Rounding an empty cage, she found herself face-to-face with a robed man. He yelped, cringing—and then his eyes widened as he realized she wasn’t Ivy.
“There’s more of them!” the warlock yelled at the top of his lungs. “More shifters!”
Fast as a snake, he grabbed for her arm. Sheer terror froze her in place as his fingers brushed against her skin.
No, no, no! Her swan beat its wings in panic. Not again!
Then she was stumbling, falling, as Connie shoved her out of the way.
“Not her!” Connie cried, offering her own arm. “Take me instead!”
The warlock didn’t need to be invited twice. With a snarl of triumph, he seized Connie’s wrist.
Nothing happened.
The warlock blinked. He stared down at his own hand as if it were a gun that had just inexplicably misfired.
Which meant that he wasn’t looking when Hayley brained him over the head with a rock.
“That’s for my mate,” Hayley growled as he collapsed. She stomped across his prone body, not being too careful about where she put her feet, and pulled Rose up again. “Come on, we’re nearly there!”
Rose gasped, adrenaline still making her heart vibrate like a hummingbird. Dizzy, she tried desperately to orient herself.
The courtyard was a madhouse of searchlights and screams. Ivy darted in and out of the shadows, her deadly touch dropping warlocks like flies. Virginia and Connie supported Neridia, helping her over the uneven ground as they searched for their mates.
Rose’s breath seized in horror as a warlock lunged at the three women. Either he was more observant than his colleague, or just luckier, because he ignored the two humans. Barging Connie aside, he grabbed for Neridia.
Neridia’s chin lifted. She gazed down at the man with regal poise.
The warlock made a strange gurgling noise. Releasing the sea dragon, he sank to his knees, clawing at his throat. A gush of water spewed from his mouth.
Calmly, the Pearl Empress stepped round him, leaving him to drown on dry land.
“Hugh!” Ivy cried out. Abruptly abandoning the warlock she’d been pursuing, she whirled—and froze.
Rose tried to turn to see what she was looking at—but stumbled on feet that suddenly seemed like blocks of wood attached to her legs. Numbness spread up her limbs. Beside her, Hayley gasped, apparently paralyzed as well. Out of the corner of her eye, Rose could see that Neridia, Hayley and Virginia had been caught too.
“I have them!” A woman with long, flowing black hair strode into Rose’s field of view. Shining silver runes wound up her left arm.
And behind her…
Ivy made a high, keening sound, like a trapped animal.
“Oh, no,” Rose whispered.
The unicorn hobbled painfully behind the witch, all grace lost. Its left foreleg was matted with dried blood. Every time the silver, cloven hoof touched the ground, its white flanks shivered with pain.
But it still carried its head high, refusing to be bowed. Even though all the light had been snuffed from its horn, its eyes still burned with unquenchable spirit.
Spotting Ivy, the unicorn called out, a fierce, clear cry. They both strained for each other, but neither could break their invisible bonds.
Hugh wasn’t alone. Griff was there too, in griffin form, towering over a slender warlock with a narrow, scholarly face. Beside Rose, Hayley caught her breath in a sob of pain. The griffin’s head turned, eagle eyes widening as it saw her.
“Virginia!” Dai shouted. He was in human form, supporting John Doe.
Seeing his own mate, the sea dragon shifter broke into a frantic, staccato song i
n his own language, more like organ music than speech. Neridia sang something back, her voice breaking with yearning.