~Magic, love and betrayal~
Lisa Cartwright's mundane life, as a demon-killing shadowhunter, was shaken at its foundations by a series of mysterious murders. As she starts her quest, determined to find the cause of these assassinations, she finds th...
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"And from the whole she deduced this useful lesson, that to go previously engaged to a ball, does not necessarily increase either the dignity or enjoyment of a young lady." -Jane Austen
It was uncomfortably quiet in the cab on the way to the prom. Lisa and Jonathan had been avoiding each other's eyes the entire ride. Jonathan stared out the window as she looked at the invitation for the umpteenth time, at nine o'clock in Castle Den Brandt. The driver turned and Lisa was shivering from the cold. She was unprepared for the cold winter weather in her thin dress and cardigan. Anna had put her hair up and she felt for a moment whether all the pins were still in place.
Lisa could feel the tension in the car as she cast another sideways glance at Jonathan. Because I love you. That sentence still hung unspoken between them. They would have to work together today with no distractions, their mission had to succeed at all costs.
"You can stop here." It was the first thing she heard Jonathan say since they'd left. The tires squealed as the car came to a stop, Lisa shoved some money into the frowning driver's hands, and together they got out as quickly as they could. They were standing in the main driveway of the castle, she stared at the big white building and Jonathan turned to her.
"What's the plan?" Lisa looked away from his blue eyes to make sure her weapons were still in place. She had two daggers buckled on her lower legs, that's all she could take with her. She also knew that Jonathan wore a gun belt under his blazer.
"We mingle with the guests as unnoticed as possible, then sneak off to rummage through Cassius's things." She began to walk down the driveway and looked at the beautiful fountain as Jonathan walked behind her.
"That's a terrible plan," he laughed, "we'll stand out with the runes and also because we're not invited." Lisa rolled her eyes and quickened her pace, the driveway seemed to be miles long. She regretted they hadn't been able to take a Portal, but Anna had noted that it wouldn't fit into their plan to be "subtle".
"Now is the perfect time to get into the High Warlock's house. We could never break in and he certainly wouldn't let us in." Lisa turned to Jonathan as they reached the stairs. "We're just looking for information about the scepter and the ancient language that Moira can't translate and then we skedaddle."
Jonathan's mouth turned into a wide grin and he bent his arm, Lisa sighed and locked arms. They climbed the stairs and politely rang the bell. A hunchbacked man with bat wings opened the massive door. It was Achiel, Cassius's servant, from him they had bought the mythological book at the shadow market. Lisa smiled uncomfortably and handed him the invitation. Achiel looked from the slip of paper at them with a raised eyebrow.
"Name?" he said in a cracking voice.
"Lisa Cartwright and Jonathan Starkweather," she said quickly. Hopefully, he was stupid enough to think they were welcome at the party.
