by Linsey Hall
“Power hungry.” Bree shook her head. “A dangerous thing.”
“And they want vengeance,” St. Bacchus said. “For the death of their sister.”
That I couldn’t blame them for. They might be evil, and I hadn’t had a choice if I wanted to save my own sister, but I could understand why they’d be pissed. I’d tear someone apart if they hurt Bree or Rowan. I had, in fact.
“Why are you telling us this?” Rowan asked. “Can we trust you?”
“Trust me or not, that is up to you. But I tell you these things because I no longer like what they are doing.”
“Where do we find our friends?” I asked.
“In the Parco dei Mostri. They have a stronghold there. Even better than this one. But you should hurry. I believe they have something terrible planned, and they are nearly ready to implement it. You may already be too late.”
“What’s the Parco dei Mostri? And where is it? What’s the plan?” Bree asked, the questions tumbling out.
A rumbling of footsteps and shouts sounded in the distance. My heart thundered as I turned, searching for the threat.
“Your time is up,” St. Bacchus said. “They have discovered your arrival here.”
“The priest,” I said.
“They are all part of it,” St. Bacchus said. “Most of them, at least.” He turned and pointed to the far edge of the atrium, to where there was a little passage leading away from here. “Follow that. You cannot transport from here, but if you are lucky, you will find one of the exits at the side of the cliffs. It will be dangerous, but it is better than facing the hordes of the Fates’ followers.”
The sound of their footsteps and shouts grew louder, nearing us. I spared a quick glance at my companions, and they all nodded.
“Let’s run for it,” Lachlan said.
“But wait, where’s the Parco dei Mostri?” I demanded. “What is it?”
St. Bacchus had already disappeared, and the first of the cult members had appeared in the atrium, fifty yards away. Then more. Dozens of them.
“Run!” I sprinted toward the passage that St. Bacchus had pointed to. As I neared, Muffin appeared, his friends at his side.
I found the way out! Follow me!
Thank fates for his curiosity. We followed Muffin, Bojangles, and Princess Snowflake III into the narrow tunnel. The horde of cult members chased us, their footsteps echoing.
This way! Muffin careened around a bend in the tunnel, going for an even narrower passage.
The way kept getting skinnier and skinnier, until it nearly brushed my shoulders.
“Will we fit?” I shouted.
I think so!
Not very inspiring, but I plowed on, following my friend. Soon, the tunnel widened, and we were in an entirely different part of the underground city. Thousands of wine bottles lined the walls, their contents kept cool in the dark chamber. Massive wooden barrels were stacked alongside, as big as cars.
“Hang on!” Lachlan veered toward the wine barrels, which were propped on their side. He pushed one away from the wall, rolling it toward the tunnel to form a barrier between us and the cult members.
“I like how you think!” Bree joined him, using her super strength to push another of the barrels.
Rowan and I teamed up, pushing our own. The cats joined us, their front paws propped up against the wood.
Despite my terror, I stifled a laugh. I didn’t think the little animals could possibly be helping, but it was cute.
Then Bojangles lowered his paws, and the barrel suddenly became a hell of a lot heavier.
“Wow, that’s a strong cat.” Rowan panted.
“No kidding.”
We shoved it into place, completing the blockade.
“That should hold them off for a bit,” Lachlan said. “Let’s go.”
We sprinted away from the wine barrels, continuing through the tunnels, Muffin leading the way.
We’re almost there!
A crash sounded from behind us. The wine barrels had given way.
I pushed myself harder, my lungs heaving.
We entered a section of the underground with the strangest walls I’d ever seen. They were made of stone, but hundreds of little nooks and crannies had been carved out. Each was about eight inches by eight inches and contained a live pigeon, snoozing away.
Muffin yowled, and the other cats joined in. Their howls woke the birds, who shot out of their roosts and filled the air with squawking.
I covered my face and sprinted through them. Beaks and claws poked me, tiny points of pain. Through the gap between my arms, I could see Muffin chasing the pigeons back into the deeper part of the tunnel, creating another barrier between us and our pursuers.
Keep going! he shouted. You’re almost there.
I could smell it—fresh air. And there was a tiny shaft of light coming from up ahead. I sprinted for it, grateful to see a human-sized hole in the earth, beyond which the dark night gleamed with welcome, the moon shining bright.
I stumbled to a stop right at the edge of the exit, my stomach lurching at the realization that we were halfway up the cliff upon which the city sat. The slope below us was steep, and there was nothing but air in front of me.
“Let’s go!” Rowan shot past me, scrambling down the mountainside. It was more of an uncontrolled slide, but it was the best we had.
Bree leapt through the exit, her silver wings unfurling as she flew into the night.
“You can do it,” Lachlan said.
“I’m never going to escape my fear of heights.” With my heart in my throat, I climbed out of the tunnel and onto the steep side of the cliff, my fingers gripping into the dirt and stone.
I scrambled down, faster than I wanted to, sliding into the darkness as stones and twigs tore at my clothes.
Eventually, I slid to a stop next to Rowan, who was wedged against a larger boulder almost all the way to the bottom.
“Think we’re out of range of their protections?” she asked.
“Maybe.”
Lachlan slid down next to us, covered in dirt. The cats followed, Bojangles and Princess Snowflake III rolling down as dirty balls of fur. Muffin flew, but it was a weird hopping motion where he landed every dozen feet, only to take off into the air again, his little wings barely holding him aloft.
Bojangles went to roll past me, and I reached out, grabbing him around the waist. Rowan snagged Princess Snowflake III, who hissed at her.
“You’re welcome,” Rowan said.
“Can you make a portal?” I asked Lachlan.
Shouts from up above caught my ear, and I looked. Dozens of cult members spilled down the mountainside, their descent even less graceful than ours. Some of them tumbled end over end. There were enough of them that they could crush us, though, dragging us farther down the mountainside.
“I bloody well hope so,” Lachlan said. His magic flared on the air as Bree landed next to us, crouching on the insanely steep hillside and gripping a small tree for support.
A moment later, a portal appeared. The cats lunged into it, and we followed. Gratitude welled in me as the ether sucked me in and spit me out on the front lawn of the Protectorate’s castle.
The chill night air enveloped me, and I sucked in a grateful breath as I climbed to my feet.
Lachlan leapt out of the portal a half second later, and it closed behind him.
Panting, we stood on the lawn and looked at the castle.
“We have a clue,” Bree said. “The Parco dei Mostri.”
“The forest of monsters,” Lachlan said. “I’ve only heard whispers of it, but it’s in Lazio, just north of Rome.”
“Oh, thank fates you know what it is.” Tension seeped out of my shoulders. We’d had barely a minute with St. Bacchus after he’d mentioned the Parco dei Mostri. “Let’s go tell Jude. I think we’re ready to launch a rescue.”
“I don’t think we can afford to wait much longer, anyway,” Bree said. “St. Bacchus seemed pretty convinced that they were nearing th
e end of their plan.”
I nodded, and we set off across the lawn, headed for the castle. The stone circle caught my eye as I passed it, and the memory of Sulis flashed in my mind.
Half a dragon god.
It was true, and I felt it. I’d probably been feeling it for a while now, every time I was able to use my shield magic, but I’d been resisting it. My magic wasn’t complete yet, and there was more growing left to do. But could I save my friends if I was only half a Dragon God?
13
As soon as we stepped into the castle’s main entry hall, I caught sight of Cade and Jude.
Bree ran to her boyfriend, flinging her arms around him and smacking a kiss right on his lips. She pulled back. “This is a coincidence, finding you right here.”
“Not a coincidence.” Cade raised his head and looked at the rest of us. “Convenient.”
“How so?”
He returned his gaze to Bree. “The seer that I was meeting predicted that you all would arrive here, roughly around this time, with information that would help us find our missing friends. I was just reporting that to Jude.”
My brows rose. “Good seer.”
He grinned. “One of the best.”
“What did you find?” Interest gleamed in Jude’s starry blue eyes as she looked at us.
“They’re in the Parco dei Mostri,” Lachlan said.
“The park of monsters?” Jude frowned. “That’s in central Italy. Lazio, correct?”
“Aye. I know roughly where the forest is, but finding the monsters and the stronghold will be tricky.”
“We’re here to help!”
The feminine voice sounded from behind, and I turned, spotting Cass, Nix, and Del, our FireSoul friends from Magic’s Bend. Aidan, Ares, and Roarke—they’re fiancés or partners or whatever they were—had come, too. The three big men stood at their sides, looking ready for battle. Connor and Claire, the brother and sister duo who ran Potions & Pastilles, stood just behind them, grinning.
“I called them as soon as the seer told us what to expect,” Cade said. “I thought we could use the backup.”
“Good thinking,” Bree said.
I nodded. “And we could definitely use the backup, if we have to search the whole forest.”
“Did I hear you say monsters?” Nix’s green eyes glinted with interest. “I could use a good monster fight. Been cooped up in the shop too long.”
“It’s only been a few days,” Cass said.
She grinned. “Exactly.”
“Then you’re in for a treat, because there will definitely be monsters,” I said. “Probably plenty of them.”
She rubbed her hands together. “Excellent.”
“I’ll rally the troops,” Jude said. “Then we’ll head to the forest and start our search.”
“Is there any way we could transport the buggy?” I asked. “Seems like it’d be helpful in covering ground.”
“I’m not sure it would be,” Lachlan said. “The forest is so dense that I don’t think we could drive through it.”
I frowned. “On foot it is, then.”
“We’ll find them,” Bree said. “On foot or however we have to do it. We’ll find them.”
Fifteen minutes later, after a quick shower and a stop by the kitchen, I sat on the front steps of the Protectorate with Lachlan, waiting for the rest of the crew. We each ate a turkey sandwich as we stared out at the cold, clear night. Dawn was almost here. I did my best to store up my energy for what was to come, though I was exhausted.
There was no time for breaks, however. Not after what St. Bacchus had said.
“Here.” Lachlan handed me a tiny bottle of potion from his pocket. “It’ll give you energy.”
“Thanks.” I took it and drank, feeling a surge of strength go through me. “Aren’t you going to take one?”
He smiled. “Later.”
I frowned. “That was your last one, wasn’t it?”
“Last is a relative term.”
“The last one you had here.” I punched him lightly on the arm.
“Aye, it was.”
“Thanks. I’d have saved half for you if I’d known.” I leaned over and kissed him on the cheek, then finished the last bite of my sandwich. “Do you know what kind of monsters are at the Parco dei Mostri?”
“I don’t. Whatever is there has to be terrible, though I don’t know how they’ve managed to keep them a secret in the woods for so long. But once we find them, we’ll know that we’re close to their stronghold.”
“So, head into the unfamiliar forest in search of monsters?” All in all, a pretty normal activity for me. But still, my chest tightened with nerves, stress making me feel trapped. “What if we don’t find them?”
Lachlan gripped my arm gently. I looked up at him.
“We’ll find them,” he said.
I nodded, trying to believe him. But I was terrified we wouldn’t be in time. “I wasn’t fast enough to save Caro, Lavender, and Angus back in The Narrows. I knew something was wrong, but I didn’t act quickly enough. Now they’re captives, and it’s my fault.”
“It’s not your fault.” He shook his head. “You can’t take on that burden. Full stop.”
I sucked in a steady breath. He was right. Even if I felt guilty, I couldn’t let it weigh me down. Heck, I was a woman. I was predisposed to carry guilt like a sad knapsack full of misery. But the guilt wouldn’t help anything. We had to keep hunting, and I needed my focus on the job to get it done.
Lachlan pulled me to him, his arm around my shoulders, making me feel like we were in a bubble of warmth in the cold night air. “We’ll find them. I saw what you went through in Death Valley as children. How you drove across that deadly desert so many times. With you and your sisters on this job, we’re bound to find them.”
I nodded, feeling steadier. “Soon. Because whatever the Fates are planning…” I shuddered. “We can’t let it happen.”
I just knew it would be terrible. If it weren’t, then St. Bacchus wouldn’t have helped us.
I leaned my head against Lachlan’s shoulder, grateful for his support. This relationship—or whatever it was—had started as a whirlwind. But it was turning into something real. “Thank you.”
He squeezed my arm. “Anytime, Ana. I believe in you.”
An hour later, a group of twenty-two of us departed for the forest in central Italy. It’d taken some time to transport everyone, but as soon as we’d arrived, we’d split up into teams of two, spreading out through the forest to find the area where the Fates were hiding with our friends.
Lachlan and I crept through the forest together. The sun was beginning to rise as we moved around trees and over boulders, through bushes and narrow creeks.
“It’s pretty thick back here.” There was no sign of civilization that I could see. It was like we’d stepped back in time.
“Aye, it’s a wild forest. Almost no human interference.”
I kept my ears alert for any sound of approaching beasts, but all I could hear was the rustle of leaves and branches high above my head. Even in the winter, this place was nearly fully overgrown. Had to be magic.
I gripped a dagger lightly in my hand, ready to throw.
We kept going, minute after minute, creeping through the forest in what seemed like an endless hunt that would never be successful.
Every leaf and twig seemed to shiver in the air, active and alive. It was hard to focus on any one thing when the whole place was so wild.
Then I caught the scent. Something slightly rotten.
I held out a hand, palm up, in the universal gesture to stop. At my side, Lachlan halted abruptly, nodding at me.
I squinted into the dim forest, wishing for more than the watery morning sunlight to light the way. There was something here.
The rabid faun leapt from the trees without warning, its red eyes crazed as it raised a blade.
I lunged out of the way, swiping out with my sword as I dived to the side. My steel sliced across the fau
n’s belly, and it hissed, clawing out at me.
Lachlan grabbed the creature by the back of the neck and hurled it into a tree. It collapsed on the ground, not moving.
Shakily, I stood. “I think we’re getting close.”
“Patrols, maybe,” Lachlan said.
We left the faun, whose body had begun to disappear.
“If it’s disappearing, it has to be some kind of demon species,” I said.
“Aye, I buy it. They’re miserable little beasts.”
We crept forward on silent feet, more alert than ever.
A few moments later, the Cats of Catastrophe appeared at my side, creeping along quietly. Even Bojangles had chilled out a bit, clearly sensing the need for stealth.
Smell that? Muffin asked.
I sniffed, but only caught a whiff of the forest. I shook my head.
Give it a moment.
He was right. A dozen yards later, I smelled it, then looked at him and nodded.
See? I’ve got a superior sniffer.
It probably helped that the scent was vaguely like rotten fish. I nudged Lachlan, and he nodded. Quietly, we crept through the trees, finally catching sight of another faun. Foam dripped from its fangs as it paced the forest, sticking to the same path as it walked back and forth.
Definitely a patrol.
I raised my dagger and threw. The steel flipped through the air and landed in the faun’s neck. The creature dropped to the ground.
I hurried forward and retrieved the dagger from the body that was already beginning to disappear.
“Twenty bucks there are more of them,” I whispered.
Incoming! Muffin shrieked.
I spun around. Six fauns were racing from the forest, coming straight at us. Part of the patrol, and damn, was it a big one.
I threw my dagger, hitting another faun in the neck as Muffin leaped through the air, then landed on one and took it down to the ground. Bojangles and Princess Snowflake III used the same maneuver, and blood flew. Lachlan was fast, taking out two fauns with his sword.
But there were more of them. Five more raced toward us, drawn by the shouts of their compatriots.
