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The attack was growing stronger. Some magic users had given up and were rushing for the exits. The rumble around us grew to a roar. Even the screams and shouts were muffled by the deafening sound of a mountain being crushed down upon us. Some ran with their arms loaded with food and supplies, but all I could do was run and ensure Kira was ahead of me. If anyone got out alive, I wanted it to be her.
Ahead of us, Mika and Zoe ran toward the exit. Zoe had her arms up above her head as she ran, pulses of her magic bursting from her fingertips, trying to hold up the ceiling. Right behind us, J.D. shouted at someone to hurry.
At the exit, a wiccan and Crew worked like mad, disarming the traps to let everyone out. Chelsey was right at Crew’s side. Kira and I huddled with the others, pushing forward with the group. I could sense the crowd wanting to bolt, to stampede away from danger, but we’d be dead in seconds if the traps weren’t disarmed.
Finally, Crew stood and waved toward the cave mouth. “Run! Go, go, go!”
We rushed forward, streaming out into the late afternoon jungle. When the fresh air hit my face, I released a shudderingbreath. I put Leif down and turned to help whoever needed it. The noise from inside rumbled louder than ever. J.D. and two shifters ran past me, and he knelt to check on Leif.
I ran back to the entrance, ignoring Kira’s call for me to stay. Fifteen feet inside, I found two healers dragging an unconscious Abel along, both women struggling and gasping.
“I’ve got him,” I told the women. “Run!” I took Abel’s hands and hauled him backward.
Before I got Abel out, Eli came running, completely covered in dirt. I looked up. From the tunnel, I saw a male and female wiccan followed by a big black bear shifter in his animal form. All three ran as fast as they could, the whole mountain seeming to shiver and shake around them.
“Hurry!” But it was too late.
I’d barely pulled Abel free of the tunnel before the entire cave system collapsed. The wiccans and the bear shifter vanished under a million tons of dirt, sand, and rock. I fell on my ass, gaping at the now-sealed entrance to what had been Haven.
“It’s them!” a voice called out behind me.
Turning to look, someone was pointing off in the distance. Three shadowy figures stood, hands pressed to the ground. I recognized the three warped and corrupted fae I’d met on one of the last challenges.
Instead of taunting us in weird rhymes, they stood, eyes vacant, then rushed away like ink spilling across a page.
My rage at what had happened, how close my friends and Kira had been to death, sent me into a fury. I shifted and bolted after them. Gavin, having somehow escaped the collapse, joined me in pursuit, as did Kira, Crew, and Eli.
Eli and Gavin descended on the slowest of the three, tackling her. I sped off after the fastest, leaving the third and final fae for Kira and Crew. Heedless of danger, only furious about the loss of life, the destruction of the lone safe place on Bloodstone,I chased the fae. A moment later, another loping wolf figure appeared at my side. Mika.
She ran in the direction of the volcano, probably to go back to Simon and tell him what had happened. They’d found us, likely using their mystic talents to detect the magical facade that had kept us hidden, and destroyed Haven. If he knew, he’d release every one of his monsters to hunt us down. That could not happen.
The fae was fast, but not fast enough. I snapped my jaws around her ankle and forced her to the ground. Mika caught her hand in his mouth before she could cast a spell at me. Her bones snapped under his teeth as he tore off her hand. To my surprise, she didn’t scream or even wince. Instead, she tilted her head at me, studying me with those mad eyes.
“Glad they’re dead, I am,” she said in that strange, singsong voice. “Crushed like a bug, rolled in a rug. In bed, they are tucked. Forever to sleep, forever to be fucked.”
Her remaining hand snapped up, ready to attack. I lunged forward, biting down and tearing out her throat. We left her to bleed out on the jungle floor and ran back to check on the others.
The other two corrupted fae had been destroyed, and Crew and Eli were working to gather the survivors. I shifted back and took Kira in my arms, finally allowing myself to relax, knowing we were safe for the moment.
“We’ve gotta get out of here,” Eli said to Crew. She glanced back at the jungle. “The noise is going to draw alotof monsters and creatures here. What do we do?”
“Do we go back to the mansion?” J.D. suggested. “Maybe they’ve left it alone now. We could barricade it or something?”
Crew shook his head. “No. It’s only been a few days since the wards fell. All those things will still be fighting over the territory. I’ve got a better idea.”
“We’re all ears,” I said.
Crew pointed in a direction opposite the volcano. “There’s an area I’ve scouted several times. It’s a spot that doesn’t get a lot of action from any of the creatures because there’s not lot of fresh water, vegetation, or animals, which means little food. They stay away. It’s still dangerous, but less than most places.”
“Safer than here?” Gavin asked, pointing at the collapsed entrance to Haven.
Crew shrugged. “Depends. The whole reason I chose this location for Haven was its central location. It’s close to water and supply drops for the show. You lose a little safety, but gain other things. This other place is the best option.”
“That’s all I need to hear,” Eli said, then turned to the survivors. “Eyes on me. Crew’s going to lead us somewhere to regroup. Stay close. As in, able-to-sniff-each-other’s-asses close. If for even a minute you think you’ll lose sight of us, hustle it up. Stay quiet, but stay fast. Understood?”
The crowd gave terrified nods and clumped together. Eli moved to the right of the group with Kira at the left. Crew took the point position, and I had the rear, effectively pinning the survivors in with the best fighters on the outside. Gavin and Mika, along with a few people who’d scouted with Crew before, could handle themselves.
“Let’s go,” Crew said, and he took off at a slow jog.
