Chapter 16

Ursula dodged, but not before Hugo’s elbow grazed her cheekbone. She stumbled into the side of the stall. He followed his elbow with a wild haymaker, but she saw it coming. As she ducked, she struck upward with the sharp nib of the pen, slicing into his forearm.

Hugo let out a shrill scream, gripping his wrist. “You cut me.”

“You’re lucky I haven’t killed you yet.” She thrust the bloody pen toward him. “Sign. Now.”

She was losing control of this situation. Kester had told her not to call attention to herself, that she was supposed to work in the shadows, but she had a hysterical pop star on her hands. Just as she thrust the parchment at him, Hugo lowered his shoulder and charged.

She tried to sidestep, but the stall was too narrow. He knocked her backward through the door and onto the marble tiles. Her head smacked against the floor, and pain exploded in her skull.

Clutching his arm, blood dripping between his fingers, he stood looking down at her. “Unbelievable,” he said, then sprinted from the bathroom.

Ursula clenched her teeth, forcing herself to stand. Little flecks of light sparked in the periphery of her vision, and she held onto the edge of the sink for support. She rubbed the back of her throbbing head. I can’t let Hugo get away. She had royally cocked this up, but at least the bathroom was still empty.

Outside the door she could hear Hugo shrieking, “A crazy woman cut me! Call the police!”

Shit. How was she supposed to get out quietly now? This place was littered with CCTV cameras, and everyone would be looking for her. If she screwed this up, Emerazel was going to take pleasure in personally executing her, for reasons Ursula did not even understand.

Think, Ursula. If she ran through the door, she could make it past Hugo’s guard, but some well-meaning club patron would surely tackle her before she made it across the room. What about a diversion? If she used Emerazel’s fire, she could set off the sprinklers and the fire alarm. In the ensuing chaos, she might make it to the elevator, but likely not much further before a bouncer caught her. She tightened her fists. F.U., you bloody maniac, you dragged me into a hellish world I don’t even understand.

She needed to escape now—before anyone came in.

Outside the door someone shouted, “She’s still in there, right?”

Sodding hell.So much for working in the shadows. In a few moments, Hugo’s bodyguard and the bouncers would be in here. Her heart raced, heat blazing from her hand. If she didn’t control herself, she’d be lighting something on fire. Or worse—she’d be lighting someone on fire. She glanced down at her hands, at the black smoke curling from her fingertips.

Then it came to her. She rushed to the door, gripping the doorknob. She closed her eyes, willing the heat from her hand into the metal. It was just enough to warp the latch shut.

Someone banged on the door, shouting and trying to turn the knob, but it wouldn’t open.

Okay. I’ve locked myself in.But how was she supposed to get out? There were windows over the urinals, but they were sealed shut. And even if she could break one, she was fifteen stories up. She hadn’t exactly brought a parachute. Magic. I need to use magic.

She grabbed a bottle of cologne and a matchbook from the attendant’s tray. Gripping the bottle, she smashed off the top on the steel edge of the sink before pouring it on the floor in the shape of Emerazel’s sigil. She struck a match and dropped it. Flames blazed around her.

What was that transportation spell Kester had chanted? He hadn’t taught it to her. Bollocks bollocks bollocks.

An authoritative voice boomed through the door. “Is she still in there?”

She closed her eyes. It’s in my brain, somewhere. In her mind’s eye, she was back in the stone circle. Kester held her against his chest. She could almost feel his heartbeat next to her cheek. He’d intoned the strange magical words about a portal of fire, and Emerazel’s grace. She repeated after him, and the spell slipped from her tongue, as though she’d known it all her life—which, perhaps, she had.

The bodyguard pounded on the door, shouting. But the fire was raging all around her, and she dissolved into ash.