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"Cool it," Sierra said. "Have you activated the doors?"
"We're doing that now," said the guy on the radio. "The van was driving up, and they saw dozens of them, and they called it in, but then the Cabal guys saw them and opened fire and they're dead. They're all dead!"
"Okay, you need to--"
I grabbed the radio and backpedaled as Adam leaped between me and Sierra.
"Relax," I said, emulating Sierra's bark. "You need to relax. Everything's under control. This is all part of the plan. Do not interrupt Giles."
A screech of pain. I looked up to see Adam grappling with Sierra, his fingers glowing. Severin had jumped from his chair. It crashed to the floor.
"What's--?" the voice on the other end began.
"Hold your fire," I said. "Everything's under control."
I snapped off the radio as Severin ran at Adam. I cast a binding spell. It didn't work. I could feel the power surge, but nothing happened. The room was warded. Our glamours had stayed intact. Apparently we just couldn't cast in a warded area.
I lunged at Severin. His fingers latched onto my arm. I felt a blast of cold. Then agony as my flesh began to freeze. I managed to punch him in the stomach hard enough to make him let go. Then I kicked his feet out from under him and--
A grinding noise across the room stopped me. I looked over to see a steel door sliding over the entrance into the auditorium.
Back at the laboratory in New Orleans, when they sounded the alarm, they'd sealed off the infirmary with a solid steel door, one Jeremy's strength and Adam's fire couldn't breach.
I ran. There was still enough of a gap to get through--
Severin grabbed my leg. He yanked me down. Then he held me there, fingers biting in, the cold so excruciating that I howled.
Adam stopped grappling with Sierra and threw her aside. He dove at Severin and caught his leg.
"Let her go," he said, his voice a rumble, eyes glowing.
Severin gasped. He could feel the fire blazing. He didn't let go, but as Adam wrenched at him, feeling returned to my leg, fire melting ice.
I kicked Severin off and hobbled to the door as Lucas came back on the comm link, telling me they were now in the building.
The steel door was closed. I glanced at the video. Inside, the audience had heard the doors sealing.
"For your protection," Giles said smoothly. "Mr. Scott is just about to begin the ritual."
He must know what had happened, but he wasn't letting it interfere with his summoning. I quickly updated Lucas.
Adam and Severin were on their feet, facing off. Sierra bore down on them. I leaped in her way and let my glamour fall.
Sierra glowered at me. "You stupid little bitch. Haven't you learned your lesson about interfering?"
"Yes," I said. "I learned that I owe Balaam some payback for his interfering at the Nasts. Starting by taking out two of his faithful servants before they can interfere."
"Do you have any idea how pissed off he's going to be?" Severin said.
"Yeah, we do," Adam said. "But my father's just as pissed off with him, so we'll let the two of them duke it out."
They turned to Adam. His glamour was gone, too, and he lifted his glowing hands.
As Sierra rushed me, I rushed her right back. That caught her off guard, and she checked herself, giving me time to plow into her and knock her flying. As she came back swinging, I remembered her fight with Clay, her pattern, the simplistic moves.
Well, at least you were doing something useful, I imagined Clay drawling.
I ducked her first blow. Dodged her second. Caught her third. Two out of three ain't bad. Of course, it would have been even better if, by that third, she wasn't so furious that it felt like being hit with an ice-blast ray. My shirt absorbed some of the cold. It flash froze, actually, a big chunk at the shoulder shattering. One glance at that hole--and imagining my skin there instead--made me a whole lot more careful. And a whole lot more angry.
