“You’ve cleared this with Norah?” Rasmus asks.

The Watcher gives a harsh laugh. “My post, my decision. But yes, she knows.” Rasmus’s hands curl into fists at his sides, but he takes a step back.

She gives him a curt nod, then turns to the six of us. “Follow me.”

We descend the staircase in a single-file line. At the bottom, the Watcher opens the door and moves aside to let us enter. Once we’ve all stepped over the threshold, she starts to close the door.

“Wait,” Tessa says. “What are we supposed to do?”

The Watcher gives a wolfish grin. “Simple,” she says. “You’re supposed to escape.”

With that she slams the door closed.

And locks us in.

Chapter Sixteen

It takes several moments for my eyes to adjust to the dark room, but slowly shapes emerge, and I’m able to take stock of my surroundings. The room is tiny and overly warm. The walls appear to be made of metal. In the center of the room on top of a small table are three baskets filled with bones.

Jacey smacks the door with the palm of her hand. “Open up! Let us out!” For the first time, I notice that the door is completely smooth. It’s missing a handle on this side. “We have to get out of here.” Her voice verges on panic. She pounds on the door with both of her fists, and then tries to wedge her fingers into the seam to pry it open.

Tessa lays a hand on Jacey’s back. “We’ll get out,” she says, her voice low and soothing. “We just need to stay calm and figure out what the challenge is.”

Jacey’s breath is coming in short gasps. She’s usually so unruffled.

“I don’t do well in enclosed spaces,” Jacey says, answering our unspoken questions.

“Let’s sit down for a bit,” Tessa says, guiding Jacey to a spot against the wall. “Just close your eyes and breathe with me.”

I think of my father holding my face between his palms when I was scared. Deep breaths, bluebird. A wave of affection washes over me—for both my father and for Tessa. She’s a natural Healer.

“If this is anything like the last challenge, we’re probably going to need to work together.” I touch Tessa’s shoulder lightly. “But for now, you take care of Jacey, and the rest of us will start working on how to get out of here.”

I join Bram, Niklas, and Talon in the center of the room.

“Where should we start?” I ask.

“Let’s find out what kind of bones we have to work with,” Bram says, pulling one of the baskets close.

We rifle through the contents, but they’re just ordinary human bones—not prepared for magic.

“Are we supposed to assemble a skeleton?” Niklas asks. “Like we do in bone races?”