his way here. Act as if you were waiting for him, understand?”
“Yes,” I said. “What’s going on?”
“Do you see those two men across the street?”
People rushed by, peering into the windows as they passed. On the corner of Baldwin and Salem, two men—one stocky, the other lanky—crowded a street lamp.
“Who are they?”
“I’m not certain. I spotted them just now when I sat down. They’re most likely tracking me.”
I swallowed hard. “Why would they track you?”
“Probably because my recent jump history happens to match the human scent’s path.”
My stomach dropped. “Jeesh. It’s been days already. Will our scent ever go away?”
“The scent is imprinted in the gateway. Hounds will eventually lose the body scent, but the Monitors will always have record of the jump. You needn’t worry, you’re shielded.”
“We have to stop Nick from coming here. They’ll smell him.” I scanned the street, mentally willing him not to show up.
“I attempted to reach him, but there wasn’t an answer.” Arik paused. “But not to worry, I have taken measures to distract them from Nick’s scent.”
My hand tightened around my cell phone. “What does that mean? Is that supposed to make me feel better? And where were you the past few days? You said you’d come back. Remember?”
“It might be easier if you asked one question at a time.”
Ugh. He was irritating me. “Okay, where were you?”
“I had to arrange some things. We’ve had guards keeping watch on you three.” Arik fell silent when Erin, a girl from my math class and a server at the café, came up to my table.
“Hi, Gia, will it be the usual?” she asked.
I forced a smile. “Yes, please.”
Erin, a red cloud of hair haloing her face, placed both palms on the table and leaned over. “Did you see the eye candy over there?” She nodded at Arik. “A total rebel type and a smoldering accent. I’d love to get to know him better.” She winked and sauntered back to the counter.
Arik chuckled.
“Whatever,” I muttered into the phone. “Can’t we just explain to those men that it was an accident? We didn’t mean to jump into that book.”
“There’s no reasoning with them. They’ve got Nick’s and Afton’s scent.” Arik exhaled, sending a burst of static through the phone. “Because of the evils humans inflicted on Mystiks long ago—tortures and killings—many fear humans learning of our world. The treaty between the Wizard Council and the Mystik League only protects humans unaware of its existence.”
Would that mean they’d be hunted forever? I choked out, “But…but would they really kill us? Just because we went through that damn book?”
“I’m afraid so,” he said. “The havens were created as a safe place for the Mystiks and wizards to avoid persecution from humans. The last time a human traveled the gateways was close to a hundred years ago. After a wizard married a human, he brought her through a book to his haven . A group of Mystiks tracked her down and burned her at the stake, making the wizard watch her agonizing death. It’s not a pretty story. It was a clear message to the Mystik world to prevent such tragedies in the future.” He paused. “Those bleeders outside won’t stop until the humans are dead. As I see it, we’ve two options…flee or fight.”
“You want to fight them? You’re crazy.” The image of Lei’s katana blazed in my mind. We could never battle Mystiks who had weapons and skills like that. And even if I figured out how to conjure that ball of light, what good would that do? Still, there was no way I’d live the rest of my life on the run.
Nick rushed in, dripping rain onto the floor. He spotted me and pushed past a group of kids leaving the café. He was dressed all in leather with biker boots, which suspiciously resembled what the Sentinels wore, and flung himself onto the chair directly across from me. “Hey,” he said, panting.
I mouthed a hello to him.
“I’d rather fight,” Arik said. “But since I must get you three to safety, we’re fleeing.” He paused. “We’ve discovered something about you, Gia. You’re not fully human. You’re a Sentinel. We’re meeting someone who will explain everything to you.”
Not fully human? A Sentinel?
“I’m not—” I stopped, remembering the men across the street. They were real. That hunter and hound in the library were, too. And there was something to Arik’s claim. I rubbed the scar on my chest. My mother had started preparing me before she died. The stories. The