[Ann's POV]
With a final burst of speed, I closed the last few inches.
My hand closed around his elbows. I wrenched them up and back, pinning them against his spine. A shocked gasp escaped him—high and thin, the sound of a man who had never been truly handled before.
Different mask. Another human.
"What are you doing?!" he yelped, his voice muffled and distorted behind the cobalt blue mask. He tried to twist, but my grip was unyielding.
I drove my knee hard into the back of his knee joint. His leg buckled, and he dropped to the cobblestones with a pained grunt, kneeling awkwardly before me. A circle of spectators had formed around us, their festive chatter dying into a tense, whispering silence. I could smell their fear and confusion—a sour note in the air.
"It hurts! What do you want from me?!" he snarled, the anger in his voice edged with genuine pain.
"Are you connected to the transaction of black magic restraints?" I demanded, my voice low, flat, and devoid of any emotion.
