.

I also had trouble sleeping because my bed was a giant beanbag.

“You sure you don’t want the couch?” asked Marcus.

I shook my head and gave the beanbag a couple of half-hearted punches to get it into shape. “You take it,” I said. “I don’t know if I could fall asleep under any conditions.”

He grinned. “Howie probably has something to help you sleep.”

“No thanks,” I said with a snort.

Marcus shut out the lights and curled up on the mustard yellow couch. Silence fell, aside from the occasional faint strains of “Mr. Tambourine Man” coming from the basement. I shifted a few times, trying to get comfortable but having little success. I tried to turn my thoughts from Sydney toward thinking about tomorrow, when I’d be helping the witches interrogate Alicia. Those weren’t exactly calming thoughts, but they at least helped me channel my emotions into something besides anxiety. Before she’d left, Maude had said someone would come and pick me up tomorrow evening to take me to where Alicia was being held. Apparently, they were busy securing a location and also trying to figure out a way to slip Ms. Terwilliger out without the spying Alchemists following her.

Amazingly, despite all the crazy conditions, I did finally fall asleep. And even more incredibly, I found myself being swept into a spirit dream by someone else. As a lush tropical garden slowly materialized around me, I knew who the dream’s creator was even before she appeared.

“Hello, Sonya,” I said.