The guards didn't answer, and I smiled humorlessly at the two figures. I didn’t know if Jordan had instructed them not to talk to me, or if it was of their own volition, but I had yet to hear a peep from any of the guards.
I passed the time going through my exercises, trying to keep my body as fit as possible so I could be ready to escape or fight at a moment's notice. Also because it was the only thing to do in a small cell like this with no other entertainment or company. They could have given me a book or two at least. Was Jordan trying to wear me down through sheer boredom?
I stopped when I heard the sound of people walking toward me, and I tried to look like I’d been sitting on my cot this whole time. The moment the figures entered the room, however, I threw that tactic out the window and went on high alert mode. Three Sun Witches stood before me, dressed in their warm-colored robes, all of them beautiful and terrifying. I blinked a few times, wondering if I was so bored that I’d just straight up hallucinated Sun Witches, but then one of them motioned for the guard to open the door with the jangly keychain again. He opened it, and all three of the Sun Witches stepped inside my cell—and were securely locked inside with me.
This can't be good, I thought, as I sat up straighter.
The middle Sun Witch was familiar, with eyes so pale they looked colorless, and platinum blond hair falling to her shoulders. Her robe was burnt orange and threaded with gold images of the sun along the neckline and around her wrists. I vaguely remembered her giving me a blanket at the Convergence. The other two witches, wearing robes the color of Dijon mustard, seemed to defer to her as their leader, even though she was younger than them.
“My name is Roxandra,” she said. “I am Evanora’s daughter.”
That explained a lot. Evanora was the High Priestess of the Sun Witches. Was she here too? I sure hoped not. “I’d say it's nice to meet you, but the circumstances are less than ideal.”
Roxandra looked around the cell, perusing it slowly as she talked. “We’re here to learn about your powers.”
"Powers? What powers?" I clasped my hands in my lap, hoping they wouldn’t shake. Lying to Jordan was one thing, but even though I now knew that the Sun Witches weren’t the perfect paragons I’d grown up believing them to be, they were still powerful beyond measure, and I didn’t know if I could fool them.
“You have Moon Witch powers.” She turned those strange eyes on me, and they dared me to lie. “Tell us about them.”
“I don’t know what you mean." It was surprisingly easy to choke the lie out.
Roxandra stepped forward and bright light filled her eyes. "Don't lie to me."
I spread my hands wide, trying to look innocent and calm, even as my heart raced. "If Jordan told you I have magic, he's wrong. He just can't believe a girl like me could get away from him in the woods, but I've spent my life escaping bad situations. It's what I do."
And I'll escape this one too, I mentally added.
Roxandra's glowing eyes narrowed. "Who is your mother?"
"I have no idea." It was nice not having to lie about that, at least.
"The Cancer alpha must have told you something about her."
"He told me she was human, and that she abandoned me when I was a baby. That's it. Trust me, I wish I knew more about her."
Roxandra pursed her lips and glanced between the other two witches at her side. Then she turned those sunlit eyes back on me. “If you had just cooperated with us, I could have made this a lot easier for you."
I clenched my jaw, wondering what exactly was going on, but before I could open my mouth to ask, the three of them began chanting. All of their eyes glowed, making the room light up like we were outside at noon on a cloudless day. I shielded my face from the sudden brightness, a sharp contrast to my dark cell, and that's when I felt the spell settle over me like a straight jacket, pressing and squeezing, as if it was trying to eek something out of me. I opened my mouth to scream as silvery light shot out of me, right from my chest. What the—
It felt like an explosion, and when my vision cleared, all three Sun Witches were on the ground. Roxandra looked shaken as she stood up, and she shouted a word in another language I didn't recognize. The other two Sun Witches scrambled to their feet and advanced on me. I held my hands up, too confused and disoriented to fight back as they grabbed hold of my arms. Before I could respond, they pulled me off the cot and pushed me to the floor.
"What was that?" Jordan's voice called out.
I’d been so shocked by the explosion of power that I hadn’t even heard Jordan approaching, but when I looked up, he stood outside of my cell door, eyes on Roxandra.