“What?” Jenna cried, leaping to her feet. Nick stood up too, but slowly, shaking his head. “That’s impossible.”
A bright flash of blue illuminated the room, like a bolt of lightning, as the witch I’d seen dancing with the werewolf earlier struggled with three of the dark figures. Nick’s eyes widened. “Oh my God.”
“The Eye can’t get in here,” Daisy said, shaking her head. “And they’ve never tried to raid Shelley’s before. Ever.”
Nick blinked like he still couldn’t believe what he was seeing. The dance floor was utter chaos now. There was so much magic flying around that my skin ached with it, but none of the spells seemed to be doing any good. The Eye just kept coming, more and more of them, spilling into the cramped club. They were outnumbered, but they had the element of surprise on their side, not to mention that most of the Prodigium in Shelley’s had been drinking. That “hazy” feeling Daisy had talked about didn’t make for stellar magic.
“How do we get out of here?” Jenna asked. She was breathing hard, and her fangs were poking out from under her top lip. “Is there a back door or something?”
Nick finally tore his gaze away from the front of the club. “No,” he said. “But we can make one.” He reached down and grabbed Daisy’s hand, pulling her to her feet.
“Wait!” I yelled. All three of them froze, staring at me. “It’s just…we could do something.” Off to my right, I saw another faerie trying to fly above the fight. He was struggling, though, thanks to a large rip in one of his iridescent wings. “We should help them.”
Nick looked at the faerie, his mouth set in a grim line. “They wouldn’t do it for us. And we need to get you out of here. Now come on.”
“Nick,” I said, but Jenna grabbed my hand.
“Sophie, he’s right. Let’s go. Please.”
I hesitated for just a second before squeezing her hand in return and following Nick as he turned toward the back of the club, tugging Daisy behind him.
The back wall was solid brick, but Nick simply raised his hand and flicked his fingers. A section of the wall crumbled, and I don’t think I’d ever seen anything as beautiful as that opening.
But we weren’t the only ones who’d run for the back, and as soon as the hole opened up, a crush of Prodigium gathered around it, trying to squeeze themselves through.
The screams got louder behind us, and I knew without looking that The Eye was headed our way. The pushing at the hole got more intense, and I watched as a werewolf snarled and bit a warlock who was trying to shove his way to the front.
“Oh my God,” Jenna whimpered. Her eyes were bloodred and her fangs were out.
“It’s going to be okay,” I told her, even though I was pretty sure we were all going to be skewered on L’Occhio silver daggers any minute now. For a split second I wondered if Archer was out there, hacking his way through Prodigium. The thought made me nauseous, so I shook it away and held Jenna tighter.
More bodies pressed in on all sides of us, so close I was afraid I’d be lifted off my feet. I shut my eyes, my body shaking.
Move, I thought, as my chest tightened with panic.
And then I felt it. Magic rose up from the ground beneath me. I didn’t even have to lift my hands.
I focused all my concentration on the Prodigium in front of me, even as I pictured a sort of shield around Daisy, Nick, and Jenna.Move, I thought again, stronger this time.
I’d only meant to knock them out of the way, like my spell was a bowling ball and they were the pins. But as usual, my power was too much. As one, the Prodigium were flung into the wall before sliding to the floor. Only Daisy, Nick, and Jenna were left standing.
“Nice one, Sophie,” Nick said, clapping me on the shoulder as he and Daisy stepped over the dazed Prodigium and out the door. Even Jenna smiled at me as she went by.
The exit led to the alley we’d been in earlier. I was shocked by how cool the night air felt compared to the humidity in the club, and shivered as the sweat began to dry on my skin. Daisy and Nick were already running down the street in the direction of the Itineris, but I turned to look back into Shelley’s. Jenna was waiting next to me.
A few Prodigium had staggered to their feet, but the rest still lay inert on the ground. One, a witch who was about my age, blinked at me in confusion. And behind her, I could see a group of Eyes rushing toward the exit, daggers drawn.
“Jenna, go with Daisy and Nick,” I said, without taking my eyes from the hole.
“Sophie—”
“Go!” I said, more sharply than I’d intended. “I’ll catch up.”
She hesitated for a second before turning and following Daisy and Nick.
I didn’t know how much magic I had left in me, but I gathered up all my strength and raised my hands toward the men in black. There was no spark or flash of light, but I could feel the attack spell—one of Alice’s—surge from my fingertips. The Eyes dropped like rocks, and my knees hit the pavement. No magic in six months, then two heavy spells within seconds of each other. How stupid could I be?
Even though my head was fuzzy with magic and exhaustion, I forced myself to my feet. I had to get to the others, had to make it to the road. I could see the three of them just ahead as they passed under a streetlamp. Jenna glanced over her shoulder and skidded to a stop when she saw how far back I was. I managed to lift my arm and wave her on. She stood still, but Nick nodded at me and grabbed her arm, pulling her out of the alley. I noted that the three of them headed left, and struggled to catch up. Running was out of the question, but I walked as fast as I could, my heels slipping and sliding on the damp street.
Still, I was too slow.
I was nearly to the end of the alley when an arm snaked around my waist and yanked me backward, out of the light. I wasn’t sure if it was an Eye or a Prodigium, or just your run-of-the-mill rapist/scumbag type, but it was definitely a guy. He was several inches taller than me, and I could hear his ragged breathing in my ear as he struggled to hold me. There was no way I’d be able to do a spell on him: I was too tired and too frazzled. But while I didn’t have magic, I did have a whole bunch of the Vandy’s Defense classes on my side.
Skill Nine, you asshat, I thought as I drove my elbow back, while at the same time attempting to drive my boot heel as hard as I could into his instep.
He blocked both easily, pulling his torso back from my elbow even as he tightened his grip on my waist, lifting me slightly off the ground so my heel came down harmlessly on thin air.
For a second I felt real panic. Anyone who could block Prodigium Defense moves was a lot more dangerous than some random pervert. I was about to try Skill Fifteen, which involved both breaking his nose and potentially ending his chances of ever having kids, when my captor bent down and whispered in my ear, “Don’t even think about it, Mercer.”