13. Ember

13

EMBER

“W ell, that escalated quickly.” I crept toward Hazel, planning to drag her away from the fray and force her to give us the amulet, but another, bigger fae crawled through the massive rift.

This one had glistening wings like a dragonfly and round, faceted, silver eyes protruding from his forehead. An array of stone-like extensions circled his skull, or the top of his exoskeleton head, or…whatever these buggy bastards had…in the shape of a built-in crown, and soldier number one lowered to one knee, holding the heart up like an offering to the big guy.

Adrian dropped to his knee like the follower he was, and his minions cowered behind him while poor Hector lay heartless—and liverless—at the fae’s feet.

“Ignacus,” Mayhem growled beside me, his lip curling in disgust before he sucked in a sharp breath. “Another rift is forming.”

“Adrian said they weren’t planning an invasion here.” Ash clutched a potion bottle in one hand and held a ball of fire in the other.

“Adrian lies.” I crept a little closer. “They all do. Is our silencing spell still intact?”

“For now. Want me to reinforce it?”

I shook my head. “Take Shade and Miles around the mausoleum and get behind them. Seal the rift before any more fae get through.”

“My shadow won’t reach that far,” Shade said. “I won’t be able to cloak you.”

“Same goes for the silencing,” Ash said.

“That’s okay. Things are about to get messy, anyway.” I jerked my head, urging them to go, and turned my attention back to the display before us.

Adrian, still kneeling in faux deference, held one hand behind his back and twirled his finger, quietly gathering the air toward him and answering our question. No, the cocky High Priest did not call the bug men to this little shindig.

Ignacus, the half-blooded fae prince, accepted the offered heart, opening his wide mouth and revealing a set of dagger-like teeth. Gooey saliva strings stretched from the top row to the bottom, making my stomach sour, and I tilted my head, scrunching my brow.

How could this guy be a prince and look so much like the lesser fae we unaffectionately called overgrown mosquitoes? Wait… Did the fae king get it on with a…?

That would be like a Great Dane going for a Chihuahua. Ew. I shook away the thought.

A squelching, chomping sound drew my attention back to the moment, right in time for me to watch Ignacus devour Hector’s heart and move on to his liver.

He made a clicking sound in his throat and wiped the blood from his face with a clawed hand, completely missing the dribble running down his chin. “What happened to our deal?” He straightened his spine and inclined his head, looking both regal and ridiculous at once.

No, not his spine. I kept forgetting these guys wore their skeletons on the outside. So gross.

Adrian looked up at Ignacus. “It’s still on. I came to get the amulet, and I was planning to give it to you.”

“That was not the deal.” He wrapped his long, spindly fingers around Adrian’s neck and hauled him to his feet. “You were to find the amulet and send word of its location.”

Adrian fisted his hand, ending his call on the wind. “I did. The auction,” he squeaked. “I gave you all those witches. The amulet was there.”

Hazel took a tentative step backward. I clung to the edge of the mausoleum, doing my best not to draw attention. Olga looked at Hazel and gave her head a tiny shake before her gaze locked on me. Her eyes widened, her mouth dropping open with her gasp.

I pressed a finger to my lips, shushing her, and crept forward a little more. So far, the fae were focused on Adrian and his minions. If I could just grab Hazel…

Ignacus growled. “You gave us witches who knew our weak spots. Your blue-haired woman shouted orders to the rest. They slaughtered my men. Only one got away before she sealed the rift.”

“That wasn’t my work.” Adrian swirled his finger again, finally realizing his lies and excuses weren’t going to save him. “The blue-haired one is from Salem. They’re your enemies, not us.”

“A witch is a witch. Where is the one you sent to take my amulet?”

“Shit.” Hazel turned to run, but Olga hit her with a binding spell, stopping her mid-stride.

“Apprehend her,” Ignacus shouted at his soldiers, who turned on their glamour, becoming nearly invisible in the dark night.

Adrian raised his hand and slammed a gust of wind against Ignacus’s head. The fae stumbled, losing his grip and allowing Adrian to jerk away and dart behind Olga and Gray.

A shimmer appeared in front of Hazel before a soldier grabbed her and dragged her toward his leader. I hurled a fireball at the culpable fae. Mayhem threw one a split second later, and the soldier dropped his camouflage.

His pincers opened and closed, poisonous goo dripping from them as he dropped Hazel and lunged for me. I sidestepped, smacking his back with my sword and letting him plow past me, into my demon. Mayhem caught him by the throat, and Chaos plunged a taloned hand beneath a breastplate, ripping out the creature’s heart.

“One down, three to go.” I sheathed my sword and clutched Hazel’s arm, hauling her upright. Mayhem grabbed her around the waist and carried her behind the mausoleum while Chaos charged into the fray.

“I’m going to unfreeze you.” I gripped her shoulders, pressing her against the wall. “And then you’re going to tell me where you hid the amulet. If anyone else gets their hands on it, life as you know it will end. I’m talking catastrophic consequences. Do you understand?”

Hazel’s eyes, the only part of her body she could move, darted back and forth. Why had I wasted my breath? If Olga’s binding spell worked like ours, Hazel wouldn’t remember a word I just said.

“The rift is sealed,” Ash shouted, “but there’s a new one with another beastie trying to get through.”

“Go help them,” I said to Mayhem.

“But the amulet?—”

“I’ll take care of it. Go.”

He raised his hands, giving me a weird look before shaking his head and joining the others in the battle.

“What was done is now undone. Break this bind and restore her mind.” I tightened my grip on Hazel’s shoulders, leaning all my weight against her as I repeated my warning. “Tell me where the amulet is so I can save the world.”

The witch had the audacity to laugh in my face. “Unless you’ve got sixty grand in your pocket, you can screw yourself.”

“What part of the world ending don’t you understand?” Now would be the perfect time for Ash’s mind control thing she and Chaos did. Could Mayhem and I do it…? It didn’t matter because I had sent him away, dammit.

Hazel laughed again. “I have problems of my own to deal with. The amulet is mine. I’ll find another buyer.”

“The hell you will.” I sent a wave of heat down my arms and out my palms. I didn’t burn her shoulders. Not yet, but I would if I had to. It wasn’t very light witch-like, I knew. But it’s for the greater good had become my excuse for doing anything unsavory lately.

“Get your hands off me.” She narrowed her eyes.

“Not until you tell me where you hid the amulet.” I turned up the temperature to a slow roast.

“That’s not happening.” She wove her hands upward, between my arms, and grabbed the back of my neck, pulling me forward with otherworldly strength while simultaneously kneeing me in the gut.

I swear my stomach nearly shredded on my spine and came out my back. The ridiculous thought of how the hell did she get so strong flashed through my mind, but I knew the answer. She’d worn the amulet for three hours. Of course she was strong.

Hazel shoved me into the wall, my head hitting the stone with a thwack , and sprinted toward another tomb. I gave chase and tackled her, but she wiggled free and kicked me in the shoulder, dislocating it with a pop .

I ground my teeth, groaning, a slew of cuss words flying from my lips as she dove into a mausoleum. Stumbling to my feet, I clutched my useless left arm, holding it against my body.

Shouts, grunts, and more cuss words sounded to my right. I spun toward my team. Ash kneeled next to Gray, smearing a salve on her injured neck, while Chaos knocked a soldier off his feet. Mayhem charged toward Ignacus, but effing Adrian sent a tornado for my demon, knocking him backward before he could reach the prince.

Miles hurled an energy ball at the second soldier, making him stumble, and Shade raised a hand toward the creature, attempting to suck the life from his body. I glimpsed the back of Olga’s head as she high-tailed it out of the cemetery, and a massive beak protruded from a rift, followed by a feathery head with enormous golden eyes.

“Please tell me that’s not another chicken-snake.” I took two steps toward Hazel’s mausoleum when Ignacus let out a screech, the sound so loud, it hit me in the chest, knocking me—and everyone else—to the ground.

Hazel grunted behind me. I pushed myself to sitting and turned toward her. The amulet dangled from her fingers as she clambered to her feet. “Holy shit. Is that a griffin?”

I followed her gaze to the beastie, which was definitely not a chicken-snake. This creature had the head of an eagle and the body of the biggest lion I had ever seen. It shrieked and stomped its murder mittens, making Hazel freeze in her tracks.

My instincts turned to fight, and I shot to my feet, unsheathing my sword with my good arm. The griffin prowled toward us. Hazel whimpered. I sent fire licking up my blade and swung. The griffin took to the sky.

Did I mention the beastie had huge, feathered wings?

I had never seen a griffin in real life, and apparently, neither had my team. We all stood there dumbfounded for a second, and that second was all our foe needed to gain the upper hand.

A soldier grabbed Shade by the throat and Miles by the hair. Ignacus lunged for Chaos, tackling him to the ground while the other soldier knocked Ash onto her back, pinning her to the dirt and dripping poisonous saliva onto her face.

Adrian narrowed his eyes at Hazel and lifted his hands, creating a cyclone of grave dirt around her. She coughed and gasped, scratching at her neck as her supposed buyer sucked the air from her lungs.

Panic made my blood run cold. I used to say I could kick anyone’s ass with both hands tied behind my back, but now, with one arm dangling like a limp yogurt slinger, I knew what a crock that was. I couldn’t save them all…couldn’t save any of them unless I acted, but for possibly the first time in my life, out of the three Fs, my body chose to effing freeze.

I stood there impotent, useless, watching… No, not even watching. My mind all but blanked while everyone around me hung on the precipice of death.

“Ember.” Mayhem’s voice shattered the ice, and my mind kicked into overdrive.

I lunged at him, grasping his hand. “Use me. Use my energy and make the violence stop.”

“I can’t stop violence, my love. I cause it.”

“Not with me, you don’t.” I focused on the sigil warming my injured arm and pushed my magic into him.

He sucked in a breath and closed his eyes, but now was not the time for him to bask in my essence.

I squeezed his hand. “Send it out. Stop them before anyone else dies.”

“Mmm…yes.” He opened his eyes and shared his energy with me, drawing more of mine into him and causing the air around us to thicken. Our magic mixed and melded, and as he sent it outward, I gasped. Every nerve in my body fired at once, electrifying me, heightening my senses, sharpening my vision until I could see the griffin in the sky as clearly as if it were on the ground.

The fighting stopped. The fae soldiers backed away from my team, smacking into each other and looking confused as all get out. Adrian blinked at me, cocking his head, and Ignacus rose, offering Chaos a hand up.

Hazel sucked in a massive breath and dropped to her knees, the amulet falling from her grasp. Both Adrian and Ignacus lunged toward it. I would have done the same if I weren’t busy keeping everyone from killing each other, but it wouldn’t have mattered if I’d tried.

The griffin swooped from the sky, half-screeching, half-roaring, and snatched the amulet from the dirt before flying off, into the horizon. My mouth hung open as I watched it ascend and head toward the distant mountains.

“Well, what now?” Shade asked, drawing my attention to our current issue, which involved three teams ready to murder each other at the first crack of our magic.

“We will leave peacefully.” Ignacus bowed slightly. “My soldiers require enzymes to remain in this realm, but we will not take them from you.” He waved an arm, slicing into the fabric of reality and opening a rift to the fae world. “We will obtain the amulet another time. Do not doubt it.”

The two fly-men stood at attention as their prince slipped through the veil. When they followed, the rift slammed shut, stitching itself back together. The air around us shimmied. No, not the air.

The veil.

It was as if a wall existed on every plane, like I could reach out in any direction and touch it. It was everywhere and nowhere at the same time, and my brain could not comprehend the ethereal geometry.

Squeezing my eyes shut, I shook my head before blinking them open again. Mayhem’s magic still flowed through me. Adrian stood there looking as dumbfounded as I felt, and Hazel made the most of our inaction, doing an about-face and sprinting out of the cemetery.

My muscles trembled with the wavering walls, the pain in my dislocated shoulder screaming with my magical exertion. I tugged from Mayhem’s grasp, breaking our magical hold, and everyone around us gasped.

“I had it.” Adrian glared at me, his hands curling into fists. “I could have ended him with its power.”

“There are six of us and two of you.” I rested my hand on my hip, wishing I could cross my arms. “What are you going to do?”

He sniffed, lifting his chin like a spoiled, stubborn child. “Where did your griffin take it?”

“It’s not our griffin, and I have no idea.” But I hoped to Hecate our demons did because, otherwise, we were screwed.

Adrian moved his chin from side to side like a cow chewing cud. “Let’s go, Gray. You’ve got scrying to do.”

She swallowed hard. “What about Hector?”

“Leave him for the vultures,” he said, locking his gaze with mine for a moment before he turned and walked away.

“Was he trying to say we’re the vultures?” I asked.

“Half of what he says doesn’t make sense,” Gray whispered, hesitating to follow her leader. “Will you…?”

She moved toward me, lowering her voice even more. “I know you don’t owe us anything, but will you cremate him? The thought of him being eaten is…” She visibly shuddered.

I wanted to tell her to go eff herself because she was right. We didn’t owe them a damn thing. But if that were one of my friends laying dead on the ground and I didn’t have the power to do it myself, I’d probably ask the same thing.

Nobody deserved to get eaten.

“We’ll take care of him,” I said.

“On one condition,” Mayhem added. “You must distract Adrian. Do whatever you can to stall him so that we may reach the amulet first.”

“I…” Fear rounded her eyes, and her lower lip trembled.

“Just go.” I rolled my eyes. “Bow to your master, kiss his ring or suck his toes, or whatever the hell it is you do. We don’t need your help.”

She gave me a blubbery nod and scurried away, leaving us to deal with the bodies of an overgrown bug and the unfortunate witch who’d gotten in his way.