She shuddered and began to topple backward. He snaked an arm around her back on instinct, drew her close to him. There was so much blood; it smelled like copper and iron mixed with the decay of the world around them. Isaac’s stomach churned as her eyes fluttered frantically, pupils glazed over.
“Rosie?” she whispered, and he knew in that moment that she was somewhere else. Beside her, Orpheus was curled up on the ground, his body growing limp.
Isaac stared at them both, struggling to comprehend what was happening. He cradled Violet in his arms, unable to breathe, unable to speak. He couldn’t save her, the same way he hadn’t been able to save his mom, his brothers. She would die here, and he was absolutely powerless to stop it.
He heard footsteps approaching and glanced up, expecting Richard’s face. At least his suffering would be short-lived.
But it was not Richard waiting for him—it was Gabriel.
Gabriel was there, just as he had been there on the night of Isaac’s ritual. But this time his brother did not hold a knife to his throat. Instead, he dropped to his knees and placed a hand on Isaac’s shoulder.
“You came back,” Isaac murmured.
“Yeah, well,” Gabriel said. “I couldn’t leave you to fight alone.”
“Don’t fight,” Isaac choked out. “Help her.”
Gabriel’s gaze turned to Violet. Blood was still spreading from the wounds in her stomach. Her head turned slightly, a gasp of pain escaping as blood trickled down her chin.
“She’s badly hurt,” he said. “I’m not sure if I can—”
“Please. I can’t lose her too.”
The words came from somewhere raw and bloody, the part of Isaac that had spent the last few years screaming itself hoarse. It seemed to awaken something in Gabriel: a focus, a purpose.
“I will do everything in my power to keep her alive.” He lifted her gently out of Isaac’s arms. “But you’ll need to distract that founder bastard.”
Isaac nodded and rose to his feet, dazed. It had been a few minutes at most, but the world felt different. Violet’s blood stained his forearms, his shirt, but there was nothing he could do for her now except keep Richard at bay and hope Gabriel would give her a fighting chance.
He could tell immediately that Harper was reaching the end of her rope. The remnants of stone animals were scattered everywhere, some still lurching forward pathetically, others deathly still. The girl herself was pale and panting, gasping for breath.
“Hey!” he called out. Harper turned, relief blooming on her face as Richard’s focus shifted onto him.
“Here for seconds?” Richard asked.
Isaac didn’t bother answering. He didn’t give a shit about clever quips right now. All he cared about was that Richard had just tried to take away another person who mattered to him, and that meant he deserved no mercy whatsoever.
He knelt down, rage blooming inside him, and pressed his palms to the dirt.
A massive bubble of light rippled through the clearing, creating a shock wave that sent everyone but Isaac off-balance. Harper jolted; behind him, Gabriel yelled in protest, but Isaac didn’t care. All around them, tree roots were disintegrating in a massive wave. He shuddered with effort as he pushed his power forward, but before it could touch Richard, it slammed into something invisible. Like a brick wall. He’d felt this before, with the Church of the Four Deities.
“You can’t hurt me,” Richard said softly.
Isaac snarled and lunged forward again, his hands burning with power, but Richard stretched out two palms and blocked him again. Behind him, Harper gasped in pain as roots twined around her legs, rooting her in place.
“You’ve lost,” Richard said, advancing. “Just admit it.”
And just as he was starting to panic, his eyes locked on the smug smile on Richard Sullivan’s face, a familiar voice rang out from behind him.
“This isn’t over,” May Hawthorne said coldly. Behind her stood Juniper, Augusta, and Harper’s siblings. All of them looked ready for war.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
May had never felt so simultaneously powerful and overwhelmed. She stared at her father from across the town square, the Gray swirling all around her, and tried to remember how to breathe. She’d asked for this responsibility, this fight. She needed to see it through.
For once, her mother had listened to her. So had Juniper Saunders. They’d banded together, found Mitzi and Seth Carlisle at their family home and gone looking for the group at the town hall, since everyone’s phones were still malfunctioning, but had found a sick Justin instead. He’d filled them in and told them where to find everyone else.
Now May watched as the people she’d brought together rushed into action, just as she had asked them to. Mitzi and Seth ran to help their sister, while Juniper hurried over to Violet, who seemed to be injured. As for May, she stood beside her mother, both of them gazing grimly at Richard.
“Well, then,” her father said. “This is a surprise.”
He didn’t sound particularly intimidated. May tried not to let that make her even more afraid of him. She looked around, taking note of everything she could about their surroundings. They were standing in the middle of what should have been the town square. A copse of bloated gray trees had grown around the seal, completely blocking off their access.
“You go,” Augusta said softly to her. “Get the others.”
“Are you sure you can distract him?”
Augusta’s smile was vicious. “I will relish it.”
May rushed over to Harper as her mother stepped toward her father. The girl was surrounded by the remnants of stone animals, looking exhausted.
“You’re controlling those?” May asked her.
Harper nodded proudly. “I thought your dad captured you,” she told May. “We came here to rescue you.”
“He did,” May said, shoving down the burst of emotion she felt at that. This was not the time to get sappy. “It didn’t stick. You’re here to do the ritual, right? To give our powers back to the forest?”
Harper’s eyes widened. “How do you know about that?”
“Long story,” May said. “Let’s just get to the seal and finish this.”
They sprinted across the cobblestones to the place where Violet lay sprawled out on the ground. Juniper Saunders was sitting beside her daughter, her face drained of all color as she gripped her hand. Orpheus was curled up in Juniper’s lap, while Gabriel was bent over Violet, his hands pressed to her torso, face screwed up in concentration. Green-and-gold light flowed around him.
“Is it working?” Harper asked.
Gabriel looked up, face flushed with sweat. “She’ll live.” May sagged with relief. “But she definitely can’t fight. She needs to get out of here.”
Violet’s mouth moved. An indistinct mumble floated from her lips.
“Shh,” Juniper hissed at them, and they all quieted, staring anxiously at her face. Behind May, the battle raged, Harper’s siblings, her mother, and Isaac distracting Richard. She tried not to think about how strong he was, that four of them could only barely keep him occupied.
“I want to finish it,” Violet croaked out, her eyes fluttering open. “Let me… do the ritual.”