The garden was quiet inside. Though a few demons tried to follow us in, our friends on the outside picked them off with fire and potion bombs.

Lachlan slowed his sprint as I clung to his back, muscles aching from desperately trying to hold on. Bree and Rowan caught up, slowing to a walk as they caught their breath. The four of us passed through multiple rows of hedges.

“This place is way bigger than it looks on the outside, isn’t it?” Bree asked.

“Definitely,” I said.

Beneath me, Lachlan rumbled his agreement. He moved with leonine grace, stalking toward the topiaries.

Should I get off of him?

I didn’t really want to. This was fun.

“And we’re onto something,” Rowan said.

We passed another row of hedges, finally reaching a corridor lined on either side with topiaries. Animals of all different varieties bordered the path.

I inspected the topiaries, spotting giant monsters of all sorts. Snakes, tigers, griffons, and demon dogs. They prowled and pranced, frozen in time.

As soon as we passed the first topiary, it burst to life. The cobra leapt off the platform, rearing its hooded head back to strike at Bree.

She called on her magic, and lightning struck, piercing the night sky and obliterating the topiary. It burnt to a crisp, ashes scattering to the ground.

The rest of the animals leapt to the ground, prowling near. I called on my sword, drawing it from the ether, and leapt off of Lachlan’s back. For this, we were better separate.

He charged a panther topiary, while I raced for a bear. I struck out with my sword, doing a bit of gardening around the head. I sliced it right off. Headless, the bear swiped out with its front foot, swiping me across the stomach with its claws made of thorns.

Pain flared, and I doubled over briefly.

Keep fighting.

The wound wouldn’t kill me—it would just hurt like hell. I straightened, aiming my sword for the bear’s front leg. I lopped it off, then went for the next.

At my side, Rowan fought a stag. The antlers swiped out at her, coated with thorns.

I finished off the bear just as a shriek sounded. The Cats of Catastrophe appeared, racing toward the topiary beasts. They each leapt on their own monster, claws flailing. Snippets of leaves flew left and right as the cats each destroyed a topiary.

Lachlan cut through others, making quick work, while my sisters and I fought our way past three identical topiary alligators. Their tails whipped out with incredible strength. One knocked me off my feet, and I rolled out of the way of its snapping jaws. My hip ached where the gator’s thorny tail had hit me, and blood soaked my jeans.

I turned and lunged, sword outstretched, and took off the monster’s head.

Finally, we destroyed the last of the topiaries.

In the quiet calm, I surveyed what was ahead. About fifty yards away, a large stone building sat in the middle of a beautiful rose garden. Dark magic rolled out from the structure.

Our targets were in there. “Jackpot.”

We stalked closer on silent feet, keeping our pace quick. We’d only gone about ten yards when dark figures melted out from the walls, stalking toward us. They had gray skin and black eyes, with long pointed ears close to their skulls. Black claws tipped their hands. Their auras were as black as pitch, swirling around them like fog. Pale yellow eyes gleamed at us as they licked their fangs.

“Dark fae.” Fear echoed in Rowan’s voice.

The Cats of Catastrophe hissed and ran backward, putting distance between themselves and the creatures.

Cold shivered across my skin.

The dark fae’s touch was deadly. And they were super fast.

They streaked toward us. My heart leapt into my throat as I threw up my arms, creating a massive white shield. They slammed into it, hissing and clawing.

There were at least twenty of them. They were so fast and so deadly that we couldn’t fight them. Not all of them.

“Shit, what do we do?” Bree asked. “I can electrocute some, but how long can you hold that shield?”

Sweat broke out on my brow, and my arms shook. “Not long.”

Next to me, Lachlan shifted back into his human form and raised his arms.

“Hurry.” I gasped as my shield began to flicker. Whatever he was going to do, he needed to do it quick.

The dark fae were so strong that they were breaking down my shield. They’d overwhelm us in seconds. Fear like I’d never known shivered through me, turning all my muscles to ice.

I could take out one or two, and my sisters probably more. But not enough. At least one could touch us, poisoning us with a fast-acting dose of lethal paralysis. For this, they were one of the most feared species of magical creature.

Lachlan raised his hands. His magic surged. Behind the dark fae, the earth rose up. A wall of dirt and rocks cut off our view of the stone building as it curled over the fae like a tidal wave. It crashed down on them, dirt and rocks pouring down, crushing them.

Shocked, I stared. All I could see was piles of displaced dirt and stone. The fae were pulverized beneath.

“Come on!” Lachlan started to climb over the piles of dirt and rock.

I followed. “How the hell did you do that?”

It must have taken so much magic.

“Practice.” His voice sounded a bit strange. “And I’m nearly tapped out. It took almost everything I have.”

“So we’re on our own in there.” I pointed to the building, which was only ten yards away now.

“I can still fight. Maybe even shift.”

We reached the building and rushed inside, Lachlan taking the lead.

The interior was far larger than I’d expected. Shelves of books and scrolls bordered the walls, along with massive iron safes full of who knew what. Tables were scattered here and there with papers spread about. Maps and documents.

But it was the people in the middle who caught my eye.

Our targets.

And they were ready for us.

The cloaked figure and the two women from the Roman baths stood there. The dark-haired woman and the blonde one had brought him the spell and hadn’t left his side, it seemed. His minions. They were guarded by two hulking demons who each held massive swords. The cloaked figure’s magic rolled out, dark and fierce. It made my stomach turn and my muscles tremble. In his hands, he clutched the package with the spell.

In front of them, two demons struggled with something on the ground. They pulled a big iron ring—just like the trapdoor in the ghost library.

We stepped forward.

Thunder cracked. The roof shook.

Bree was trying to break through with her lightning, but the building was strong.

The women at the cloaked figure’s side stepped forward. The dark-haired one hurled a blast of green magic at us.

Crap!

This was the same combustive magic that she’d thrown back at the Roman baths. I dived left, narrowly avoiding a kill shot. The edges of the magic hit my arm, making it go limp as I crashed to the ground. The blast of magic destroyed the wall behind me.

Pain surged through my arm as I scrambled to my feet. The limb hung limply at my side, impossible to move.

Rowan sprinted for the woman, sword raised. The blonde woman hurled a massive icicle at Rowan, who dodged the thing by inches.

Bree fought the two demons, using her wings to fly just out of their reach as she delivered killing blows.

The cloaked figure raised his hands. Foul magic swelled on the air. Wispy black figures shot from his fingertips, rushing toward us. There were at least fifteen of them, and all looked like shadowy grim reapers.

They converged on us, bringing with them the stink of death.

I called upon my magic, dredging up every bit of it, and envisioned my shield. The light burst out of me, but it wasn’t my shield at all. It was a pale glow that felt like a summer day.

What the heck?

Use it.

Fear clawed at my throat. This wasn’t my shield. It couldn’t protect us.

Give it your life force.

I had no idea what that meant.

Try.

Crap, this was new magic. And it wanted me to do something totally confusing. I tried, focusing on the commands, pushing my energy into the magic, making it glow brighter and stronger.

The grim reaper figures shrank away from the light. I could almost feel the rage and confusion flowing from the cloaked figure. Sweat dripped down my face as I worked, pushing all the energy in my body out through my hands.

On instinct, I started calling up good memories. My mother from when I was younger. Playing with my sisters. A single trip to the beach when our lives were still easy.

The light glowed stronger, making the evil shadows begin to fade. But weakness stole over me. As I fed my energy to the magic, it became harder to stand. Harder to breathe.

At my side, Lachlan shifted into his lion form, no doubt using the last of his magic. He roared, and charged the cloaked figure. The women were on either side of the room already, battling Bree and Rowan.

I kept up my strange new magic, beating back the shadowy figures who still threatened to overwhelm us.

Just before Lachlan collided with the cloaked man, he hurled the package containing the spell at the blonde woman. She was about to catch it when Muffin leapt into the air and batted it away. He must have charged into the building.

The package with the crystal flew to the side of the room.

Lachlan collided with the cloaked figure, taking him down to the ground. In a burst of strength, the cloaked figure shoved the lion off of him. Lachlan flew through the air and slammed to the ground on the other side of the room.

Holy crap!

Whoever wore the cloak was really freaking strong. In front of him, the demons finally managed to pull the trapdoor open.

My muscles were trembling with strain as I fought back the shadowy forms with my magic. I was nearly tapped out, ready to fall on my face, but I kept going.

There was no other choice.

The cloaked man rose to his feet and surveyed the room. Rowan was on the left, plunging her blade into the stomach of the dark-haired woman. Bree, who had finished off the demons, was now taking out the blonde. Lachlan rose to his feet and charged him again. The dark shadows—his creepy army—were almost gone.

Frustration vibrated from the cloaked figure.

He was losing.

And he knew it.

He flung out his hands and hurled jets of green fire into the room, then he jumped into the trapdoor below.

Primordial fire!

My throat closed with fear.

This kind of fire could devour this building in seconds.

“Run!” Bree screamed.

She abandoned her fight with the woman at the back of the room and sprinted toward me. As the green flames devoured the walls, Lachlan hurtled our way, and Muffin ran so fast he was a blur.

The demons who’d opened the trapdoor didn’t bother to jump in; they just turned and ran for the door.

As Bree passed by the trapdoor, she glanced inside, then screamed, “Full of fire!”

The fire had already devoured the part of the room where the crystal containing the spell had landed.

Screw that.

I turned and ran, sprinting alongside my friends. The space was nearly full of green flame, the heat so great that I could smell burning hair. I raced through the door with my sisters, spilling out into the cool night.

We kept running, following Muffin into the garden. Lachlan ran behind us, alongside the demons. They veered off to the left, but we ignored them, wanting to put more space between us and the building.

We didn’t stop until we were fifty yards away. Panting, I turned. The building was a giant green torch. Even the stone was on fire.

“The spell is destroyed,” Rowan said. “And the blonde woman didn’t make it out.”

Muffin meowed. You’re welcome.

“Good job, bud.” I looked at Lachlan, who stood next to me in his lion form. He was enormous, his black fur glinting in the light. Nerves skated across my skin as my gaze traveled from his fangs to claws, though I knew he’d never hurt me.

I squinted at one of the long claws on his front right foot. The deadly claw pierced a tiny scrap of brown cloth. Just like what the cloaked figure had worn. I gasped, then bent and pulled it off the claw. I shoved it in my pocket.

Lachlan shifted back to human. “Where did he go? That trapdoor had to lead somewhere.”

“He filled it with flame to cover his tracks,” Bree said. “It looked like the pits of hell when I passed.”

“I think it must go to the portal in the woods,” I said. “I bet that was his escape hatch to get there.”

“Let’s try to catch him.”

“I’ll fly.” Bree’s wings unfurled, silver and bright. She shot into the air, flying up over the forest.

Lachlan met my gaze. “Want to come?”

He was fastest in his lion form, which meant….

“Yes.”

Magic swirled around him as he shifted. Then the enormous beast stood in front of me, regal and terrifying. I stashed my sword in the ether and climbed onto his back, clinging to his warm fur. My wounded arm hung limp at my side, making it difficult, so I clutched him with my knees.

“I’ll alert our friends,” Rowan said.

Muffin stood by her side, whiskers singed. Princess Snowflake III and Bojangles had appeared as well. As usual, Princess Snowflake III was coated liberally in blood, while Bojangles just looked like Bojangles. Cross-eyed and goofy.

“Be safe,” I said to Rowan, right before Lachlan started sprinting through the garden.

In the courtyard, he raced past my friends, who were finishing off the last of the demons. They looked battered and worn, but no one was on the ground, at least.

I crouched low over Lachlan’s back, clinging tight to his fur as the wind tore at my hair.

Come on. Come on.

We had to beat the figure to the portal.

Lachlan sprinted through the small gate.

“Across the vineyard, to the forest!” I screamed.

Lachlan hadn’t arrived using that portal—only I had. Bree had a bird’s-eye view from the sky, but Lachlan needed directions. He cut through the rows of dormant vines, then sprinted into the forest. Branches tore at my clothes and hair as we ran. I yelled directions, trying to remember which way I’d come initially.

Then we saw it—the stone ruins where the portal gleamed with golden light. It glowed in the distance.

“You see that?” Bree’s voice sounded through my comms charm. “It just lit up. I’m going in.”

Lachlan picked up the pace, his giant strides eating up the ground. As we neared, I spotted someone standing within the glowing light. The cloaked figure.

Bree hurtled from the sky, her silver wings carrying her down.

The light around the figure shined brighter. We were almost there!

Then he disappeared. The light went black.

Lachlan sprinted into the stone ruins, but they lay dormant and quiet. The tumbled columns gleamed in the moonlight, but there was no more magic here.

He was gone.