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Even from there, heat from the fire magic drifted on the wind, along with the smell of charred flesh, the intoxicating scent of human blood.

But it wouldn’t be enough, would it? The fire magic would run out, just like mine had. And the soldiers kept coming, more of them marching up the hill.

I reached down, snatching my wand from the ground where I’d dropped it.

Barefoot, I walked over the mossy ground, channeling magic into my body again. Replenishing myself like a spring garden in the rain. The heart of the forest pulsed where my heart used to beat.

Arrows still rained around us, but they were aimless, clattering off trees.

Power flowed into me from the ground, magic starting to move again under the surface of my skin. We’d need to hit them with another veil of deathly shadows until they finally gave in. We needed them to retreat, leaving the Pater behind.

My skin prickled with the charge of magic, and I scanned the darkened forest for Sion. At last, I spotted him fighting like a wild man, his sword arcing through the dark air as he whirled and carved his way through the Luminari.

I ran for him, dodging between the tree trunks. And as I did, I spotted a well-aimed hawthorn arrow heading right for him. I lunged, grasping it in midair.

Sion spun to look at me, smiling at me through his shadow magic. “What a glorious day to be a vampire.”

I nodded. “We need more death magic. The fire witches will start fading at any moment, and the Luminari will start to scale the walls. We need to force them to retreat. I could feel their fear. If we terrify them enough, they’ll realize they have no chance against us. They will retreat, and the Pater will be left behind.”

Sion’s golden eyes narrowed as he calculated. “Have you got more magic?”

“I’ve replenished?—”

But a scream cut me off. A sound that made my blood turn to ice.

A child’s cry. One I knew well.

I froze, my legs shaking. The sound hit me like a slap.

“They’ve got Leo,” I whispered to Sion.

He grabbed my arm. “It’s a trap, Elowen.”

I turned back to look at him, and clarity hit me like a diamond-tipped arrow. It didn’t matter what the risks were; it didn’t matter what anyone else said. “I’m going to get him.”

I turned and rushed between the tree trunks, flying with my vampiric speed toward the sound of Leo’s voice.

And as I burst through the line of trees, I saw them there—the Pater gripping my Leo, a dagger pressed to his throat. They stoodjustat the edge of the forest, only a few feet from me. Tears streaked Leo’s face, and he called my name. My heart no longer beat, but I felt it crack all the same.

Five Luminari stood behind the Pater, their swords drawn.

I needed to think clearly to get Leo out of this.

The raging battle seemed to blur—the fires from the mages, the screams from the dying Luminari, all faded into a distantroar as horror wrapped its bony fingers around my throat. I couldn’t move, couldn’t breathe.

“Elowen!” Leo cried again.

The Pater stared at me, his face haggard. “Mother of Death! I have your son. Little Leo. I did tell you, didn’t I, that I would find him. Why don’t you trade places with him?”

“He’s not my son,” I said coldly. “I already told you that in Ruefield.”

Sion was at my side in the next moment, looming over us. “I’ll take his place. I know you’ve been searching for me.”

Maelor burst from the woods, freezing next to Sion when he saw Leo.

The Pater’s eyes flicked up to Sion, then Maelor. “My Magister Solaris. My Raven Lord. I’ll take all three of you. That’s all I want. Then we will leave the island in peace.”

My gut twisted. He’d never leave in peace. Everyone there would die.