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The sky is lightening; dawn is close. I lean over the edge.

“Battle is starting,” Grimlet says.

He’s right; I can see the subtle shifting in positions.

“We have to stop it,” I say. Then I glance at Khaosti. “Actually,youhave to stop it. I’m still out of magic.” It’s mostly true. Though my strength is coming back. I can feel the magic building inside me, which is a huge relief; I thought it might have burned out of me forever. And I like my magic. I’ll probably need it again sometime, especially if I go up against Khronus. But I want to see Khaos fly. All I saw on the journey here was his underneath bits. Very nice, I’m sure, but probably not the prettiest parts of him.

“But don’t kill the bad guys,” I tell him. “The shadowguard are all gone. What’s left are human, and maybe now that Lucifer is no more, they’ll find a way to live in peace and be good guys instead.”

“I’ll do my best.” He smirks, and magic shivers in the air. I step back, and a moment later, his dragon launches into the air. I run to the edge of the parapet beside Grimlet, and together we watch as he swoops down toward the lines of soldiers.

He’s magnificent, all fierce grace and power. I sigh, and Grimlet snorts.

He flies down between the battle lines, and I see the moment the people down on the ground notice he’s there. All heads raise to look at him. Horses rear. For a few seconds, nobody moves, then flames roar from Khaosti’s gaping mouth, striking theground between the lines of soldiers. Both sides move, turning to run in opposite directions, scattering and screaming.

Khaos rises up and then swoops after the fleeing enemy. He scorches the ground behind them, just for encouragement—which I’m pretty sure they don’t need. I’ve never seen men run so fast.

Down below, Thanouq’s army has realized there are no dragons chasing them and they come to a halt. They are all watching the fleeing enemy, and a cheer goes up as another burst of flame sees them on their way. I search for Zayne in the crowd below, but I can’t see him anywhere. Then off to the side, a griffin rises into the air. Thanouq. He circles, and as Khaos turns and heads back to the city, he falls in behind him. A minute later, they both land on the tower, and within seconds, Khaos and Thanouq are back.

I grin. “You did good,” I say.

Thanouq is staring at Khaos, his eyes narrowed. I guess he’s not the coolest shifter anymore. “How?” he asks.

“It’s a long story,” I answer. “And one we’ll tell you later. But right now, where are Zayne and Josh?”

He frowns. “I’m not sure. Zayne flew back when we had a lull in the fighting to check on Josh and Winter. I haven’t seen him since.”

“When was that?”

“A few hours ago, I think.”

“Let’s go find them.” I’m already moving through the door and almost running down the spiral staircase. I stop at the bottom and look around, then head toward the healing center where I know Winter and Josh were helping out. The corridors are quiet. I guess the casualties from the last battle are already in the center, and all the able-bodied soldiers are still outside the city.

Then I stop abruptly. Someone is lying on the floor, sprawled across the corridor, black hair obscuring their face. But Irecognize Winter. I swallow and hurry across, crouching down beside her.

I reach out slowly and turn her over. Her hands are clutching her side, and her blue dress is saturated with blood, a pool of dark crimson surrounding her. Her eyes are closed, her face pale. I touch a finger to her throat and find her pulse, but it’s slow and weak. “Winter?”

Her eyes flicker open, and a smile curves her lips. “You’re alive. We thought…”

“Winter, where are Zayne and Josh?”

A tear slips from her eye. “Gone. They took them.”

“Who took them? Winter, stay with us.” I reach out a hand to heal her, but she shakes her head. “It’s too late.”

And I know, she’s right; she’s lost too much blood. I don’t know how she’s still breathing. “Winter?”

She glances past me, and I turn to see she’s looking at Khaos. “His father’s men. They waited until the battle was in full swing, and then they crept into the city. They were looking for you.”

“He knew I was here?”

“I’m sorry. I told them. They approached me soon after we got here. They have spies in the city. They said they knew where my brother was. That they would make sure we were reunited. That if I didn’t, then he would die.”

So I hadn’t been wrong about Winter betraying us, just not to who I thought. But can I blame her? Maybe I’d do the same for Zayne or Josh. “When I told them you were gone, they were furious. They knew about Zayne and Josh. I didn’t tell them, I swear, but they knew, and they took Josh and waited until Zayne appeared. I tried to stop them. I promise. I love him; I never wanted this to happen, but I couldn’t…” She falls silent, her strength leaving her. With the last little bit she has left, she grasps my hand. “They said to tell you that if you want them to live, then you need to present yourself to Khronus immediately.I’m sorry.” She falls silent, and a second later, the light dims from her eyes and her hand uncurls from mine.

I sit back on my heels and scrub a hand over my face. Only heartbeats ago, I’d been deliriously happy. Not anymore. I think my plans for a Hawaiian beach vacation just got blown right out of the fucking water.

Khaosti rests his hand on my shoulder and squeezes. “I’m sorry.”