Page 56 of Violet

I know he’s trying to goad us, but it works. There’s no way I can protect Liam and Violet’s guys. No one could pull it off, not even Deputy Dragon.

Or maybe...

Before I can talk myself out of it, I shift into Deputy Mayor Drayca Lee... Dragon Style.

“Well, isn’t this an interesting twist,” Raicus’s latest taunt turns into an enraged cry as I take to the sky and spew fire.

The sports car’s upholstery goes up in flames, and Raicus dives out of the way seconds before the car explodes. His minions raise their hands to cast, and I douse them all with fire the best I can, smoking Liam’s poor car instead.

The troll lets out an enraged roar, but he’s not even looking at his car. He’s got his eyes locked on Raicus like a bull on a target as he breaks into a run.

Violet’s vampires jump into the fray—or in their case, zoom—Bert aiming his gun while Aldo and Hugh wield swords. Haven’t a clue where they got those from, but they sure move fast, and it’s better than fighting empty-handed.

The witch who was previously sitting on Liam’s car—short, blue pixie cut, lip piercing, and a murderous glint in her eye—sets her eyes on Liam and starts to cast. I douse her with fire, but she deflects it with a flick of her wrist... and a shield made of purple-black flames. Shit!

I breathe fire on the other witches, hoping they haven’t caught on, but everyone—including Raicus—throws up shields. Which means Deputy Dragon is pretty much Deputy Useless to Me Now.

Violet’s vampires seem to be having slightly better luck. Each time one of the witches fires their purplish-black magic, they simply zoom out of the way at vampire speed. I feel a moment’s hope, but when they attack, their weapons bounce harmlessly off the witches’ shields.

I turn to my troll, hoping he’s doing better than we are, and my heart nearly stops. Because Raicus is wielding the magical orb from the library, and he’s about to take out my troll!

Chapter 24

Violet

I let out an anguished cry which turns into a fire-laced roar. It startles Raicus, throwing off his aim, and his purplish-black magic misses Liam by over a foot.

The tree off to the troll’s right isn’t so lucky. The magic smashes into its trunk, and the entire thing crumples. Liam dives behind it as it crashes to the ground in front of him, and crouches behind it, using it as a protective shield. Which won’t hold off the evil witch—or his orb—for long.

The orb fires again, but instead of hitting Liam’s tree, the purplish-black magic obliterates the front steps. I try to figure out if Raicus’s aim is off, or if it’s a warning shot, when I realize that the orb is firing in random directions. A patch of grass goes up in flames. The sidewalk next to the burning red sports car cracks.

The next shot nearly hits Raicus’s blue-haired witch, but her outraged cry doesn’t seem to faze the witch in the least. He just holds up the orb higher and lets it do its thing. Because apparently, he’s willing to take out anyone and everyone to get what he wants.

I unleash one more useless torrent of fire at Raicus, not willing to go down without a fight. His transparent shield easily deflects it, and he raises his orb, this time aiming at me as he fires.

I dodge out of the way and fly up into the clouds, flying in a zigzag pattern as I avoid Raicus’s magic. And it’s when I’m so high up I can see the entire town that I notice movement.

Off to my left, an army of grizzly bears charges through the forest, racing straight toward us. They all look the same—all large, all brown, all bears... What, it’s not like I’m some sort of expert—but I intuitively know that the one in the lead is Nole. Is he coming for me?

Flashes of color draw my attention to the clouds. Winged supes race across the sky. Hawks, owls, pigeons, and even the occasional blue jay. All coming to our aid.

And that’s when I notice the cars. Dozens, from all over Silver Springs—civilian and police alike. There are even some supes coming in on foot—shifters, demons, fairies, you name it—all heading in one direction: ours!

Within minutes, there are easily dozens of us, maybe hundreds. Supes jump into the fray, dodging curses and attacking witches. Cops shift, pull out weapons, or cast curses as they join the fight. Even Mayor Shchnarl shows up, though he stays back while Deputy Dragon joins me in the sky.

Then I spot my sister and her mates jumping out of a Cleanly Den van and running into the fray. I nosedive toward the ground, ready to protect them—because even if Gwinnie—Amber—abandoned me, I won’t let some witches or a magic orb turn her to dust.

She notices me swooping down and shifts into me—dragon me—and then quickly shifts back. A second later she’s Liam, cop uniform and all, which seems to distract the nearest witch. He stares at my sister for a split second too long, and a spell crashes into him from behind.

Jasmine—a witch who comes to Spell Library to use the Supe section—grins triumphantly and casts another spell before he can get his shield back up.

Then a flash of orange steaks across the grass: Handkerchief—library cat turned Sapphire’s mate. He launches himself at the witch and digs his claws into his back. Go, kitty!

Soon, there are familiar faces everywhere. Library patrons, people I’ve seen around town, all here, all fighting, all willing to risk their lives to protect me.

A black car comes into view, and Cash jumps out and zooms toward the house to join the fight. One of the witches aims a spell at him when he gets close, and I swoop down and lift him out of the way just in time.

“Love the new look, little furry,” he says, casting a spell that crashes into one of the purplish-black shields, creating a dent. “Think you could set me down?”