“You don’tdomagic,”Penelope told him.“Youaremagic.”
I…am magic.
Whether I like it or not, whether or not I claim it. Whether or not I carry my wand.
It’s in me, somehow. Blood, water, bone.
And Braden is going to get it out.
I should have ended this before he had the chance. That would have been the heroic thing.
I should have thrown myself down a well. Penelope would have.
How have I lived through so many happy endings without ever learning how to save the day?
57
BAZ
When the gunfire starts, Lamb is still holding on to me. “Steady,” he says.
I’m anything but.
I drag him up the sand dune, the rest of the vampires forming a V behind us. I’ve got my hand inside my jacket, ready to cast a spell the moment it’s worth spoiling my cover.
The guns quiet, thenrat-a-tat, rat-a-tat,then settle again.
Lamb stops me at the crest, squeezing my arm. “Steady, lad. I need you to trust me to get you through this.”
I’m half mad to get over the hill. “What? I do. I will. We followed you this far.”
Lamb pulls me closer, his nose nearly touching my chin, his hair flopping over one eye. “Trust menow,Baz. I’ll get you through.”
I nod, hauling him forward. He won’t let go of me. He follows me over the edge.
We look down and see a dozen or so vampires with machineguns. They’ve got a gun to Shepard’s head—and Simon is lying on the ground.
One of the vampires looks up at us and waves.
Lamb is holding me so tight, I think my arm will snap. He’s whispering in my ear. “It was the only way, Baz. There’s a treaty.”
“No.…”
“Any mage who comes to Las Vegas gets turned over to them, no exceptions. It’s how we keep them out.”
I try to shove him away. “No!”
“This is going to be better for you in the end!”
I clutch my wand in my pocket and point it at Lamb, hissing,“Et tu, Brute!”
Nothing happens.
58
AGATHA
At first, I think it’s a mirage.
