I considered it. Really considered it. “No. I'm sorry, babe. I'm too worried about Az.”
“Yeah, me too. We need to figure out what's—”
A rumbling interrupted Viper. The whole building shook. People shouted and screamed. I fell against my husband. Viper steadied me, but his stare was wide and circling the room. Bottles broke. Suddenly, the overhead lights came on. I blinked against the brightness, then gaped at the center of the room.
People were running for the doors. They knocked into me a few times, but I didn't budge. I was rooted to the spot, staring at a giant oak that was growing out of the floor. The real plants in the room joined it in its magical growth, turning Moonshine into more of a forest than it had been before. Metal creaked as the tree hit the roof. The Moon, which was an Atlantean security system, came loose and crashed through the thick branches,eventually hitting the floor. Amazingly, it survived to roll away, into the shadows.
“Vervain!” Trevor was next to me, shaking my arm. “We need to get out of here!” He looked past me and shouted, “Out! Everyone out!”
“We can't leave Moonshine unattended,” Ty shouted back.
“Fuck the bar!” Trevor snarled. “Get everyone to safety! Go! Now, Ty! Now!” He waved an arm above him. “Everyone out!”
Then Trevor picked me up and tossed me over his shoulder. Instead of running for the front door with everyone else, he dashed across the herd and up the stairs to the VIP floor. As he ran, I continued to gape, my stare now on Moonshine's floor. More plants were bursting through the ground, most of them looking too exotic, even for Hawaii.
“It's Wild Magic,” I whispered. Then I shouted, “It's Wild Magic! Run!”
I started smacking Trevor's back to get him to put me down, but he didn't oblige until we were upstairs. Then he set me on my feet and we ran to the Family Door together. The others were already rushing through it, heading down to the tracing wall.
Trevor and I made it into the corridor. As we banged down the metal stairs, the building shook again and the walls cracked. More greenery sprouted through those cracks.
“Holy shit!” Pan shrieked.
“Don't let it touch you!” I shouted. “We don't know what it will do.”
Gods dodged foliage and dashed for the safety of the Aether, disappearing one after another. Finally, I got to the wall and slapped my hand on the cement just as it began to crack. Iwas sucked into the Aether right as I turned to look back at my husbands with wide eyes. Too late. I was gone.
I reappeared in the tracing chamber of Pride Palace and instantly moved aside, but I didn't leave the room. My heart raced for a few seconds, but then Trevor and Viper came through. I hugged them both, so relieved that I nearly wept.
“We're okay,” Viper said. “Nothing came through the cracks. Not before I touched the wall, at least.”
We left the tracing room to find the Squad waiting for us in the entry hall. Hermes and his other kids weren't there. Thank all that's holy. It was bad enough that I had to deal with Horus.
“What the actual fuck was that?” Pan demanded.
“Are you truly that dumb?” Horus drawled. “It was Wild Magic. Vervain shouted it. You've touched it before. It forced you to procreate. I'd think you'd know it when you saw it.”
“Are you seriously trying to make a joke right now?” Pan gaped at Horus. “Wild Magic is back! This is a fucking catastrophe.”
“I'm not joking.” Horus laid a conciliatory hand on Pan's shoulder, then, in a sad tone, added, “I really do think you're dumb.”
I rolled my eyes and went to sit on the steps.
“It's Azrael, isn't it?” Teharon asked as he came over to me with Karni Mata. They were holding hands.
“Yeah. It has to be,” I said. “But I don't know why. The Elemental Well keeps the Wild Magic in balance. It shouldn't escape Lexington like that, even with Az out of commission.” Then I remembered the rest of my family. And my human friends. I pulled out my phone and sent a mass text to my friends, warning them of possible Wild Magic manifestations,then called my mother. “Mom!” I nearly shouted when she picked up. “Mom, is everything okay over there?”
“Yes, we're fine. The rain hasn't returned and there have been no beaver sightings. We're good, Vervain. Don't worry about us.”
“I'm not worried about beavers or rain. Wild Magic just manifested in Moonshine.”
“What?” she whispered. “Oh, no. I'd better get the cats and lay another ward. Can you come and get us?”
“Of course,” I said. “How long do you need?”
“Uh. Maybe fifteen minutes. We have to catch them again. But at least it's not raining, so they should come to us.”
“Good. I'll see you in fifteen.” I stood up. “Trevor! I need to get my family.”
