CHAPTER 2 #2
“What does the Mage Lord of Mountheim have to say that is so urgent?” the woman asked in a composed, authoritative tone without lifting her gaze to us.
I looked over my shoulder at Reagan, repeating the title in my head.
“Well, considering that a human appeared in my estate, my staff and I thought it was urgent,” he started with a mildly edged tone. “And honestly, I don’t know any protocols for when they invade our territory.”
Judge Malory stopped writing on the piece of paper, raising her head in our direction.
I felt a sense of unease settling over me, felt the warning echoing in my mind, that I should comply with whatever she said.
Her short, silver-grey hair was neatly swept back in soft waves around her lean face.
Her sharp green eyes were framed by small, circular spectacles that rested on her thin nose.
“Mind your tone, Mage Lord,” she said authoritatively, the fine lines of age on her face growing more pronounced as she held his gaze. “It would be unfortunate to know that the years you’ve been working have not served their purpose.”
He didn’t respond, his expression sobering.
She turned to me, seeming to just notice someone else. “State your name and vow to be truthful with your right hand on top of the First Grimoire,” she ordered, and a thick purple book appeared in front of me, suspended in the air.
“What?”
“Do it,” Reagan whispered, seething.
My eyes drifted back to her, and I hesitantly placed my hand over the book.
“Jane Darling,” I stated. “I vow to tell the truth.”
The book vanished. My pulse surged again.
“State the reason you are in mage territory,” she commanded.
“I don’t have a reason to be here. It was a mistake. I got out at the wrong train station.”
“And you don’t wield any type of powers, to the best of your knowledge?” she asked.
My eyes narrowed faster than I could avoid, but I brushed it off. “Huh, no, I don’t.”
“Anything else to add before I draw your sentence?”
“Sentence? I didn’t mean to invade his—” I cut myself off, my eyes darting to him. “Lord Reagan’s territory. I apologise for this, but it wasn’t my intention.”
Her eyes deepened on my face, as if she were studying me.
“Your intentions hold no weight in Mage Court, and any offence committed within these lands must be answered for, regardless of your kind. I’m ready to deliver your sentence,” she announced, raising her head.
“Miss Jane Darling, by the sacred oaths sworn in the names of Zara and Godric, and by the authority vested in me by the Laws of the Mage Folk, I hereby pronounce your sentence. You are to remain within the mage lands of Mountheim estate, under the watchful protection of Mage Lord Caedmon Reagan, for the span of one year, so that the reasons for your crossing can be discovered and addressed by the respective estate. This is in atonement for your transgression of trespassing on restricted mage territory. Upon the completion of this term, your memory will be carefully altered by the hand of a court official, and you will be permitted to return to human lands. This sentence is to be carried out without delay.”
Reagan’s expression mirrored my shock as the judge finished speaking.
Before I could respond, a sharp pain lanced through my left wrist. I gasped, clutching my forearm as the sting deepened.
A paper-thin cut spiralled around my skin, carving a path from just below my wrist to above my elbow.
A faint glow bled the red into white, and as it dimmed, a pale crimson line remained, like a bracelet, ending in a small upward-pointing arrow on the inside of my forearm.
“That is the bidding of your sentence. You’ll carry it with you until you are free to return,” the judge explained.
With my mind reeling, I dragged my fingertips over the lines marking my skin.
They were real, and she hadn’t even touched me.
I grasped for something to say, but every thread of reason seemed to vanish clean through my fingers.
My eyes darted between her and the mark. The pain faded quickly, but my pulse raced.
“As delighted as I am that you entrusted me with her protection, she is human. Why would we keep her here? I can investigate without her.” Reagan’s tense eyes were locked on the judge, his tone not even close to delighted. “My estate is already dealing with enough, as you well know.”
“You are well aware that it is neither prudent nor permissible to challenge the decree of a magister.” Her voice was cold and unyielding, her gaze piercing through the chamber.
“However, be it known that the arrival of a human upon our lands is an occurrence far too rare to disregard. You may need her to look for vulnerabilities. Where one like her appears, others may follow. I don’t need to tell you the issue that this creates.
Attend to this matter with diligence. And as for the human herself, she is entrusted entirely to your care.
Any harm that comes to her will rest directly on your shoulders.
Miss Darling, I wish you luck. You shall need it. ”
My legs went numb under me, an objection dying unspoken in my throat. Some instinct whispered that this sentence had been passed not solely for my actions, but also for his.
Reagan held her stare with a stiff, unbending stance, as if he were weighing the options. To my desperation, he nodded, muttering a low farewell and leaving the room.
I hesitated before following him, taking one last look at the judge. “Why am I going to need luck?” I asked when we were alone.
She released a weary sigh, lifting her gaze to meet mine again.
“Because, Miss Darling, as a human, your position is not free of concern. Not merely because you are among a kind that has advantages over you, but also due to the hazardous position of that lord”—she extended a frail finger toward the door through which Reagan had left—“who rules the very territory where you now find yourself. He is already facing a sentence of his own, with far graver stakes and more dangerous foes circling him. My advice is: keep your wits about you.”
I cursed inwardly, debating whether to ask if that man was at fault for this. When I didn’t say anything, she turned her head to the desk. A silent dismissal.
I fought the urge to argue against the sentence she gave me and left. I was almost out of breath when I caught up with Reagan in the hallway.
“What if you just take me to the train station and let me go? Would she come after me?” I asked.
“Yes.”
It was as if he’d already accepted that there was no other option.
“Well, there’s got to be something else that you can try,” I urged, the despair palpable in my voice. “I told you, I can’t stay here. I have a life. I have people waiting—”
He scoffed, coming to a sharp stop in the corridor.
“I’m sorry,” he said, taking a slow step toward me, pressing me closer to the wall.
“Did I somehow give you the impression that my priority is catering to your needs? Let me make myself clear.” His tone turned cold as he leaned in, his shoulders looming over me.
“I have no interest in breaking the law to free you from your sentence, nor could I care less about your life. You’re coming with me because the law requires it, but the second you put my people at risk, and trust me, your presence here is a risk to every mageborn alive, I won’t hesitate to end you and call it a necessary precaution to protect us. Is that clear?”
I sealed my mouth, taking a scant step back, my attention entirely on that cold anger. All my instincts told me not to speak. I nodded once, keeping my face neutral, and he resumed his walk.
A quiet exhale relieved the pressure in my chest. I fell into step behind him, my eyes locking on the back of Reagan’s head. What would that threat entail if it came to that?
We reached the elevator without exchanging another word. A queasy feeling hit my stomach when his arm wrapped around my waist again.
Beside the angry man next to me, the nausea came from a thought in my head. When my family found out I had vanished, I wasn’t sure if they would be able to find me, nor if I wanted them to risk it. I tried not to let the creeping, unhelpful desperation take hold.
Instead, I drew a slow, deliberate breath, willing myself to stay steady. I could bide my time, wait for a window. But I would not stay here.