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Belle keeps going. “We have a biiiig house underneath the complex. The humans have no idea. Sometimes we come in through the river, but there’s also a secret warded entrance in the warehouse they’ve never found. They’re so silly and magic-less.”

“Shh, Belle.” Daphne puts a finger to her lips, darting a glance at me.

“Right.” Belle bites her lip. “So why are you here? Is that theprince?”

Daphne shoots her another quelling glance, but Belle ignores her.

I hesitate, not sure how much I should tell them. “Yeah, it’s Lysander.”

“Are you here cause of the explosions?”

“Explosions?”

“I saw them.” Belle puffs up. “I called the secret reporting phone number. But they didn’t tell me theprincewould come. He should stay away from here — it’s dangerous.”

“You were the one who reported the, uh, battle?” I feel silly calling it that, but Belle nods firmly.

“I heard them while I was feeding the eels. Sometimes there’s construction down the bank but I knew there was nothing planned for this month. So I went to the surface. It was a fairy fighting the magic-eaters — and she had dragonstone!” Her eyes light up. “She was trying to trap them in a dragonstone circle.It went off — boom, boom,boom— and the azeroths screamed a lot. She must have killed some of them, but most of them were still alive. So I called our other sister, Ann, and she said she would help but she also sent me away. I didn’t get to see anything else.”

“I don’t know if you should tell the human all this,” Daphne hisses, but Lysander’s footsteps behind me stop her short. She bows quickly. “Your Highness.”

“You were the one who saw my sister?” Lysander demands, coming up behind us. “Was she okay?”

Belle ducks her head. “I saw a lot of flashes.”

“I didn’t know Elsabeth had dragonstone at her disposal,” Lysander murmurs. He sounds troubled. “Was there anyone with her?”

Belle shakes her head.

“Why wouldn’t the dragons help her? Why didn’t she come to me?” His jaw tightens and his hands fist in his sweater.

I touch his elbow gently. “It seems dangerous. She’s trying to keep you safe, isn’t she?”

Lysander’s brow furrows.

“Itisdangerous,” Daphne says.

“Is your sister okay?” I ask Belle.

She smiles shyly. “Ann is very strong. She just needs a nap in the healing water. By the way… I’m sorry about trying to drown you before, human.”

I shrug magnanimously. “It’s all forgotten.”

Belle seems satisfied, although Daphne gives me a narrow-eyed look. But it’s true — it’s not like anyone would’ve let me drown in a public pool. Besides, it was pretty cute to see Lysander get all protective that day.

“Was Elsabeth injured?” Lysander presses.

Daphne shakes her head. “Ann said she disappeared quickly.”

“So… are the rest of the azeroths dead now?” I can’t help wondering.

Both Daphne and Lysander look doubtful.

“Ann would have said,” Daphne says.

“Elsabeth would come find me if they were.” Lysander’s bright blue gaze darkens. “After centuries of being hunted, it can’t be that easy —”

A resoundingcrackinterrupts him. I jump. It’s followed by aboomand a flash that lights up the darkening sky, exactly like Belle described. Daphne grabs Belle and yanks her sister behind her.