The door bucked so hard it flung us all backward a step. The glow dimmed again, this time weaker.
I raised my hands, magic gathering at my fingertips, flame and Hedge twining into ropes of light. Keegan crouched low, his body humming with the wolf’s restless power, though I could see the curse tugging at him, tempting, calling.
“Maeve.”
His voice was rough, urgent.
I met his gaze, my chest tightening.
“If he’s really out there, if this is him, don’t let me fall to it. Don’t let me become what Gideon did. Do not let Malore claim me.”
Chapter Forty-One
The crack in the door widened, a sliver of shadow pushing through like smoke curling from an open wound.
I turned, grabbing both goblins by their sleeves before they could bolt in opposite directions on their own whims. Their eyes went wide, Twobble’s full of panic, and Skonk’s glittering with his usual reckless mischief.
“Listen to me,” I hissed, though my chest was hammering with every strike against the Wards. “Twobble, go find my dad. Protect him with everything you have. Nothing,nothing, can happen to him.”
Twobble blinked at me, his mouth opening like he wanted to protest. “But Maeve, I’m not exactly…”
I tightened my grip until he squeaked. “You are exactly what he needs right now. You’ll stick to him like jam to toast. Do you understand me?”
His lips pressed together, and for once, he didn’t make a joke. He gave a reluctant nod, muttering, “Fine. But if he starts barking orders like a dog, I can’t promise what happens next.”
“Blame me later,” I said, releasing him. “Go.”
He shot one last wide-eyed glance at Keegan before darting down the corridor, his little legs pumping furiously, alreadycalling out for Frank like a child looking for his lost toy. Relief and worry tangled in my gut, at least Dad wouldn’t be alone.
I turned to Skonk, who had that devilish grin plastered across his face like he was born for this exact sort of chaos. “And you get to Gideon. Nothing can happen to him either. If Malore’s curse takes him under completely, we lose everything. I don’t know if Stella and the other vamps made it there.”
As of now, only Lady Limora was by his side, and I couldn’t imagine that holding for long.
Skonk gave a single wry nod, no quips this time. That unsettled me more than any of his jokes ever had. Without another word, he darted into the shadows at the edge of the hall, slipping through a narrow gap in the wall I hadn’t even noticed before. Probably led to Goblin tunnels. Of course. He’d make it to the inn faster than any of us.
That left me. Keegan and I.
And the door.
The next strike split it open.
Shards of wood flew like shrapnel, the spells shrieking as they bent under the force. A wave of shadows burst through, snarling, clawing, writhing into the shape of beasts I couldn’t name. The air went ice-cold, the torches along the wall snuffing out as the tide poured into the corridor.
Keegan roared, the sound not entirely human, and threw himself forward. His fists cracked like thunder against the first beast, shattering it into smoke. I flung my hands wide, electricity spiraling from my palms, uniting with Hedge and something I didn’t understand, as it whipped across the advancing line. The smell of burning evil filled the air, acrid and sharp, but it only bought us a heartbeat.
More came. Always more.
The air became a storm of claws and teeth and shrieks. Shadows struck from the walls themselves, crawling like spiders before leaping. I spun and lashed, electricity bursting from my hands, energy wrapping them until they glowed like molten iron. Each strike burned them, but each time, the void left behind pulled at me, threatening to drag me under.
“Maeve!” Keegan’s voice bellowed, raw with fury.
I turned just in time to see him stagger. A shadow-beast twice the size of the others had its claws locked around his arm, dragging him toward the tear still yawning wide behind the broken door.
“No!”
I lunged as a current blazed down my arm. I slammed my palm against the beast. Light burst outward, searing it into smoke that howled as it dissolved. Keegan sagged to his knees, panting, but his hazel eyes still burned when they met mine.
“On your feet,” I said, grabbing his wrist and hauling him up. “You’re not going anywhere.”
