But it wasn't working. If anything, Fifi's skin had gone pale, then bright, blotchy red. She wheezed, hunched tighter, eyes squeezed shut.
Huey whined. He darted forward, nose to Fifi's knee, then circled in frantic little loops, like her distress physically stung him. Finally, he wedged himself between her and the fireplace, facing outward, ready to bite down on whatever came next.
Caden shouted,Dragon. Hatching. Now.
I strode over and knelt by them, hoping the proximity of another dragon would help. Caden crooned wordlessly.
Fifi's breathing eased a tiny bit.
Tash grabbed Fifi's hands. "This is one of her worst yet. She has these anxiety attacks sometimes."
Mere tightened her grip on Fifi. "It's okay, Fi. You're not alone. I've got you. Please, please just…"
Fifi shook her head, teeth clenched. "It hurts. God, it's burning…"
The front door exploded open with a bang that knocked the wind out of everyone.
Maeve stormed in, and it was a hell of a sight. Her hair was frizzed out, bathrobe tight around her middle,slippers caked with mud. A wild smear of green covered her entire face like some sort of mud monster come to kill us all. She looked both insane and absolutely in command of the moment.
She didn't even take a breath before pointing straight at Mere. "Stop what you're doing!" she shouted, finger aimed like it could pin Mere to the wall. Then, without even glancing at Tash, she jerked her chin at Fifi. "You're suppressing her dragon, and she needs to come out, now!"
There was a second of total silence, then the dog lost his mind, barking so loud the windows rattled. Lola, on the counter, arched and hissed at all of us, hackles bristling.
"I felt it from my house," Maeve announced. "Eight minutes away if you're slow, less if you're running. I've never hadanythinghit me this strong."
She crouched by Fifi, hand hovering just above the girl's hair. Her eyes never left Fifi's face. "Look," she said, voice softer now, "the witch, your daughter there, is instinctively suppressing her sister's dragon. It's a twin thing. But it's making things worse. She can't hold it back forever."
She jerked her chin at Mere, then at Fifi, as if explaining to a roomful ofmagicians.
Tash and the girls stared at her and me as though, well, as though we'd just called them witches and dragons. The cat was out of the bag now. There was no explaining this gently.
Damn it.
Tash
Huey barked so hardhis entire little body shook. He didn't go for Maeve. He was too well trained for that, but he planted himself as a living barricade between the twins and the mayhem, barking at her like maybe the sound alone could stop the chaos.
She just tsked at him, eyes never leaving Fifi.
"Everybodystop," I snapped. "This is enough! You're scaring my kids?—"
My words shattered, because Fifi wasn't just hunched in pain anymore. She folded double, arms clamped around her middle, but her skin had gone crazy. It shimmered, not like a fever or hives but full-on molten, lit from inside like she'd swallowed a solar flare. Bronzed and wild, every inch of her. Smokecurled up from her fingers, thin at first, then building in little wisps that stank of heat and panic.
"Fi!" I lunged for her, but Mere beat me to it. She yelped and jerked her hand back.
A second later, I discovered for myself that Fifi's skin was hot enough to burn. Mere and I hovered, and Huey flanked us, hackles up, but I could feel him trembling. He'd always been afraid of the vacuum. Now he was ready to take on anything, apparently.
Chance's eyes flashed silver, and he stood, every muscle in his body an exclamation point. "Stand back!" His voice went deep, not just a baritone but a command that hammered the room. "I need to help her."
Being ordered wasn't something I normally put up with, but he seemed to know what he was doing, and I was out of options. Also, not fully believing what I was seeing, either.
I yanked Mere in tighter and gave him a chance to do… something.
Chance's whole body vibrated, a low drone in the bones of the floor. His skin rippled, not with sweat or nerves, but with something not human. Black shone under his shirt collar.
Before I could process what was happening, hisbody exploded outward. Scales, actual, glossy obsidian scales, ate the light. There was an ear-crackingsnapas every bone bent and reformed, and the next second, what stood in the middle of the living room was not a man. It wasn't even possible.
It was a dragon. A massive, obsidian, winged dragon.
