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being detected, they had gained some information on their day-to-day operations, although not much.
    “She reports they usually travel by plane. Their own private jets. They must have someone to do computer work for them. To keep the planes off the record. She seemed pretty sure it is a non-magus kid.”
    “You want to kidnap him?”
    “No, I want to do a forget-spell on the IT guy and implant spyware onto his computer. You wouldn’t believe how useful our contact in the FBI has been on providing us the proper programs to do this. Then track them to where they’ve relocated. Perhaps, by monitoring his computer activity, we can determine when the women leave the estate and may be more vulnerable. Or we can institute viper spies again once we know where they reside. Who knows what other information we can glean from his computer.”
    “Interesting. How do you propose to get near this computer person?”
    “Marelena says he goes with them a lot of the time, but I bet they don’t allow him to tag along when they…do their thing. He is, therefore, probably on his own near their transport.”
    “Draw them out. Keep the magi busy and then get him?”
    “Exactly.”
    “Do it.”
    Zimeri smiled. “Already in motion, master.” He rose, bowed, and left.
    ****
    Hatred and terror seesawed in Cy’s mind as he watched the skinny, dark-skinned Asian approach. He scanned his prison cell, gauging the distance along the wall. To know how much space he had to move when Rishi hit.
    Rishi’s lip curled upwards into a left-sided leer. This was going to be a bad day.
    Please don’t let it be needles today . The drugs hurt and made him puke. Rishi hurt him worse when he did that.
    Rishi promised an end only if he answered questions. Questions about magi, daemons, and some temple. Stuff he knew nothing about. Not one iota. He was tempted to make something up, but suspected Rishi would know.
    For a while after he first got here, he thought he’d been sucked into some alternate super sci-fi world. He still worried he’d been cast as the pitiful secondary character scripted for death after a prolonged torture fest.
    What had he done to be taken from the hospital right after he watched his foster parents die? How long had it been since he was thrown from the train when it wrecked just outside Cape Town? He hadn’t particularly cared for Karen or Bryce. Didn’t mourn their deaths. As his third set of fosters in three years, they liked laying down the hurt. But in comparison to Rishi’s hurt, Karen and Bryce were in the junior league.
    “Ready to talk about the magi?” Rishi asked in his thickly accented voice. He raised his hand.
    Cy shook his head. His sweat-slick palms slipped against the painted-brick wall as he moved away. This windowless room offered no chance for escape. No crying. Don’t even go there. On those few occasions when his eyes leaked, Rishi laughed. And hit harder.
    “Master Nadir is coming to speak with you today. For him, I advise you remember.”
    Cy focused on the dark hand throughout its advance. He turned the instant it started its downward arc, deflecting the blow to his shoulder. He crawled into the corner. How could he remember what he didn’t know?
    The door flew open. Cy gaped. The height of the guy entering forced his neck upward. He had long gray-streaked, black hair that flowed down his back and a burn-scarred left cheek. But the unnatural aqua eyes turned his intestines into a frozen slushy. Familiarity slid through his mind. Puzzling. He’d never met anyone with eyes quite that freaky.
    “Hello, Cy. I’m Terek Nadir. I hear you are not being forthcoming. Perhaps I can help.”
    Cy shook his head and croaked out, “Don’t know anything.” The temperature dropped around him as the man approached. A sewage odor permeated the air.
    “Perhaps your memory has yet to be triggered.” Terek seized his small biceps and yanked him to his feet. Although lanky, Cy was tall for his age, but Terek still