I throw myself at Rowan and go for his stupid knife, trying to yank it free before he realizes what’s happening. Melody helps, becoming solid and sinking her teeth in somewhere around Rowan’s right ankle. The knife comes free as he thrashes and backs up to get away from her teeth with a soundless shout I would have paid money to hear, his face contorted in pain.
It gives me enough time to check on Harper.
He shakes his head, like he’s trying to clear fog from his brain. I wave my hands and motion frantically at Rowan, pointing at a place on his chest, and even though Harper’s still blinking and off-balance, his instincts carry him through in protective mode. Guess we don’t need words to communicate verbally at all. Harper pushes me away and stands in front of his chief. His fist rears back and he slams it into Rowan’s chest. The amulet under his shirt shatters from the blow, it’s obvious from the shockwave that knocks all of us apart.
Ow. I was so close to falling on the couch cushions but instead I hit the side of the couch and go skidding back across the floor.
“No! Piece of crap. No!”
I’m slowly picking myself up and staggering to my feet as my ears ring. Rowan’s on his knees, holding pieces of the remotein his hands, clumsily trying to force it back together. The shockwave got it.
Harper and Melody advance on Rowan, my two canines working together like a dream team. Rowan barely has enough time to stand and aim his pocket watch at Harper, who leaps out of the way. Melody keeps charging, going solid right as she reaches Rowan and knocking him back down.
Mel growls and Harper joins the fray. Rowan shouts as Harper kicks him and then the pocket watch goes soaring over my head after Harper yanks it free and throws Rowan’s last toy away.
“Get off of me, you stupid mutts!” Rowan yells
“I liked it better when you couldn’t talk,” I tell him as I swing my guitar forward and get ready to play.
I advance on Rowan while Harper and Melody part and let me through. He’s on the floor, sprawled there with blood streaking his face and his nice clothes torn from claws. No more tricks up his sleeve. Even now, with his body battered and his schemes unraveling around him, he glares venomously and refuses to yield. I’d almost respect that, if he hadn’t tried to make me his puppet and ruin my life.
Melody’s with me when I start playing, my song calling out to her and she invites it in, letting me pull her power into me. I need to do this myself.
“You ever wonder what it feels like to have your brain scrambled by that stupid watch of yours?” I ask.
“That’s no concern of mine.” Rowan freezes, eyeing me warily. “Why?”
I let loose as I strum the chords, dissonant and jagged, an angry sound that smacks him between the eyes and delivers karma. The music disorients him and I watch Rowan’s eyes go glassy and unsteady. He tries to move and can’t. Good. That’s what it feels like. Sucks, doesn’t it?
While he’s still reeling, I swing the guitar down and crack him over the head. Rowan collapses onto the floor, knocked out.
Staring down at the unconscious man on the floor, I take a breath and try to let it sink in. It’s over.
We won.
“Are you both okay?” Harper asks from somewhere behind me.
“Fine, what about you?” When I look, he’s limping over toward me.
“I’ll be alright,” he promises.
“Much as I appreciate the moral support, maybe you should have just watched from the sidelines instead of participating.”
Harper’s hands cup my face, his thumbs brushing over my cheekbones. “No way. I’ll always fight for you,” he says simply. “Hurt or not. That’s what mates do.”
The word ‘mates’ sends a shiver through me. It’s still new, this connection between us, but it feels right in a way nothing else in my life ever has.
Harper’s already looking for a phone to call the Concordian authorities so they can take Rowan away and put him with the other bad guys.
Harper and I are free to... I don’t know, live happily ever after or something. I have no idea experience with happy endings but I’m open to figuring it out.
What Comes Next
Dodger
