"I wouldn't scream if I were you," the rebel said with a malicious grin. He was holding a weapon threateningly. "I'm not afraid to use a melder, and you will not enjoy it," he pointed the gadget at Sophie's forehead. His oily smile was making Sophie very uncomfortable and anxious. "A few seconds will only stun you. Any more will cause permanent damage. Do you understand?" he smiled, his eyes focused on Sophie and it was as if he could sense how afraid she was. "You wouldn't do that with humans around," Sophie said, hating herself for sounding frightened. The bridge wasn't very crowded but a few people were walking around. All the rebels chortled with a sense of evil in their eyes. "They have no idea we're here." One man pulled a black orb out of his cloak. "This is an Obscurer. It bends light and sound around us like a force field. All anyone can see or hear right now is wind and slight distortion in the air, like heat waves radiating off the ground." Sophie let out a quiet gasp and reached for Dex's hand. "I don't know how you escaped," the leader hissed. He handed a silver rope to one of his goons. "But you can rest assured it won't happen again." Sophie started panicking on the inside, she had gotten Dex into this and she pledged to get him out. She almost cried as the goon jerked her hands behind her back and tied them tight. "How did you find us?" asked Sophie wishing her voice would stop trembling. "The Black Swan must've thought we wouldn't check our own pathways. Let that be a lesson to you. Never underestimate your opponent," guffawed the rebels. "If you're not the Black Swan, who are you?" Sophie inquired."Wouldn't you like to know," the goon laughed wickedly as he tied her ankles The metal wire forced its way into her skin and as painful as it was, she couldn't care less about that.'Please, Fitz,' she begged. 'We're in Paris—Pont Alexandre III. We need help. Tell your dad and please hurry!'Her pain and worry were increasing now. Maybe it was just her or maybe the adrenaline strengthened her transmission but she could actually feel that Fitz could hear her.'Please listen to me. I'm not dead—but I might be if you don't come. Please send help.'She was so afraid that Fitz couldn't hear her but this transmission seemed so much stronger.A rebel shook her and the movement made her severe the connection. "She was transmitting again," the goon yelled. "Never heard a call that loud either. We should get out of here in case anyone heard her." Sophie had no idea how he knew but she grumbled mentally. "Agreed—and don't try that again unless you want to find out what the melder would do to your powerful little brain. Understood?" said the leader pointing the weapon right in the middle of her eyes. She swallowed the bile coating her throat. "What are you going to do with us?" she asked with a quaver in her voice."That's none of your business. Let's go." The harsh voice caused Sophie to cower a little bit. Dex hadn't spoken since the kidnappers had found the pair of them. She figured he was going into shock and was worried. But Dex immediately ripped apart his bonds. Channelling."Duck, Sophie," he cried. She felt herself slide onto the ground as energy sped past her. Another blast from the melder missed Dex as he slammed the leader toAnother blast missed Dex as he slammed the leader to the ground and knocked the weapon from his hand. The other goon grabbed the weapon and blasted Dex in the chest. Dex flew backwards and fell to the ground, helplessly. "Maybe I didn't make myself clear," sneered the leader. He straightened his cloak and snatched the melder back. Dex flailed his arms and body in pain and Sophie felt guilt and helplessness seep into her brain."Stop," she shrieked. "We'll cooperate. Just stop," a slight hitch in her voice made it clear she was afraid. "Of course you'll cooperate. You have no choice." He blasted Dex again, Dex stayed in one position this time. His eyes looked lifeless and he looked like he...No way.Sophie shut her eyes trying to get the cursed image out of her head, stupid photographic memory. "Get your hands off me," she yelled at the goon who yanked her to her feet. A skinny and pale hand squeezed Sophie's hand and she immediately stored this memory in her mind so that she could track him down later. If she made it out alive.The line was white and crescent-shaped, almost like a bite. The sentence triggered some of her memories. She let out a gasp and said, "You!"She turned around to get a better view of this mystery person. His face wasn't revealed but she knew who hid behind the cloak. "I know you," she exclaimed."You know nothing," he emphasised. But Sophie knew he was lying- he pushed her back and cackled when she stumbled. "Stop playing around," the leader screamed at the goon, "Get rid of the boy while I take the girl back to the keep.""You can't do that," yelled Sophie loudly, almost sobbing."Oh...but we can," smiled the leader. Sophie was losing power, she couldn't transmit very well. Her breathing shallowed slowly, and she let the pain take over. Her vision started blurring and the light started dimming around the edges of her eyes. Her heart pained from every inch and she could barely hear the goons yelling. It was like everything was fading away. She wheezed for breath but...nothing was working. Her mind flashed with everything she'd been through- her human parents. The first people to truly love her. Grady and Edaline's small smiles, Keefe's smirk, Dex's incredible alchemy abilities, Marella's last sarcastic joke, Della and Alden's sweet grins, Biana's constant sweet teasing, Fitz's movie star smile, even all the animals at Havenfield and Iggy- it was all fading away. Her last life adventure. This was it. She was dying. So, she closed her eyes and listened. But slowly, it all merged into her last heavy breath.