Her skin felt odd beneath my fingers, and when I glanced down—I saw scales running along the back of her hand, and up her forearm. She’d been a Dragon when she’d mated Havoc. But I thought her scales had been gold.
These were black. And her fingernails were elongated, as though partway to forming talons.
I shot her a look, and one corner of her lip twitched upward.
“Occupational hazard,” she said.
The right ankle was now free. The relief when I could step down and take the weight off my left arm was immeasurable. Riley just quietly stood there, holding onto me, while Lucas kept working. Maddy paced nervously, shooting glances at the door.
I couldn’t help but groan when my left foot touched the ground. When Lucas moved to my left wrist, I sensed something. Someone, actually, moving through the building—coming down the basement stairs.
“Better hurry, we’re about to get company,” I said.
“I can Block—” Maddy began.
I spoke through gritted teeth. “It’s Isobel.”
Lucas cursed, and Riley’s fingers tightened in mine. “Come and grab me,” she told Maddy, placing her other hand on Lucas’s shoulder. “We’ll be exiting in a hurry.”
Maddy rushed over and took hold of Riley’s shoulder.
I tracked Isobel as she descended the stairs. Her energy swirled uneasily. Had she sensed something when they’d Jumped in? She didn’t usually visit in the middle of the night.
She wasn’t alone, either. Brock’s energy reflected rage.
“Maybe they know the children are gone,” Maddy said.
I didn’t sense that kind of frantic energy. “You got them all out?” I asked.
“Except the older ones.” Riley frowned.
“What’s her ETA?” Lucas was working his metal picks in my wrist manacle. Despite the tension in his voice, his hands remained steady.
“She’s almost here,” I said. “There’s been no alarm. I don’t think they know about the kids yet.”
“I might be able to buy us some seconds, anyway,” Maddy stated. “Enough to confuse her.”
Maybe. Isobel was so powerful—she’d see through the illusion in a heartbeat.
“She’s in the hall,” I said. “If you’re going to Block, make sure she’ll still see me.”
“Right,” the Blocker said.
Lucas inhaled, and the manacle clicked. “Almost there…”
We all heard Isobel tell the guards something—it sounded like an order. And running footsteps headed back up the stairs.
I had a pretty good idea where she sent the Bellati.
Lucas cursed softly beneath his breath, twisting the metal pick—
Maddy’s brows drew down and Riley went rigid. Golden light started to dance around us.
The dungeon lock rattled, and Isobel entered.
15
Havoc
