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His raven hair was as neat as his goatee, and his golden eyes, lined with an ever-present dark red kohl, cut a sharp look toward Rowan.

Had she not seen his transformation first-hand, she wouldn’t have known that what stood before her was one of the largest kitsune shifters that had ever existed.

“I know you’re going to want to get involved, but no one disturbs the dragons for a good reason.” The lilt of his Japanese accent was only ever so prominent when his anxiety was up.

Rowan cocked her head to the side, and she leaned against her desk. “Get involved in what, exactly?”

Louisa dashed to her before Kin could hold her back, and she showcased the live footage of the mayhem that had been just out of Rowan’s sight. Dew landed on her shoulder to watch.

Live streaming from the phone of an unfortunate bystander, sparring bodies of scaled dragons dotted the dark sky. Deafening roars and screams of the chaos made dread crawl up Rowan’s spine.

Rowan glanced up. “Why are the dragons attacking?”

Louisa beamed at her, and Kin groaned.

“We cannot get involved with the dragons, Rowan.” Kin clasped his hands, as if begging her to see reason.

Rowan only frowned. “There are people getting hurt. We have to help.”

Louisa had a concerning shine of mischief in her eyes. “And maybe I can snag a dragon hottie to take out this weekend.”

“They’re going berserk. I think dating is the last thing on their minds.” Kin snapped, but then let out a heavy breath. “I want it to be clear, when one of us dies, that I didn’t want to get involved.”

Rowan rolled her eyes and turned to Dew. “Sorry, it’s an emergency. Take care of the office, okay?”

Dew, who was pale with fear, flew off her shoulder and gave a curt nod. “Please be careful.”

Touched by her concern, Rowan smiled and gave her a reassuring nod.

The magic in the room tickled Rowan’s nose as she gathered enough to send herself and her two partners to the heart of the battlefield.

XOXOXOXO

The video did the fighting no justice. The roars of the dragons as they lunged for each other’s throats and screeches of pain, combined with the scent of burning debris, pumped Rowan full of adrenaline.

“Communication established. Go for Louisa.”Louisa’s voice came through Rowan’s head as they split up.

“I’ll go for the bystanders and erect a blackout barrier. I’m guessing Rowan is going to try something she would rather the Coven not know she can do.”Kin’s voice rolled through her head.

Rowan‘s smile was unbidden.“Kin, you’re always two steps ahead of me.”

Magic thrummed in the air, slamming against her skin in the chaos of the dragons. It had always been eager to bow to her will, but Rowan recognized the abnormality of its desperation to sink into her pores.

To avoid overwhelming her body, she carefully opened herself to receiving a fraction of the power, enough to try to telepathically link into the mind of a nearby dragon. It was only half-transformed into its beast form, engaging in battle with a human form dragon who was attacking yet another, unaware of its impending doom.

The dragons were keeping the attacks amongst each other; anyone else who was getting hurt was collateral damage.

Where a mind should have been open to her request for communication, she slammed into a mental wall of musical notes as manic as the surrounding magic.

Her hangover reared its head with the sharp pain that split her skull. Groaning, she pushed past the discomfort to focus on the strange sound.

She poked at it with her magic, but she couldn’t break through. The dragon took no notice of the normally offensive action.

“Kin, can you try linking with any of the dragons? All I hear is music when I try to tap in.”

As a shifter himself, the kitsune had always been better at telepathic communication. As far as she knew, shifters were born with the gift.

“I hear the music, but I can’t get access to them either. I see a fireball headed toward the gates, Louisa.”