Page 19

I barely made it back from the bathroom when another explosion rocked Clio's house.

The convergence point's energy surged wildly in response.

The babies went crazy, tumbling and kicking like they were trying to warn us of the danger heading our way.

The air grew thick with competing magical energies that made it hard to breathe.

"We need to move," Aidon growled as the light from the mark on my belly began to glow through my clothing. His power rolled off him in waves that made the shadows in the corners writhe. And they weren’t sentient beings or magical shadows, either. "Now."

"I’m afraid more are coming," Clio observed. The fear in her eyes had a hard ball of guilt forming in my gut. Clio was a healer. She wasn’t used to fighting demons, evil witches, or other foul creatures. "If we don't get Phoebe out of here?—"

Another crash cut her off as something heavy slammed into the back of her house. Before I could protest, Aidon scooped me up like I weighed nothing. Which, given that I was carrying his triplets, was definitely not the case. "Put me down! I can walk!"

"Not fast enough," he replied grimly as more crashes echoed from the backyard.

Through the windows at the back of the house, I caught glimpses of Tseki's massive dragon form as he fought.

His dragon scales glinted in the afternoon sun while his talons tore through new creatures.

Blood and gore flew in every direction, painting the yard crimson.

Murtagh and Layla's wolves worked in perfect tandem with him.

Their savage grace was a deadly dance of teeth and claws.

The living room looked like a demon's art gallery.

Broken furniture littered the canvas and the walls sported fresh scorch marks.

Outside shadow creatures prowled around Persephone's thorny barricades like vultures circling prey.

When I opened my magical senses, I could tell the house's magical defenses were holding.

That meant the damage was courtesy of the destabilization of the ley lines.

"The convergence point is destabilizing," Clio called out as she grabbed her bag. "If it collapses, the whole network could be affected."

"And that's bad because...?" I prompted as I looked at her over Aidon’s shoulder. Heat radiated from the symbol in waves that made me break out in a sweat.

"Because it could create a cascade effect throughout the matrix," Clio explained. "They would be dominoes of ancient power falling. The entire magical infrastructure could collapse."

"Kind of like pulling a thread that unravels the whole sweater," Nana added.

My head whipped around. When had her and Mom arrived?

I was about to ask when Nana continued with, "Except instead of your basic H&M clearance rack disaster, we're dealing with cosmic spaghetti that's been cooking since before Betty White was born. And honey, that's old."

"When did you two get here?" I asked as my gaze shifted between Mom and Nana.

Mom's eyes had that gleam she'd obtained under Lyra's not-so-loving care. It was a predatory awareness that made even the shadows seem to shrink back. "We came with the others when Aidon called for reinforcements."

"We weren't about to let you fight in your condition," Nana began with that mischievous glint in her eyes. "Besides, someone needs to be here to tell this story right at Christmas dinner."

"Let's focus on getting out of here first," Aidon said as we emerged into chaos.

“Sounds good to me,” I replied. My gaze was automatically swiveling around the yard scanning for danger.

I opened my mouth to warn Aidon when I saw a mass of writhing darkness to our right.

Before I could utter a word, it hurled what looked like black lightning straight at us.

Instinct had me bending forward to leap from his arms. Unfortunately, my center mass was the size of a small car and I barely managed to lift my head. The bolt hit me square in the chest.

Have you ever been hit by magical paralysis? Zero out of ten, do not recommend. My body went rigid. My mouth froze mid-scream. Inside my head, I was yelling, "Ow, that freaking hurt!" but all that came out was "Nngh."

"PHOEBE!" Clio's fingers were at my throat, checking my pulse.

Her healing magic flowed through me, but did nothing to alleviate the pain attacking my body.

"Aidon, get us to the hospital. I can’t heal her and her pulse is dangerously low.

" I was grateful in that moment that Aidon didn’t understand what that meant.

Clio wanted the medical technology on hand in case my heart stopped.

I wasn’t sure if it was panic or the lightning, but suddenly I couldn’t breathe.

A tight band was constricting around my chest. While I gasped like a fish, it felt like Aidon tossed me in the car.

I watched helplessly as Nana and Mom jumped in with Clio.

The SUV's engine roared as Aidon floored it. I wanted to tell them I wasn’t dying, but my body had decided to play mannequin.

I said a silent prayer that Jean-Marc and Nina were following behind us.

The drive down Route 1 felt endless while I tried to suck air into my starving lungs.

Clio sat next to me and continued trying to heal me to no avail.

Every pothole made my frozen muscles scream.

At least I was still alive and breathing.

And could still feel everything. Small mercies.

"Hang in there, Phoebe," Nana said in a tight voice.

"Just think, you can use this to get out of dish duty tonight.

" I would do all the dishes if it meant the pain ending and being able to breathe.

Aidon's knuckles were white on the steering wheel. "If those shadow-spawned bastards did permanent damage?—"

"She'll be fine," Persephone cut in, her voice steady even as the thorny vines around her wrists twitched with agitation.

"I suspect the babies protected her from the worst of what she was hit with.

And if you stopped to feel things out for yourself, you would know the spell was crude.

Powerful, yes, but it lacked enough power to kill her. "

"That’s not reassuring when she isn’t moving," Aidon muttered as he took the turn onto Mountain Street so fast that I slid into Clio. "I don’t want anything hitting my pregnant mate."

Pen Bay Medical's emergency entrance couldn't come fast enough.

My vision began to dim around the edges.

Despite that, I worried about going to the hospital at all.

I would have objected if I could have. There was no doubt I was being followed which meant Clio's tiny supernatural section of the hospital wouldn't be any safer. On the other hand, I wasn’t sure I could survive until Clio could figure out how to counter the effects of the spell.

When we pulled into the emergency department parking lot, a tall man in a white coat was waiting by the entrance. Something about him set off warning bells. Maybe it was how still he stood. Or how his eyes seemed to track our car's movement with predatory focus.

"How is she doing?" he asked as Aidon lifted me out of the backseat. "Dr. Roberts called ahead about your case. Fascinating situation."

"No, she didn't," Clio said sharply as she practically fell out of the vehicle and jumped to stand between us. "I haven't called anyone. And I know every doctor on staff here."

The man's facade cracked. His eyes fixed on my belly with an intensity that made my skin crawl.

The babies went still, making my fear hit a nuclear level.

I had no doubt they too sensed the danger.

"The Awakening cannot be stopped," he snarled as his glamour fell away.

Beneath it, his skin was covered in symbols that matched my mark.

They writhed across his flesh like living things.

Aidon practically threw me to Mom as he faced off with the man. His power lashed out like a whip of darkness and caught the man across the chest. Blood bloomed crimson against white cotton as the false doctor stumbled back. The air grew thick with the metallic scent of blood.

Persephone's vines shot from the ground and wrapped around the man's legs as Aidon's power danced at his fingertips. They worked in perfect sync. Her thorns pierced flesh as Aidon’s dark power sought out the creature's essence.

At the same time, Mom and Nana moved cast a complex glamour that shimmered like heat waves around us.

It would keep the mundane world blind to the supernatural throwdown happening in front of the ED.

"The children will bring about destruction," the man gasped as he clutched the wound on his chest. It was futile.

Dark liquid continued to seep between his fingers.

"The First Song demands it. The old powers rise through them, whether you wish it or not.

They will remake the world in their image.

The time of gods and men draws to a close.

A new age dawns—" His words cut off in a wet gurgle as Aidon’s blade erupted from his chest. As he died, his body decomposed like it was in a timelapse video.

There was nothing but fine gray ash that scattered in the wind.

The screech of tires announced Nina and Jean-Marc's arrival. My kids burst out of the car with magic crackling around them. Nina paused at the sight of settling ash. "Seriously?" she demanded as she lowered her hands. "We missed all the fun?"

"Persephone and Aidon had all the fun," Nana replied.

The false doctor's ashes had barely settled when security guards came rushing out. They’d likely been drawn by the commotion. Their eyes slid past the remnants of magic like oil on water. Mom and Nana’s spell made their minds rewrite what was around them into something more mundane.

"Everything okay out here?" one asked, hand hovering near his radio.