> Why here? Why now? <
Huddled close in my fox form, Vrika lifted its head in my mindscape - fully alert and pleased. Out in reality, we scanned the area until we spotted the clue. A white SUV parked near an abandoned factory's office building.
Then I caught movement… a figure with very confident athletic grace patrolling along the perimeter fence in dark clothing. Hood up, but a few loose strands of white hair visible enough from this angle.
I immediately considered simply changing direction. But my hoping to avoid the encounter altogether seemed to have summoned a cursed wind.
My turn to the side paused only a second later… as I knew she'd already caught my scent. She was probably out looking for it, anyway, with my luck.
"Princess? Is that you?"
The voice I'd been imagining through all those texts the night before carried so clearly across the large amount of park between us. Certain, but uncertain in a way that made me straighten my shoulders and lift my chin.
