“For their leader. He’s immortal. Impossible to kill, even with trauma.”

“They should be hidden,” Mateo said to Carrow. “A stone box in the back right corner.”

“I’ll find them.” She disappeared.

I turned back to Mateo. “Tell me what you know about them.”

“There were over two dozen men that we saw,” Mateo said. “Scattered throughout the church, setting up a spell of some kind. The leaders said something about the alcoves off the main room.”

“I got the cuffs, but we couldn’t find a key,” Carrow said.

“And we need to get a move on,” Mac said. “I feel the dark magic growing.”

She was right. It pulsed like an oily sickness, polluting every breath.

“There’s a key in my office, on the second floor,” Ubhan said.

I looked at my guards and pointed to James, a wolf shifter. “Go find it. Let them out.”

Ubhan scowled. “You’re sending just one?”

“We need every person we have to fight Ivan.”

“You know he’s right,” Mateo said.

“Kiss arse,” Ubhan hissed.

I left them to it, striding toward the stairs. Carrow joined me, along with her friends and my crew, and handed me the cuffs. At the main level, I hesitated, listening for anything out of the ordinary.

Sound came from main church.

Chanting.

“He’s started the spell,” said Carrow, and sprinted forward.

We raced after her, moving silently through the entrance hall of the church. The doors to the main hall were open, and we could see right into the round space.

Ivan stood in the center, surrounded by a dozen guards. There were six alcoves situated around the edges of the main room, alcoves that were normally empty. From our vantage point, I could only see three. But each contained three of Ivan’s men, hurriedly marking something on the floor with glowing paint.

I turned to my guards. “You lot take out the men in the alcoves. We’ll deal with Ivan.”

He and his personal guards stood in the middle, atop the bronze star. The floor around him had been painted with an enormous symbol. Its intricate lines were impossible to see well from here, but it would have taken hours to paint it.

Though I hadn’t encountered Ivan in years, he looked as I remembered him: tall and wiry, with white hair and a manic glow to his eyes. It was even worse now, as if centuries underwater had polluted his mind even more.

They probably had.

He held a key in one hand and an intricate metal box in the other. As he chanted, he moved the key toward the box.

Carrow and I sprinted for him. Fear for her made my blood chill and my heart race. At my side, the shifter Quinn transformed into a panther. He ran alongside Carrow, sprinting ahead of her to block her from anything Ivan’s guards might throw her way.

I didn't like Quinn, but I appreciated his loyalty. Anyone who protected Carrow was fine by me. Still, I felt the oddest pang of jealousy.

Mac drew her sword from the ether and charged. Eve’s wings unfurled behind her, glittering and bright. She launched herself into the air, raising a hand that crackled with lighting. Thunder boomed as she hurled a bolt at one of the guards who’d started to attack. It slammed into him, sending him to the ground.

Ivan raised a hand, making a broad gesture that formed a small magical dome around him. It gleamed transparent blue, like the protective barrier that had kept us out of Black Church.

Mac clashed with one of the guards, her sword swinging. She took off his head with one powerful blow, then whirled to find another target. Quinn took out another, leaping for his throat.

From the left, another guard hurled a fireball the size of a small car. It plowed toward me. I powered through, calling upon protective magic I used rarely and only when attacked by fire.

The flames slammed into me, sending pain singing through my veins. I absorbed the heat, transferring it into energy so that I could run faster. I couldn't take hits like this indefinitely—it weakened me eventually—but in battle, it was a handy talent. Maybe it was the ice in my veins, but fire wasn’t as harmful to me as it was to others.

Around me, the sounds of battle rose. Out of the corner of my vision, I saw my guards transform into animals—lions, bears, wolves. They attacked Ivan’s men, scattering them throughout the church.

Ivan stood under his protective dome, still chanting. He was turning the key in the lock now. My heartbeat thundered.

We were too late.

Ivan had prepared the spell. All that remained now was for him to finish it.

Carrow

I sprinted alongside Grey, racing for Ivan. Mariketta’s spell had been long and complicated, and he was already nearing the end.

Beneath my feet, the paint glowed with magic. It grew brighter as Ivan chanted, energy flowing out from the container that he was unlocking. I could feel it vibrating as the lid slowly opened, revealing a brilliant glow from within.

On my chest, Orion’s Heart began to pulse in tandem, like it was responding to the magic.

Overhead, Eve swooped through the air, avoiding blasts shot by a fire mage while trying to take him out with her lightning. Quinn made quick work of another guard, taking him down and tearing out his throat. Mac moved like a ghost, quick and precise with her blade. More men seemed to be appearing from the alcoves, more backup than I’d expected.

Grey neared the barrier that protected Ivan, moving like a train as he crashed through the transparent blue wall. I followed. Gripping the gem in my hand, I smashed through after him.

Pain blazed through me as I forced my way to the other side. I skidded to a stop in front of Ivan.

The man’s wild eyes met mine, and he laughed. In front of him, the power source shone and pulsed with magic. It was the size of my fist and had risen out of its container entirely. The key lay discarded on the ground, and the intricate box dropped to the floor with a clatter, leaving the glowing orb hovering a foot above Ivan’s head.

Overhead, the star-shaped window in the ceiling opened. The blinding light from the power source shot into the sky, spearing through the opening.

“It is done.” Ivan laughed. His eyes were glued to Grey. “There is no stopping the spell, Devil.” He threw out his hand, sending a blast of magic at us.

I ducked, taking the blast partially to the shoulder. It threw me backward, slamming me into the ground. I skidded painfully across the stone.

Aching, I scrambled upright. The blast had thrown Grey off his balance. Ivan made a run for it, but the vampire was too fast. He lunged toward Ivan and grabbed him by the throat.

I sprinted for the glowing power source. It pulsed with magic, going wild as the power inside started to spin out of control.

“You’re not going anywhere,” Grey growled. He grappled with Ivan, trying to get something out of his hand.

A transport charm.

The bastard was going to try to transport out of here, leaving us all to blow up. He’d have to make it out of the church to use the charm, though.

I left Grey to it. The fighting men were only two meters from me, but my attention was on the pulsing power source.

How the hell did I stop it?

Shaking, I reached out to touch it.

“No!” Mac screamed. “It’s too powerful.”

But I didn’t have a choice.

I had the spell in my mind. And Mariketta had said that I had everything I needed.

What did she mean? I had nothing except my ability to read objects.

I’d have to risk it.

As my fingertip neared the gem, it burned with heat. All around, the battle raged. I had eyes only for the glowing stone that threatened to take us all out. With every second that passed, it vibrated more fiercely, sending out waves of magic that made my stomach pitch.

My fingertip collided with the gem, and I forced my magic to do my bidding, calling it up from the deepest recesses of my mind.

An image flashed—me, chanting the spell in reverse.

Reverse?

Why the hell hadn’t I thought of that?

It could undo what Ivan had started—at least partially. The power source was primed to blow, now. But if I could undo enough of the spell to get the stone back into the box, it would be contained. Controlled.

We’d be safe.

I just had to get that damned box.

The intricately carved box and key lay scattered on the stone where Ivan had dropped them. He and Grey were locked in a battle of magical assaults punctuated by flying fists. In their scuffle, Ivan nearly stepped on the box.

“No!” Fear pulsed. We needed that. I lunged for it, taking a kick to the head that made me see stars.

I curled myself around the box and tried to roll out of the way.

Grey roared and yanked at Ivan, dragging him away ferociously. The power with which he fought shocked me.

I grabbed the key and got to my feet.

I squeezed my eyes shut to better remember the spell, trying to drag it up from the depths of my memory. It was so long and complicated—and I had to recite it backward?

In my mind, I sent myself back to Mariketta’s strange room. I recalled touching her temple and absorbing the spell. It came to my lips, spilling forth. As the sounds of battle raged, I chanted the spell in reverse.

The dark magic that pulsed in the air began to lessen. The beam of light that shot through the window in the ceiling retracted.

“No!” Ivan shouted.

I spoke faster, the words tumbling over themselves. I held out the open box, praying this would work. As I neared the end of the spell, I opened my eyes.

The glowing orb was dimmer now, not as blinding. It floated down toward the box that I held. My heart thundered in anticipation.

In the distance, Ivan struggled to break free of Grey’s headlock. The battle was fierce since both men were immortal—Ivan even more so, since trauma apparently could not kill him.

The power source fitted itself neatly into the box, and I snapped the lid shut. Quickly, I cranked the key in the lock.

The dark magic stopped pulsing.

The window in the ceiling closed.

The spell was dead.

Ivan roared in rage. Magic vibrated through the sound, shaking the room so violently that I fell to my knees. Power exploded out of Ivan. It threw Grey across the room, slamming him into the side wall with enough force to crack the stones.