Chapter 6 · The Dead Man's String

"You're tracking Danny."

Reina's voice cut through the armory before I even got the chalk circle finished. I didn't look up. Kept my hand steady, kept the sigil tight. The tracking spell was already half-cast, the runes glowing faint blue against the concrete floor.

"Danny's dead," I said. "Again."

"So you're gonna watch him die twice in one day?" She stepped closer. I could hear the boots, slow and deliberate. "That's your plan?"

"My plan's to figure out who stuck a blade in his gut." I finished the outer ring and stood, brushing chalk dust off my palms. "Unless you'd rather I let all twenty-seven of you burn."

She didn't answer. Just crossed her arms and leaned against the weapon rack, eyes locked on me like I was the one who needed watching. Maybe I was.

The tracking spell lit up, a thin thread of light snaking out from the circle and disappearing through the wall. I followed it. Reina followed me.

"You think it's him," she said.

"I think somebody's using him."

"Or he's using you."

I stopped. Turned.