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Wrath’s voice broke through where Ulean’s could not, and I slowly raised my head, my surroundings coming into focus. Oh fucking hell! I was over the border—but then again, they’d broken through the wards, so did it matter?
“Get your ass off the ground and finish him off like an honorable opponent. The Indigo Court may have no honor, but we do.” He reached out and snatched the blade from my hand. “That should make it easier.”
I forced myself to my feet, feeling the sticky mess on my face. My breath was sour with his blood—I’d been licking it up. Queasy, I turned back to my opponent and realized he was still alive, and suffering terribly. I grabbed the end of the stake and, feeling faint, shoved it through him, ending his life.
Without a word, I turned to my father and, shaking, allowed him to grab me around the waist. The next thing I knew, the yard was a blur again as we raced faster than even Chatter and Grieve could.
Back at the house, I saw Kaylin and Chatter fighting one of the Shadow Hunters. Another was trying to get near Rhiannon, but she was holding him off with a firestorm. Luna was treating a wound on Peyton’s arm that was bleeding profusely. Grieve was finishing off another one of the Vampiric Fae.
“We can’t hold the house,” I said roughly. “We can’t hold it. We’re vulnerable as long as we live here. Even if we take out this group, another will take its place. Until we can strike at the heart of their Court, we’ll just keep getting eroded away by insurgent attacks. There is great power here, but we have no ability to tap into it. Yet.”
“You’re right.” Lannan came up beside me. “You can’t hold it. Best to fall back, regroup, and strategize.”
“Where can we go? We can’t go to Peyton’s house—Anadey has linked herself to Geoffrey and Lainule.”
Lannan let out a long breath. “For now, you may come to my place. All of you. You cannot stay there—that would not be wise, but you may come.”
And then Rhiannon raced over to Luna and was shouting frantically to her. Luna nodded and ran into the house, as Rhia motioned to me.
“The house, the house is on fire. Do you have anything in there? Do you have your necklace and fan?”
I nodded. “Yes, I have them with me. But all your things—all of our memories—where’s the fire?”
Just then, Luna came out leading a string of cats, following behind her, as she played a tune, leading them like the piper. Rhia jogged over and, together with Chatter and Grieve, grabbed up all seven of them.
I pulled out my keys. We sprinted around front and I opened the back door to Favonis, and we piled the cats in there. Luna crawled in with them, playing to charm them into a lulling sleep.
Turning to Rhia I said, “Where’s the fire? I don’t see the fire.”
“I saw it—I know I saw it—”
As she gestured frantically, a sudden fireball appeared from the back and the roof lit up. The others raced around, Peyton and Kaylin and Wrath, and we watched as the flames engulfed the roof of the Veil House.
“Who set it on fire?”
“I did . . . ” Rhiannon whispered, looking pale and terrified. “It was an accident. I caught a low-hanging branch and it smoldered. I was focusing on the Shadow Hunter, trying to stop him before he could get to me and then . . . by the time the flames chased him back, the branch burst and sent a flame to the shingles. It caught, but I thought it might go out there . . . the snow was coming down so thick.”
“Magical fire burns hotter than regular fire.” I glanced around. Myst’s people hadn’t come into the front yard. They were probably too busy watching the fire from the borders of the wood.
“Call nine-one-one?” Peyton asked.
I took out my phone and tried, but when the operator picked up and I told her what house it was, she cut me off and the line went dead.
“Either Geoffrey or Myst cut off our access to help. We are truly alone.”
“Not so much. We have the Consortium—we can go to them. Bring in some of the powerful magic-born.” Rhiannon shook her head. “Formalize our Society and then call on them for backing. If we’re part of the Consortium, they’ll have to help us.”
I glanced at Rhiannon. “You might have something there. As of tonight, I form the Moon Spinners Society—and we who are here are the founders. Our initiation is by fire and ice—our powers of strength.”
We joined hands, all but Luna, whom we mentally included in our circle, and with Ulean at my back, we made our pledges.
By life and death . . .
By sacred trust . . .
I pledge my honor . . .
I pledge my love . . .
