Page 275 of House Ignis

“My little firecracker enjoys the hunt.”

The words struck low and sharp, a physical blow that nearly sent me skidding across the marble.

I faltered for a heartbeat, my breath hitching, before a dangerous, soft laugh broke from my lips. I didn’t slow.

I let the pull guide me like a compass, drawing me down the sweeping staircase toward the depths of the lower level.

The music swelled, a thrumming heartbeat that signaled the ballroom. I shifted my sprint into a fast, predatory glide as I passed the arched entrance, my mask of composure firmly in place so the court wouldn't think I’d finally lost my mind. Inside, the room was a blur of flashing silk and firelight, bodies swaying in a sea of gold.

I didn't stop. I couldn't.

The bond yanked harder now, an agonizing, beautiful tether. I burst back out into the night air—and froze.

Torchlight caught on a shock of auburn hair, turning it to copper. I stilled, my chest heaving, the air burning in my lungs.

“Ezra,” I managed, the name breathless and jagged.

He turned, and there it was— that quiet sadness buried behind his eyes, tucked neatly beneath his practiced smirk.

My brows knit together, the sight of it tugging at me even as the bond screamed for my attention.

“Don’t stop on my account,” Ezra said lightly, offering a wink as if the world wasn't tilting on its axis.

I didn't argue. I gave him a slow, devilish grin—a silent promise of trouble—and then I pivoted.

I dove back into the current, letting the bond haul me forward, out of the castle’s stone embrace and toward the wild expanse of the back gardens.

The guards were a blur of confused faces and half-started reprimands. “I’m fine!” I tossed the lie over my shoulder, my pace never faltering.

I wasn't fine. I was unraveling.

By the time the forest gardens swallowed me, I’d kicked off my heels. Fuck it.

Barefoot and breathless, I ran.

The damp grass was a cool shock against my soles, the earth grounding me just enough to keep me from flying apart as I plunged deeper into the trees.

Above, firelights drifted like lazy embers, casting fractured gold across the path while the shadows danced in a rhythm only the bond understood.

Where the hell was he?

“You’re getting closer.” His voice vibrated through the bond—low, dark, and impossibly satisfied.

A slow, treacherous smile spread across my lips even as my heart hammered a frantic rhythm against my ribs.

Gods, he had no idea what was coming for him.

I slowed my pace, the trees thickening into a wall of ancient bark and emerald shadow.

The air grew heavier here, the distant roar of the festival replaced by the hushed rustle of the forest and the low the deep, ancient hum of the garden’s hidden magic.

I was deep in the heart of it now. Alone.

The bond snapped taut, a live wire that made every hair on my arms stand up.

He was right there—just beyond the veil of the shifting leaves.

My chest heaved as I pivoted, reaching out with my senses, desperate to catch the familiar, intoxicating scent of woodsmoke and an oncoming storm.