Wicked(110)

He scowled at my question but nodded. That didn't make sense to me. If the brownies had destroyed that door, why would it be like this one? Or did destroying the door even affect the light show going on right now? I'd have to ask Tink later.

"We can't let an ancient near the door." Miles was talking, but my gaze was fastened on the door. The light was deepening into a sapphire blue. "If one happens to get close, do not cut it. Remember, their blood opens the gates. Push them back."

There were many nods, and as the clock ticked away, the idle chatter ceased, and with the exception of the rattling door, the room became so quiet you could hear a fly sneeze. It was the same downstairs until David announced that it was five till the equinox.

Every muscle in my body tensed as I tried to prepare myself for anything. I reached down, unhooking the iron stake from my boot and clenching it tight. I wasn't going to break out the thorn stake until I needed it. Not even a tiny part of me believed that they wouldn't come in full force, but when we were a minute away, I looked at Ren.

He was looking at me, and I buried my concern and fear, buried it so deep that I felt nothing inside me. Doing so was the only way I could do my job tonight and not end up in a corner rocking.

Ren winked at me.

My lips twitched into a small smile.

"It's time," David announced.

I held my breath as I faced the closed bedroom door. Seconds tiptoed into minutes, and when nothing happened, those in the room began to shift. The door was still rattling like an army wanted out, and I exchanged a quick glance with Ren, the tension in my back starting to ease.

A shout rose from downstairs, sudden and violent, followed by more. My hand tightened on the stake.

"They're here," whispered Val.

Rachel started for the door, but David called out, "Stay."

She sent him a wide-eyed stare as the shouts turned into screams. "But they're . . ."

I winced. She didn't finish the sentence, but there was no need. My breathing hitched as the sounds from downstairs turned wet and sickening. How could we stand here like this? Ren shifted a step forward.

"Hold," Miles urged from behind us.

His shoulders bunched, and I knew he was having just as much trouble as I was standing here, but then the noises from downstairs stopped. There was nothing—it was tomb quiet below.

Thump!

A loud bang against the hallway door caused me to jump despite all my training. Then another thump and another, shaking the door. A crack formed in the center.

"Uh, guys . . ." I stiffened.

David stepped forward. "This is about—"

The door splintered, shooting large chunks of wood through the air as several bodies thudded against the wood floors. My mouth dropped open. Blood was pooled on the floor, chests ripped open, exposing pink and jellylike tissue. They were Order members—all of them.

A guttural, heart-stopping roar deafened us. Shivers of dread dug deep into my muscles as shapes poured into the room like a wave of death no one could escape from.

Fae—a truckload of fae—flew through the now shattered opening.

There were so many—silvery and coolly beautiful, their eyes pale blue and their gazes sharp. There was at least a dozen and a half, maybe more—probably more. But behind them, I saw him—the ancient who'd shot me—and another I did not recognize.

For a moment I froze as Ren and the other Order members rushed forward, disappearing into the mob. Iron stakes glinted and stabbed, some clattering to the floor. Screams and shouts mingled with the sound of tearing cloth and snapping bones. Dear God, the fae were breaking necks like they were nothing more than matchsticks.

I caught sight of Ren as he engaged a fae, slamming his booted foot into its chest in a stunning display of brutality and grace. He whirled, moving like a dancer, shoving the stake where his foot had been seconds before.

I'd never seen anything like this.

Instinct finally kicked in. Fighting was in my blood, in my heritage. Hundreds of years' worth of generations rose inside me, stampeding the icy fear that had settled in the pit of my stomach.

I whipped around. The fae stalking Rachel didn't see me coming, and I shoved the stake deep into its back. A flash of light blinded me for a second then I spun back. A female fae dove at me like some kind of pro wrestler, but I danced out of her grasp. Spinning around, I kicked her back, knocking her down onto one knee. I drove the stake down, and the skin and muscles gave way. Shimmery blue blood sprayed, covering my hand as I leaped back.

I was grabbed from behind and tossed to the side, hitting the floor and nearly sliding into the mess they had made of the Order members from downstairs. A fae charged me.

"Ivy!" Ren shouted.

Scrambling across the floor, my hand brushed something wet and soft, and I swallowed down the nausea as I shot to my feet. I feinted to the right, but the fae was fast, swinging at me. I blocked his punch then whipped the stake down. He dipped quickly, springing up beside me.