Page 123 of Harnessed in Gold

Someone screams. My eyes flit to Juniper, but she’s undaunted. She laughs as she curls her hands.

And swarming around her feet—and my feet—and everyone else’s?—

Rats!

I shriek and nearly let go of Leo’s arms. He holds my hands in place, still feeding off my energy, while rats and mice scramble over our shoes. When the snakes start striking, swallowing the rodents whole, I gag in revulsion.

The enemy fae chuckle. No snakes are threatening them now, not with such a smorgasbord laid out before them. And there’s nothing Topaz can do; she doesn’t have complete control over the snakes, only nature does. One by one, they disappear into the cracks and crevices, chasing after the rodents seeking safety in the walls.

So Juniper is a rodent weaver. Lovely.

I don’t know what Burdock’s species is, but, like Rime’s, it doesn’t seem to be a bond he can use in a basement. Neither is River’s, I hope. I half-expect a cascade of wolves and dogs to come pouring down the hall.

The floor has cleared of snakes and rats, and I’m prettysure Liv is lapsing in and out of consciousness. River strains to keep her upright, not noticing the roots above him stretching and growing until they’re as thick as ropes.

Juniper whips a blade out of a strap on her thigh. Rime and Topaz plant their feet and square their shoulders, each now wielding a dagger of their own. If Rime has his gun, why hasn’t he used it? Ten minutes ago, he could’ve shot River in the leg, and Liv would be free and safe with me.

“You move, I cut her throat,” River snarls at Topaz and Rime, unaware that a root stretches, snake-like, for his neck.

Juniper crouches lower, a slow smile spreading across her face. Then she springs feet-first at the wall, vaulting as fast as a blur across the hall and into Topaz, taking them both to the ground.

With a shout, Burdock runs at Rime.

Leo pants and tenses, pulling such a huge thrust of energy from me it feels like he’s tearing out my bones.

“Enough!” River barks. “Either give us… the…” He gags and coughs as Leo’s root coils like a whip around his throat. His dagger hits the ground with a clank, and Liv crumples at his feet, out cold.

With desperate fingers, River claws at his own face, battling the noose tightening around his neck. His limbs flail and his body convulses as he runs out of strength and air. At the pull of his sagging weight, the root releases, dropping him to his knees. Face purple and spittle glistening around his mouth, he topples face-first onto the floor.

At the sound of a cry, my attention snaps to Topaz, just in time to see her bury her fangs into Juniper’s shoulder. Blood spurts, and Juniper goes slack.

An electric, high-pitched wailing stuns us all, halting the chaos.

“The alarm!” Aaron shouts over the noise.

“Go!” Rime yells, even though one of Burdock’s hands is around his throat. As though he’s only been pretending to fight until now, he wrenches the smaller guy’s arm, twisting it as he kicks him in theback of the knees. Burdock slams back-first onto the ground, his head hitting the stone floor so hard it bounces.

The last thing I see before Leo yanks me out of the hall is Rime lunging for Liv, dodging the thick roots pinning Brier’s team to the ground.

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

The alarm wails,scrambling my thoughts and feeding the general panic.

“How the fuck are we supposed to get out of here?” Avery pants. “We can’t take the elevator.”

Leo whirls in the opposite direction, whipping me around with him. “The forge!”

Adrenaline propels us down the hall, Avery, Aaron, and Topaz hot on our heels. I glance over my shoulder to see Rime round the corner, Liv slung over his back in the firefighter’s carry. He pauses for half a beat, working out our plan, then races after us.

We spill into the furnace room, swatting at cobwebs and fumbling for our flashlights.

“Give her to me,” Leo orders Rime. “And get everyone else down there.”

Rime passes Liv into Leo’s arms and springs into action, ushering us to the coal chute. Aaron disappears into it first, the gong signaling shortly after. Topaz next, then Rime himself.

“Send Betts,” he yells before he slams the hatch.

I look over at Leo. He and Liv are on the floor, her back proppedagainst the wall and his calming hands on her shoulders. When her dark eyes flutter open, he lays a palm over her mouth, just in time to muffle her scream.