“Yes, you must,” a familiar French lilt repeated, and my heart stopped. My head flew up. There, in the midst of pandemonium outside the circle, her red mane cascading over her shoulders stood Sofie. For just a second, I smiled. I actually smiled. For just that second, our eyes locked and I believed everything would be okay.
She broke her focus to measure the situation, her eyes narrowing as she took in the freshly killed bodies; to Viggo and Bishop, in the midst of the kill, who hadn’t noticed her yet; to the witches within the circle. They skimmed over Fiona’s resting spot. I could swear I caught a ghost of a smile but … No. Sofie would never find amusement in Fiona’s death …
“Sofie,” Imogen purred, “just like that. It’s as if I called and you answered. We’re one big happy family now, aren’t we?”
Sofie’s lips curled back into a hideous sneer. “I’m sorry. The Fates and I had some things to discuss.”
Imogen struggled to keep her face composed. I could tell Sofie’s words and confident air ruffled the leader.
Viggo took notice of Sofie and stopped tearing apart the Sentinel to run to her side. Bishop, in his own little world of oblivion, continued without abandon.
“Do something!” Mortimer screamed, still on his knees. “Break down this barrier and kill them!”
“I can’t.” Two words I hadn’t expected from Sofie. My stomach tightened. Sofie always could. Or at least she could try. No … I hadn’t expected this.
“Even Sofie’s not strong enough to break a spell cast by twenty-four powerful sorceresses,” Imogen said as she approached me. Her hand grasped my shoulder, digging into my bone as it yanked me up. I scrambled to follow while trying to protect Veronique’s head from smashing against the stones.
“But there’s so much I can do,” Imogen said. “First, you will contain that madman over there.” Imogen nodded her head toward Bishop. “And then we will immobilize you with this lovely weed you made available to us.” Imogen dragged me along as she prattled off demands. “Once that’s done—”
Sofie’s snicker stopped Imogen dead in her tracks, bristling. “Or should I just kill them all here in front of you instead? Would that be more satisfactory?” Imogen offered.
“You’re so lucky I can’t get inside that circle, Imogen. All I’d have to do is get to you. Then this spell would break and the five of us would end you.” Sofie’s plump lips curled in a way I so rarely saw. A predator’s smile. “We’d take such pleasure in it.”
Imogen jerked my body forward so I was standing in front of her like a shield, her grip of my arms tightening painfully. “Like I said … you can’t get inside this circle, so there’s no point running through your sick fantasies.”
“You’re right. I can’t.” Mint eyes rested on me for a moment before moving back to my captor.
She couldn’t … but I was already inside the circle. Sofie was sending me a message. She was telling me what I needed to do. I needed to take Imogen out to save us all. Me—the terrified, weak human.
Swallowing hard, I glanced around. How? I was a human surrounded by a ring of powerful witches, one of whom had a knife on Caden, ready to dig out his heart. It needed to be quick and effective. My eyes roamed the ground for weapons. Cobblestone to the temple? Did she need to be dead or just injured? God. I broke out in a cold sweat. This could end in disaster. Everything I did seemed to turn into a disaster. I looked back at Sofie, pleading silently for her to give me something to work with. I got nothing in return except flaring nostrils. A sign of impatience. I was failing her. I needed to do something now.
Suddenly, Sofie stretched her arms out to her sides, palms up. She tipped her head back and yelled, “We made a deal! Any time now, Terra!” Terra?
“What’s she talking about?” Imogen muttered, her fingers raking my arms, her tension increasing. I tried edging away but she yanked me back with her death grip.
And that was when I felt something cold and hard against my calf.
My dagger.
That would work. If I could just reach it …
“You can’t win,” I said, my voice hoarse, a desperate plan unfolding in my head.
“Shut up!” Imogen lashed out, annoyed.
Hope sparked inside me. Annoyance was what I needed. I needed to goad her further. “They’ll get in here. They’ll beat you. Sofie will outsmart you. She’ll always be smarter than you.”
“Shut up, you little bitch!’ She threw me to the ground. I landed on my forearms and knees, the stones cutting into my flesh. I barely felt it, though, my heart pumping fiercely. I could see Caden’s face at this level. Our eyes connected. I held his gaze as I slowly reached down to my boot. Could he tell what I was doing? Without moving my head, I scanned the group. Could they? So many eyes. Too many eyes. I needed a distraction. Something other than the ring of vampires around us.