And then Mab let out a primal, furious scream that made my lips draw back into a matching snarl. I wanted nothing more than to race back down the hallway, throw myself on top of her, and pound her with my fists, just hit her over and over and over again until she was nothing but a smoking red smear on the carpet.
But the elemental Fire flickered to life on Mab's fists again, building and building and building as she prepared to take another shot at me.
I turned and ran, and this time, I didn't stop for anything. My eyes locked on to the Exit sign up ahead, even though I could hear Mab moving behind me, could feel her Fire magic gaining force with every step that we both took.
Mab let out a scream and unleashed her magic at me again. The elemental flames roared down the hallway toward me with all the force of a supernova.
I forced myself to run faster, to make my legs pump harder, despite the burns and blisters that sent continuous waves of agony through my body. Sweat poured down my face, blurring my vision, and screams of pain slipped from my open lips, but still I ran.
Even though it felt like I was running in place instead of moving forward, I finally reached the end of the hallway and barreled through the double doors. Mab's Fire hit them a second later, blowing out the glass and sending the hot, jagged shards at me. The pieces sliced into my back, even as the force of the blast threw me forward into the snow.
I screamed again, from the pain and frustration of my failure, but there was no time-no time to do anything but keep running. So I forced myself to get to my feet and staggered off as fast as I could into the cold, welcome embrace of the snow.
Chapter 18
I stumbled through the darkness, my boots sending up sprays of snow, not sure where I was going and not caring, as long as it was away from Mab and her elemental Fire.
After about thirty seconds, the cold penetrated my pain, and I snapped back to myself. My hurried, staggered steps had taken me away from the immediate proximity of the ballroom. I risked a glance over my shoulder, wondering if Mab was racing up behind me, flaming fists held high, ready to unleash another blast of magic. But all I saw was the fiery outline of the ballroom. The elemental Fire that Mab had created had already spread to the roof, and a second later, a loud, ear-shattering groan ripped through the building. Sparks, smoke, and ash erupted like a volcano into the night sky as part of the structure caved in on itself. No, Mab wouldn't be coming after me that way. A brief respite, but I'd take what I could get.
My stumbling, sluggish path had taken me out into the open, into the dead space between the tennis courts and the edge of the golf course. Everyone might be concerned with the fire right now, but it wouldn't be long before Mab rallied her giants to start searching the grounds. If I was still here when that happened, I was dead.
I'd made Owen promise me earlier that he'd slip out of the club and wait by the car while I went after Mab. The plan had been to meet there and get the hell out of Dodge if things didn't go well. I didn't want to be anywhere near the flames pouring out of the building but backtracking and following the curve of the structure was the quickest way to get to Owen. So I made myself turn back, getting as close to the elemental Fire as I dared, and slogged past it. Even from ten feet away, I could still feel Mab's power in the flames, still feel her magic pricking at my skin like red-hot needles. I hissed at the sensation and hurried on.
Another piece of the roof caved in. The smashing roar momentarily drowned out the startled shouts and screams of those who'd been inside the country club. No matter what happened the rest of the night, no one in Ashland would ever forget this party. Fire and Ice ball, indeed. I grimaced at my black humor and kept moving.
Mab had blocked the exit on this side of the building with her last burst of Fire, so I didn't see or pass anyone as I hurried on. A small favor, but luck owed me a little something tonight.
Finally, after what seemed like an eternity but couldn't have been more than five minutes, I rounded the side of the building, and the snow gave way to smooth pavement. Still I kept moving, my heels clacking like talons on the concrete. Already, I could hear the mutters in the stone, low, ugly sounds that whispered of fire, heat, death, destruction. The stone wouldn't forget what had happened here tonight either.
I sprinted through the parking lot as fast as I could, considering my injuries, heading toward the space where the valet had parked Owen's car. Hopefully, he would be there waiting, and we could at least get away clean-
Thwack-thwack-thwack.
The steady sound of fists pummeling flesh dashed that hope. Up ahead, shapes moved back and forth, backlit by the flames. Owen. Mab had raised the alarm, and her giants had found Owen already. My heart twisted in my chest, so hard and tight that I couldn't breathe, but I forced myself to run as fast as I ever had in my entire life-even faster than when I'd been trying to escape Mab's elemental Fire minutes ago. If anything happened to Owen, I'd just-I'd just crumble inside. What little there was left of my heart would disintegrate into ash and blow away, leaving nothing behind but aching, bitter emptiness.
I rounded a row of expensive cars and charged ahead, my eyes already locking onto the struggle in front of me and focusing on who my first target would be. Despite my fight with Mab and subsequent stagger through the snow, I'd somehow managed to hold on to my silverstone knives, one in either hand. Good. I didn't want to waste even half a second reaching for them-not while Owen was in danger.
Owen stood fifty feet in front of me, his back to his BMW. He'd gone to his car like we'd planned-he just hadn't gotten to it quite fast enough to drive away. Four giants surrounded him in a loose semicircle, trapping him against the car. I didn't know when the giants had spotted him, but they'd been fighting for a while now, because blood and bruises covered Owen's face like a second skin.
But my lover was determined to take the bastards down with him.
Owen gripped a blacksmith's hammer in his hands. I'd never seen him fight before, and I hadn't spied him putting the hammer in the car earlier. But he used the solid, heavy, black hammer like it was a staff, swinging it first one way, then the other, with easy, deadly skill, his movements as beautiful and graceful as those of any dancer. Two giants already lay crumpled at his feet, their blood shimmering like oil slicks on the pavement. Judging from their caved-in skulls, they wouldn't be getting up anytime soon. Good.
The four giants who were left eased in toward Owen, but a couple of cracks of his hammer against their ribs sent them scurrying back. They all stared at each other, hesitant to step forward and take the full force of Owen's assault. One of the giants was a little bolder or perhaps just a little stupider than the rest because he rushed toward Owen, intending to overpower him with his sheer, brute strength and then let the others pile on. Fool.
Owen waited until the man was in range, then pivoted and swung his hammer in a perfect arc. The metal slammed into the giant's temple. That side of his skull collapsed, and blood squirted out of him like juice from an orange. The giant never made a sound, although his body hit the pavement with an audible thump.
"Come on!" Owen roared. "Come on! Which one of you bastards is next?"
The three remaining giants exchanged uneasy looks, but none of them dared to step up and get their head bashed in like their buddy just had. In that regard, they were smarter than they seemed-but not smart enough to do something as simple as look behind them.
With an angry hiss, I leaped out of the shadows and slammed my knives into the giant closest to me. The blades flashed silver in the firelight just before they ripped into his broad back. One cut, then two, and he was dead. The giant gurgled out a weak scream before he went down, and the others' heads snapped around at the surprise attack from the rear.
I didn't hesitate, and neither did Owen.
He moved forward and slammed his hammer into another giant's knee, before whipping around and plowing his weapon into the man's other knee. The giant howled with pain, staggered back, and did a header onto the pavement. I grabbed his hair, yanked his head back, and cut his throat before letting him flop to the ground once more.
That left only one giant, who started backing away from us, eyes wide with surprise and more than a touch of fear. Normally, I would have charged after him and put him down, but there was no point in it. Not tonight. Not when Mab and Jonah McAllister had both already seen my face and knew that I was the Spider.
Owen tightened his grip on his hammer and started after the giant, but I grabbed his arm and pulled him back toward the car.
"Forget him," I rasped, my throat burning from the effort of talking. "We need to get out of here. Now!"
Owen nodded, and the two of us hopped into the car. He cranked the engine and threw the BMW in reverse. By this point, more people filled the parking lot, taking refuge from the flames that had skipped from one roof to another of the country club's buildings. Most of the people wore dazed, shocked expressions, but there were several of Mab's giants in the mix-men determined to find us, to find me.
The giant who'd gotten away from Owen and me waved his arms and screamed at his brethren before pointing in our direction. The other giants got the message and raced forward. Those who had guns raised them up and took aim at Owen's car.
Crack! Crack! Crack!
Bullet after bullet slammed into the vehicle. One splintered the windshield in between us, while the others thudded into the metal hood.
"Go!" I told Owen. "Go!"
He threw the car in gear, stomped on the gas, and roared out of the parking lot. The car raced down the hill and took a turn on two wheels. One of Mab's giants must have gotten the bright idea to alert the man in the guardhouse at the bottom of the hill, because up ahead, I could see the club's iron gates closing. Owen spotted them too and slammed his foot on the gas pedal so hard that I thought he might punch it through the floorboard. He knew as well as I did that getting trapped on the grounds would seal our fate. But for once, luck actually smiled on us, because the BMW shot through the gates just before it was too late. A few sparks flashed into the night air where the iron scraped against the sides of the car, but I didn't care because we were out of the country club and safe-at least for the moment.
But the others weren't. Not by a long shot.
"Phone," I rasped. "I need your phone. Now!"
Keeping one hand on the steering wheel, Owen used the other to dig into his pants pocket and hand me his cell phone. I flipped it open and hit a number that I'd programmed into his speed dial.
"Pick up," I muttered. "Pick up, pick up, pick up."
Just as I was starting to worry that I was already too late, she answered on the fifth ring.
"Hello?" Jo-Jo Deveraux's warm, friendly voice filled my ear, making me want to weep with relief.
But there was no time for that. No time to give in to emotions of any kind. Not now, when Mab finally knew who I was. No doubt, the Fire elemental was already mobilizing her army of giants and bounty hunters. So I said only one word to Jo-Jo.
"Run."
Chapter 19
"Mab?" Jo-Jo asked, her sweet voice sharpening as she heard the tight worry in mine.
"Not dead," I said. "She saw me, Jo-Jo. She knows who I am. So does McAllister. So get Sophia and go to the safe house just like we planned. Right now. Owen will go pick up Eva. He'll meet you there. I'm going to call Finn and Bria next."
"Who else do you want me to round up?" the dwarf asked.
I thought about the other people that I'd helped over the last few months, all my friends and even friends of friends. "Tell Xavier and Roslyn, and call Violet and Warren Fox, just to be sure. I don't want anyone left behind that Mab can snatch and use as leverage."
"Got it."
We both hung up.
"What now?" Owen asked, driving away from the country club as fast as he dared on the slick, snowy road.
I didn't answer him. I was too busy dialing. But instead of picking up like he should have, Finn's cell went to voice mail. I tried again, with the same result. One missed call I could understand, given what a sprawling labyrinth Fletcher's house was, but not two. My stomach flipped over and started tying itself into tiny, worrisome knots.
I tried a third time. Same result. No answer, only voice mail. Why wasn't Finn picking up his phone? He knew what was going down tonight, what was at stake for us-for all of us. Had Mab, her giants, or the bounty hunters gotten to him and Bria already? Maybe, if Mab had put out the call to her minions immediately after our fight at the country club. Now that the Fire elemental knew who I was, Fletcher's house would be one of the first places she'd start looking for me.
The thought that Bria and Finn could already be in trouble-could already be dead-made me sick, made me physically ill, but I forced myself to remain calm. To be as calm and rational as I had ever been as the Spider. To remember all of the old man's training over the long years, everything Fletcher had taught me about how to survive and make sure that my enemies didn't. It took a minute, but my breathing slowed, and I felt the cold, hard, unending blackness fill my heart once more. I embraced the cold, welcomed it, reveled in it, even. Because this was the only way I had any hope of living to see the sunrise-and making sure that the people I loved did the same.
"Gin?" Owen asked in a quiet voice, sensing the change in me. "What's wrong?"
"Finn's not answering me," I said. "Which means that something's going on with him and Bria. Either they've both gotten on the other's nerves and killed each other in a fit of rage or something bad is happening at Fletcher's house and they can't answer me. I have to go there, Owen. Right now."
"Okay. I'll take you."
I shook my head. "No. We've got to split up. You need to go get Eva and drive her over to the safe house just like we planned. I'm going after Finn and Bria-alone."