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Dread slithers through me, and I fight off Xander to fling myself at the barrier, but it holds. “What does that mean?”
“It means we’re losing her.” Flint’s voice trembles as he reaches for her.
“No!” Xander throws out a hand. “Don’t touch the ice!”
Flint curses and scrubs a hand over his face. “If it goes out…”
“What?” Darius grabs his arm. “What will happen?”
“Her power binds our curse. In death, she still burns bright.” He swallows hard. “If she fades, though…”
No, I refuse to accept this. We can’t lose Pen, not like this.
My thoughts race as I search for something, anything, to save her.
I turn to Xander. “How did you banish the black dog?”
“Salt and iron.” He shrugs. “It’s a fae myth, and the Wild Hunt is most often linked to them. I gave it an educated guess, but a good one. This house is surrounded by iron fencing. I think that’s what kept the beast out for as long as it did. There must be a break somewhere that it slipped through.”
Salt and iron. Salt will melt ice, but that will take too long.
Flint’s face turns resolute. “I need to pull her soul out.”
“No!” I shove Xander, and not expecting it, he falls against the barrier, breaking the circle.
He stumbles into Flint, knocking him backward, away from Pen.
“Fire.” I lurch forward to grab Darius. “In the garage, that’s how you banished the black dog. Pen needs fire.”
“It could take you, too,” Xander warns as he rights himself and Flint.
“I don’t care.” Darius looks at Flint. “Just keep her here with us.”
Crouching, Darius places his hand on the ring of ice, and it snaps and cracks, steam rising from beneath his palm.
“Come on, Pen.” Flint moves as close as possible. “Hang on.”
Slowly, the ice ring melts, and Darius shifts closer, his hand covering Pen’s on the grass. Barely breathing, we all stand so still that the motion detector light turns off, casting the backyard into shadows. The bright lights of the police cars out front cast eerie flashes of red and blue over the scene, adding urgency.
I look around. “Where are the others?”
“Trent, Savannah, and Marc didn’t make it over the fence.” Flint glances back at me. “The neighborhood patrol responded to a call about suspicious vehicles.”
Xander stiffens with alarm. “What about Reese?”
“He’s playing lookout.” Flint’s gaze returns to Pen’s frozen form. “Orianna is with him.”
“I’ve made contact.” Darius’s whisper rises from the darkness. “Her hand is so cold.”
“Feed our firebird,” Flint commands. “Make her glow as bright as the sun.”
The motion detector light flares back to life, blinding us, and we all jerk around to see Reese and Orianna racing into the backyard. “More police have arrived. They’ve gotten the gate open and officers are heading this way.”
“Work faster, Darius.” Flint’s hands clench into fists. “We have to get her off the ground and to safety.”
“Trust me, I’m trying.” Frustration snaps in Darius’s voice, and he glares down at where the ice is melting, but too slowly. “I need more time.”
I turn back to Reese. “Can you create a portal back to the Hub?”
