I drew my staff free from the clasp against my back and set the butt against the ground, using it to leverage myself into a standing position. My right foot touched the ground and white-hot fire zapped up into my pelvis. I sucked in a sharp breath and bit into my tongue so harshly that I tasted blood. I looked down and wanted to vomit at the sight of my leg.

   The teeth of the crystal panther had cut straight through. My entire calf, foot, and shoe was scarlet with my blood. Not to mention, my left arm still had the four slash marks through the forearm. My hand was dripping with so much blood that I was amazed that I could stand. 

   There was no way I was walking. This leg was too painful for me to put any weight on it. I looked up at the sky, annoyed and frustrated, and my eyes locked with grey ones. I paused to stare suspiciously at a hawk.

   The hawk.

   Something about it wasn't adding up. I'd seen it after dealing with the werewolf. Now, I'd seen it go after a panther right in front of me. It was obviously following me. Besides, I'd never seen a charcoal hawk with grey eyes. In other words, this wasn't a hawk.

   I grunted, my hand tightening in my staff. "I'm not stupid."

   The hawk blinked.

   "You're obviously not a hawk, you idiot. You've been following me. Not to mention you don't blend in for crap. So either get down here and explain why you're bothering me, or I'll drag you down here myself."

   For a hawk, it was pretty obvious it was giving me an incredulous look. Its gaze flicked to my arm and my leg. I gritted my teeth. As a hawk, it was already annoying me. I doubted whether or not I actually wanted to meet this idiot.

   I lifted my staff and pointed it darkly at the hawk. "After following me for two days, do you really think I don't follow through to my word?"

   Its beak snapped and it opened its wings. I watched haughtily as it glided down from the branch, and just before it hit the ground, the whole animal seemed to snap in half. Bile rose in my throat and I stumbled back. The feathers ripped and twisted, vanishing as it gave way to tan skin. Limbs unfolded from the body and grew outwards. Fabric emerged from the remains of the feathers and a face grew from the small face of the hawk.

   The person landed on their feet without a stumble. He stood a head taller than me, easily. A mop of charcoal curls gleamed in the sun, not exactly clean. His face was narrow with a steep jaw and grey eyes. Besides that, his clothes seemed to be in terrible shape. What used to be camo cargo pants and a brown t-shirt were in tatters. He wore no shoes, either.

   In other words, this was definitely not a hawk.

   I glowered. "And who are you?"

   The guy grimaced. "Sorry about following you. If it helps, I'm not trying to hurt you or anything."

   "That does not answer my question."

   He bobbed his head and lowered his hands. "I'm Tate."

   "And why were you following me?"

   I saw his hesitation and my suspicion raised its hackles. My fingers clenched on my staff and his eyes flicked that way, widening. "Okay! It's just . . . I need help getting out of here."

   My eyes narrowed. "Out of the Ghost Realm?" He wouldn't be in here if he weren't a criminal. There was no way I was letting him out,  if I ever got myself out. "Okay, look, the only people in here are criminals. Ones so bad that the Council banished your asses. So, long story short, the answer is no. Hell no. Now are you going to leave me alone or am I going to have to make you?"

   "I'm not a criminal!" He backed up. "The Council messed up! They were trying to lock away a dark mage and they got me instead. And they don't even know. She's out there somewhere because I'm stuck in here."

   The only female dark mage I knew that the Council had sent in here was Dani Darhk. My expression darkened. "You're saying Dani Darhk was never in the Ghost Realm in the first place?" This guy was lucky he had information I wanted. Otherwise, I'd be leaving him behind in less than a second.

   "Does the Council know yet?" He asked me quickly, sensing my interest. "She hasn't killed anyone yet, has she?"

   My jaw clenched. Yes, she has. "Dani Darhk's out and she just made a massive public stunt. The Council will know or already knows. She attacked a party with a reporter already there."

      Tate suddenly paused. His head cocked. "I never told you the dark mage's name."

   "It's not exactly subtle when you say a female dark mage that escaped from the Ghost Realm."

   "Okay, fair, but how do you know about her attack on a party before the Council or public does?"

   He had me there. I glowered. "That's none of your business. What did you mean by the fact that the Council locked you up instead of her?"

   His jaw worked as he chewed on his cheek. "She had someone helping her. She arrived to the sentencing room. I was there with my squad to act as a second line of defense and watch how the Council sentences convicts to the Ghost Realm. I was lured away and forced to take Darhk's place. So I was put into the Ghost Realm instead of her."

   "How would that have fooled everyone there?" I asked, confused. "You look nothing like her."

   It was his turn to be confused. "I'm a shifter."

   "You're a specific hawk shifter, aren't you?"

   He shook his head. "Shapeshifter."

   A snippet from the Magick Species for Dummies book faintly came to mind. It was one of the books I'd read at Alexie's cottage. It had talked about shifters, explaining that there were three types. Specific shifters could change into one form and one form only. Species shifters could become any animal of one species, but it wasn't necessarily the same exact animal every time. The final type were shapeshifters -- they could literally become anything.

   I hadn't really believed it when I read it, but apparently I was standing in front of a shapeshifter. My eyebrows creased. The book had classified them as brights -- technically good people. Shapeshifters were the most likely to become dusks, though. Shifters worked by harnessing the magic in their blood to use it to change forms. Shapeshifters were born with so much potential that they could change into whatever they wanted. And, as Alexie had warned, the more the power, the better a chance of going dark.

   In other words, this Tate guy could by lying to me. I had no way to prove that he wasn't a criminal and making up a story. The only way he could have known about Dani's escape before the public was if he had someone tell him. If he was lying, that meant he had been in the real world until very recently.

   He very well could be a spy. He showed up in the Ghost Realm after I did. He'd been following me. Hell, he'd aggravated the panther until it attacked me. If he knew about Dani's escape before anyone else, that might mean he was working with her. I had never heard of Dani working with anyone else, but a lot of evidence was pointing that way.

   I was not trusting this guy. No way. There was no way he was getting out of the Ghost Realm with my help, either. He couldn't escape without a mage. So he was stuck with me if he wanted out. If he was a spy, he would slip up at some point. Then I'd know for sure. 

     Tate was watching my face carefully, keep track of my expressions. I wiped away any signs of what I'd been thinking about. "You said she attacked a party? What happened?"

   I shifted my weight, my right leg started to hurt from standing on it for so long. If he was working with Dani, he'd already know the answer. I squinted at his face, and said flatly, "She kidnapped someone." I wanted to see if he called me out on my lie.

   "What? Who?"

   Nothing yet... My jaw clenched. "Alexie Albers."

   His eyes shot open and all blood drained from his face. "Please tell me you're lying." When I didn't respond, he took a step back and grabbed at his hair. "Oh, no. He was the only person capable of stopping her." Tate rubbed his face, panicked. "I heard her talking with her friend -- the same guy who found me at her sentencing -- referencing something like that. How they had to get some people out of the way before she could keep working on something else."

   I thought over his words, but I had no way of determining if he was lying or not. He hadn't confirmed nor denied my statement about Alexie being kidnapped, when I knew that was impossible. His spell wouldn't have broken if he were still alive. Ugh. "Well, she succeeded," I said gruffly. "Now get out of my way. I've got places to be."

   "Wait!" He yelped. "I still need your help. I can't get out without a mage."

   I snorted. "Fat chance. Even if you're telling the truth, massive if there, you're the reason Alexie's gone." My jaw clenched and I gritted out, "There is no way I'm letting you out."

   "I can't even start to correct that mistake if you don't let me out! I know you're planning on going back. I won't even bother you, just lag behind until you're ready to go. I've just got to get back. Dani knew where my parents are. She--" He hesitated, and my eyes narrowed. 

   "She what?"

   "She threatened my parents," he said. I got the sense it wasn't what he was going to say originally, but I didn't push. "I don't trust her to not go after them out of spite. Besides, if you don't let me out, I won't even have to change to stop her. She's got something massive planned, and I'm the only person that knows. If I don't get to the Council first, then a lot of people are going to get hurt."

   He actually sounded sincere. Either he was really good at lying, or he was telling the truth. I started to doubt myself a bit and squinted at him. After a second, I started to curse furiously. He blanched as I jabbed my staff into the soft mud and spat a curse at him.

   "Damn my father's soft, hereditary heart," I growled. "But fine. If you can prove that you're not lying to me, I'll let you out."

   His eyes lit up until he heard what else I'd said. "Prove I'm not lying?"

   "And it's going to take a hell of a lot to convince me," I warned him darkly. 

   "But I'm not lying."

   "And why the hell would I believe that?"

   He stared. "Because I'm not?" He sounded bewildered, like he couldn't believe that I was suspicious.

   "You're going to have to show me some proof. And if you so much as annoy me while I'm in here, I'm leaving you behind. Don't slow me down."

   Tate shook his head. "I wouldn't dream of it."