Loki leaned forward from her shoulders, his snout crinkling as he sniffed at Kincade. To her surprise, the title guy fluttered from her shoulder and took up residence on his.
Kincade froze, his eyes wide, and Morgan couldn’t resist taking advantage of the situation. She slipped her hands free from his, went up on her tiptoes, trailing her hands up his shoulders and nipped at his chin, gratified when he glanced at her, his pupils dilated.
Excitement flooded her veins at having the upper hand, and she regretfully pulled away, each inch separating them almost painful.
“We have a decision to make.” She rubbed her hands together, wishing for the comfort of her blades, remembering a time when she only had herself to worry about. “No matter which option we choose, we’re going to be in danger, but instinct is telling me to leave as soon as possible.”
She peered at Atlas over her shoulder, part of her glad to see him behind bars…until she saw the severity of his injuries again, and then her heart just ached. Maybe he was only protecting her, but the shattering pain of his rejection was too fresh and too hard to ignore. “You think I’m the key to fixing this world. That’s not going to happen if you keep me isolated or if the elves take me prisoner.”
Kincade’s brows furrowed. He was clearly not happy with the idea, but he wisely kept his mouth shut.
“I will do my best to abide by whatever you decide.” She glanced at each of the guys. “You know my vote.”
The guys shared a single look, then Ryder turned to her. “We leave before sunrise.”
Morgan blinked at them, expecting an argument, and she was floored to know they trusted her enough to follow her into danger. “Right. Okay.”
Draven gave her a crooked smile, grabbed her by the shoulders and spun her around. “The first step to an escape is to break out of prison.”
“Smart-ass.” She snorted, then elbowed him sharply in the stomach, taking satisfaction when he grunted, but his comment had done what he intended.
No longer flustered, she focused on the cell, ignoring Atlas while he watched her every move. He hadn’t said one word since they promised to follow her lead and not his.
She flexed her fingers, then reached for the metal, pausing when the spell on the cell snapped against her fingers.
“Careful.”
“Don’t.” Morgan scowled, refusing to look at Atlas, not wanting to be swayed from her anger by seeing how he was barely clinging to consciousness. She would not feel pity for him. “You can stop pretending you care.”
Blowing out a breath, she grabbed the padlock on the door. Magic struck hard and fast, sinking its fangs in her arms, the spell spreading like venom through her, until she’d swear her skin was ready to peel away from her flesh. The compulsion to back away was so strong, her fingers clutched the lock convulsively.
Just when the magic reached her shoulder, her own finally took over. Energy surged out of her bones, grabbing every scrap of the spell and obliterating it. When the pain ended, she opened her eyes, unaware that she’d closed them. Small, spent particles of magic rolled off her arms, the red dust landing all around her.
She tugged on the padlock, the metal stretching, thinning until it finally snapped.
Morgan turned away, only to find Ascher in front of her. He grabbed her wrist, lifting her hand between them.
“Drop it.”
It took her brain two tries before her fingers finally obeyed and the metal clanked to the floor. He ran his palm down her arm, then took her hand between his, gently rubbing the knotted muscles until she couldn’t hold back a groan.
A smile quirked his mouth, and she couldn’t stop herself from leaning into him, half expecting him to stiffen and jerk away. Instead, he wrapped her in his arms and tucked her close to his chest. “Give him time to explain.”
She stiffened, the last thing she expected was for him to take Atlas’ side.
First Kincade, now Atlas.
When she took a step back, he refused to release her. “Like it or not, we’re all bound together. Nothing is going to change that.”
“I don’t want to hear more.”
“Tough.” He grabbed her chin, and she was startled to find her devoted Ascher standing up to her. “We’re family. He’s family. Forget for a moment that you don’t approve of his actions. When have you ever known him to do anything without a damned good reason?”
Morgan pursed her lips and glanced away. When he didn’t release her, she grudgingly admitted he was right. “Never.”
He kissed her forehead, and tension eased out of her.
Dammit.
She wanted to hold onto her anger and hurt, wallow in it for a while, but she couldn’t help but ask one question…why? While Atlas was blunt, he was never needlessly cruel. He was always in control of his emotions, so…
Then it clicked…tied to her, he would have complete control over his emotions again.
Tied to her, he would lose his connection to his elven heritage. It was the only thing he held dear. No wonder he hated her.
When Kincade stepped forward to help Atlas, Loki jumped from his shoulder, landing lightly on hers, then ducking under her hair and wrapping himself around her neck. The light weight was a welcome comfort.
“Where—” Atlas grunted when Kincade none too gently grabbed his arm and slung it over his shoulder.
“Questions later.” Kincade didn’t give him a choice, instead hauling him toward the next door.
Atlas grunted, doing his best to move his feet, unable to hide the grimace of pain behind his usual stoic mask.
The moment they emerged from the dungeons, Stanley trotted down the passageway toward them. “They’re coming.”
Guards.
Morgan didn’t hesitate, quickly heading in the opposite direction, passing three doors before she grabbed the knob of the fourth. Her magic flowed out of her and melted the lock. She barely had the door open when Stanley slipped through the crack. She flung open the door, waving the guys into the room, Ryder bringing up the rear. He scowled at her, then snagged an arm around her waist, yanking her close to his chest as he backed into the room, clearly not willing to leave her behind.
She bit her lip to stifle a yelp when her feet left the ground, and grabbed his shoulders, unable to help feeling delicate as he toted her easily with one arm. He gently shut the door, and everyone stood at attention as they waited.
When she didn’t hear any alarms or pounding footsteps, she gave a sigh of relief and tapped Ryder’s arm. “They’re gone. You can put me down.”
He dipped his chin, brushing his cheek against the top of her head, reluctantly loosening his hold until she slid down his body. She leaned her forehead against his shoulder, the sting of Atlas’s rejection lessening slightly when he hugged her closer.
“We won’t have much time before they discover that he’s gone, and we’re missing.” She reluctantly pulled away and saw they were in a junk room of some sort. Random furniture and boxes crowded the small space. “They won’t let us go easily.
“Draven—head out and find a clear route for us.” He was the sneakiest of them. If one could leave without being detected, it would be Draven. “Kincade—find us some damned weapons. I don’t want to be outside without having equipment to defend ourselves.” He nodded and practically dropped Atlas to the floor. “Ryder—get word to the others, see if they can provide us with a little distraction. And tell them about what’s happening down here. Make sure MacGregor keeps a close watch on the kids. I don’t want any of them going missing.”
When the rest disappeared, Morgan turned to face Ascher. He crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow, as if daring her to order him about.
“I’m not leaving you without protection.”