Henry and May gazed up in wonder at the airplane, still awestruck by Severn’s staggering wealth. Even I couldn’t help but feel a pang of amazement.
Kell cleared his throat and handed me our passports. “The four of us are all checked in. We can board whenever you’re ready.”
I could already see the pilot in the cockpit, sunglasses and crisp hat on. Two flight attendants, one female and one male, stood at the base of the stairs, while a third waited in the plane. The woman at the bottom held a tray with champagne glasses. They evenlookeddifferent from normal flight attendants—they didn’t have the same heavy makeup to hide tired eyes, the wan forced smiles. They were tall and well-built, looking more like wealthy passengers themselves than staff.
“Okay, babe, guess this is goodbye,” Zara said aloud and then leaned in close. “Take care, okay? The Gifted Realm exists in Italy just like it does here. It can be dangerous there, too. You remember the spell I taught you?”
I nodded. “Yes, and Kell is staying with us the entire trip. Besides, Severn’s villa and the olive farm sound so massive that we probably won’t even leave the grounds.”
I gave her a hug and wished her well on her own flight. Kell hung back, scanning the tarmac with his usual careful attention, as Henry and May and I skipped up to the stairs.
“Bye, Zara!” May called, and Zara waved back as she watched us.
My thoughts turned inward to Severn as I started up the stairs with the kids behind me. I was so in my own head, fretting over our breakup, that at first, I didn’t sense anything wrong. I only paused when I heard Kell bark, “Wait. Something’s not right.”
Henry was the first to yell. I spun around, confused, to find that one of the flight attendants had grabbed him by the arm. In the next second, the female flight attendant picked up May around the waist and hoisted her up over her shoulder. The third attendant at the top of the stairs started down toward me. Shocked, I realized he had a Taser in hand.
It all happened so fast that I barely had time to react. Fortunately, both Zara and Kell had been watching the plane as it happened. Kell moved faster than I’d ever seen someone run, snapping swiftly into bodyguard mode. He grabbed the male flight attendant by the shoulder, shoving him back, but he had to be careful not to hurt Henry. The attendant grabbed Henry’s other arm, holding him like a human shield. Kell smashed a fist into the side of the man’s head before he could duck, and his sunglasses flew off.
Yellow eyes.
They aren’t flight attendants.
Everything next happened in a flash. Zara swept her hands up and began whispering a spell toward the female werewolf, who had May over her shoulder and was attempting to carry her up the stairs. The werewolf in the plane tried to jab me with the Taser. I managed to dodge the first blow, but there was nowhere to go. I was boxed in by the staircase railing; it was a fifteen-foot fall on either side. One werewolf was above me on the stairs, and the kids and the other two werewolves were below me.
I’m completely trapped.
“Willow!” Kell yelled. “Hang on!”
But there was no way for him to reach me. He fought against the werewolf holding Henry, but the man was built even stronger than he was. I yelled down to Zara, “May! Get May!”
Zara redirected her attention from me to the female flight attendant, who was just below me now on the stairs, trying to herd me up into the plane. May kicked and screamed over her shoulder uselessly. I heard the woman cry out as one of Zara’s spells set her shoes on fire. She started stamping her feet on the metal steps.
Kell managed to pry Henry away from the male attendant and shoved him toward the airport. “Run, Henry!”
Kell tossed his gaze up in my direction, and I saw my fate written in the heavy set of his eyes. Two werewolves were blocking me in, and a third was coming at me with a Taser. Kell and I shared only a second’s glance of understanding before the werewolf jabbed the Taser into my side.
Pain shot through my limbs hard enough to make my teeth rattle. “The kids!” I yelled to Kell with the last of my strength. “Help the kids!”
And then pain overwhelmed me, and everything went black.
ChapterTwenty-Nine
My head throbbed like I’d drunk an entire bottle of wine. Groggy, I blinked awake and immediately recoiled at the bright light. Confusion filled my thoughts.
Where am I?
As soon as my blurry vision focused on the unmistakable shape of an airplane window with the clouds beyond, everything came rushing back to me. My fingers curled on the seat armrests. Panicked, I realized my wrists were tied to the leather armrests with paracord.I’m in the jet. In the air.The jet interior was small but luxurious, with a few plush seats with footrests, each with its own window view. All the other seats were unoccupied—I was the only person in the cabin. I wasn’t sure what to make of this fact. Breathing hard, I tried to twist to look behind me.
“Henry?” I called, my voice rising in panic. “May?”
No one answered immediately, but in the next instant, a rear door slid open and one of the werewolves emerged with the other two hovering in the doorway. They had changed out of their fake flight attendant uniforms and were now in normal clothes. Sunglasses hid their eyes, but I knew they glowed yellow.
Straining against the binds, I demanded, “Where are the children?”
The male attendant folded his arms, taking his time to look me over, and then pivoted toward the rear cabin that was hidden from my view. “She’s awake.”
I froze. If the pilot was flying and the three werewolves were here with me, then who were they talking to?
