Lincoln rounds on Adair. “Let her go.”
“I can’t,” says Adair in a whining voice. “Lincoln, my love, you must see the truth. These are my igni powers, not hers. I’m the True Scala. I was the first one initiated by Verus. You were my Angelbound love before this demon whore came along. She stole my life and love, and now, I’m getting them both back. That’s my right, don’t you see?”
I may be in pain, but I’m not putting up with that crap. “Hey, nut job. I did not steal your so-called life and you know it.”
Adair ignores me and keeps right on talking to Lincoln. “She’s been tricking you all along.” Her tone has turned pleading, desperate. “I’m trying to save you, and to do that, the demon whore must die.”
“Damn it, Adair!” Lincoln stalks over towards her, igniting his baculum as a fiery broadsword. You go, honey.
The Ghoul Diplomat steps forward, blocking Lincoln’s path. In each hand, the ghoul holds a throwing dart. “Approach my Mistress and you’ll have one of these in your gut.” He grins, showing a mouth of blackened teeth. “Covered in sleeping serum.”
Lincoln marches forward, his face set in determined lines. Fast as lightning, the ghoul launches his dart. It whizzes straight for Lincoln, only missing his neck by a fraction of an inch. Lincoln pauses.
“Come one step closer,” snarls the ghoul. “I dare you. No matter how fast you move, I won’t miss at this range.”
Lincoln nods slowly. “You’ve thought this through rather carefully, I see.”
Adair looks at him plaintively. “Only because I love you.”
Lincoln glares at the ghouls. If he moves any closer to them, he’ll end up with a sleeping dart in the gut…And all my igni stolen. Tiny voices scream in my mind as my powers are ripped from me. Pain sears behind my eyes, making it hard to focus.
We’re at a stalemate. And with every second that passes, I lose more igni.
Turning on his heel, Lincoln runs over to the containment wall, well out of the ghoul’s range.
“Here’s one thing you haven’t thought of.” He raises broadsword high.
Unholy Moly. Lincoln’s going to tear the containment wall open. And since I’m locked with Adair, I can’t even send those escaped ghosts into Hell. I try to wrap my brain about what this means and come up with a plan, but all I can think about is the pain in my body and the howling cries of my igni.
Lincoln speaks in a creepy-low voice. “Join me in death, Adair.”
What happens next takes seconds to complete, but my mind tracks each detail in ultra-slow motion. Lincoln brings his arm down, slicing straight through the containment wall. The entire Carrier shatters, sending spirits tumbling out onto the Tower floor. The sudden loss of mist wakes them up. Some cry, others laugh, more howl with rage.
Adair screams. Immediately, she releases the igni bond between us, grabs the hands of her ghouls, and jumps into her opened portal.
The world around me returns to normal speed. The pain slowly seeps from my limbs. The igni grow quiet. My mind clears. I’m aware of flashing red lights as the Control Room kicks on its emergency processes. A thick mist rolls across the Tower floor, making it hard to breathe. Lincoln races up behind me, wrapping his arm tightly around my waist. He pulls me back onto my feet, above the heaviest billows of mist.
“Stay up, Myla. Get above the mist.”
My eyes widen with a realization. Breaking the containment wall floods the Tower with mist. It’s standard protocol when a Carrier is breached. Lincoln would know that, too, after the night we spent in Ghost Tower One. But Adair’s always been more interested in defeating me than learning how Soul Processing really works. She obviously thought we’d all end up dead, so she took off with her ghouls.
Way to think on your feet, babe.
The heavy mist rises higher and higher. Around us, all the spirits Lincoln released from their Carrier collapse into a deep sleep. My chest tightens as I gasp for air.
Walker’s familiar hand slips into mine. The next thing I know, I’m tumbling through empty space as his portal transfers the three of us out of the Ghost Tower. It all happens so fast, I barely have time to register that I’m out of danger, let alone exhale a sigh of relief.
Walker, Lincoln, and I step out of the portal and into the main foyer of my house in Purgatory.
I cling tightly to Walker’s hand. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I know I should be thanking him, but I have too many questions first. “What happened? Are the souls safe?”
“They’re fine. None of them escaped. I need to go back, help them rebuild the containment wall.”
“I’ll go with you.” For some reason, I’m having a really hard time letting go of Walker’s hand.