“This isn’t the same, and you know it. These vampires are controlled and protected by magic. And I’m not amused by your ill-advised attempt at humor, Sera,” he added with a scowl.

Before she could answer that scowl with snark, the vampires finally charged. They ran toward Blackbrooke, but Kai pushed out his hands, blasting them with a gust of wind that sent them back through the fire barrier. So the spell protected against fire but not wind. Interesting. Sera supposed it made sense. The amount of magic required to protect a few dozen vampires against fire was enormous; the amount needed to protect them against all the elements was probably impossible.

One of the vampires had dodged the windy shockwave. As he tried to jump over Kai, Sera caught hold of his ankle and yanked. The vampire smacked against the floor. Still holding onto him, Sera extended her magic, tugging at the protective film coating his body. The spell ripped with a resounding snap. She pulled him up and kicked him into the fire. This time, he did burn. The magic controlling the vampire popped, and screams poured out of his mouth.

Sera wrinkled her nose, trying not to inhale the smell. “Kai, throw another one at me.”

Kai shoved one of the vampires he was fighting in her direction. She shattered the protection spell and hurled him into the fire too.

“Taking them out one at a time sure is tedious,” she told Kai after the sixth time.

His hands were full fighting off four vampires, but he managed an amused snort.

“Are you having fun?” she asked.

“I always have fun fighting with you, Sera.” He froze a vampire into an icy pillar, then swung around to strike another in the arm. Bone cracked and snapped. The vampire’s arm hung limply at his side.

“You snapped that vampire’s arm like a twig,” she gasped, incredulous. Vampires were too strong to break like that. At least, she’d always thought they were.

“There’s a trick to it,” he said, rolling his shoulders back. He pushed his hands out, frying another vampire on a bolt of lightning. “I can show it to you sometime.”

“Somehow, I don’t think it would work as well if I tried it,” she said.

He was wearing one of his trademark black t-shirts, the fabric so taut that it showed off every muscle in his chest. His arms, exposed by his short shirt sleeves, weren’t bad to look at either. The muscles were defined but flexible. Maybe he did werewolf-curls with his biceps. She quickly averted her eyes, before this little fantasy went any further. Drooling wasn’t particularly useful in a fight. Neither was being distracted.

“Sera?” he said. Something in his tone told her this wasn’t the first time he’d tried to get her attention. So much for not getting distracted.

“Hmm?” she asked.

“You said you can see the magic controlling them. Do you think you could break the spell?”

“I’d need to touch them to do it.” She grabbed a vampire, shattered his protection, then fed him to the flames. “Which means going through them one by one, just like I’ve been doing with the fire protection spell on them.”

“It has to be one spell that connects them all,” said Kai.

She concentrated on the vampires—and on the magic controlling them. “Yes, it is,” she said, looking out at the field of glistening crimson strands that connected the vampires together. “Even if I can break it, I’m not sure that I should. We’ll be surrounded by a bunch of blood-crazy vampires in a rage.”

“They won’t be working as a team,” Kai said, evading two vampires’ coordinated punches. “That’s easier.”

Three more vampires rushed forward, tackling him to the ground. Five more followed. He was being overrun. She couldn’t even see him anymore.

Panic pulsing through her, Sera grabbed the nearest vampire. Magic shot out of her. It smashed against him, blasting apart the protection spell. Her magic hit him so hard that it broke the force controlling him too. It pulsed through the web of gold and crimson strings connecting the vampires, melting the magic. The web snapped, and the magic unraveled. The vampires stopped. For a few seconds they didn’t move…then several dozen eyes turned toward her, blazing red. Beads of saliva dripped from their fangs.

Drenched in bloodlust, they rushed her. They’d be on her in seconds. Sera didn’t have time to worry about consequences. She had no choice. She had to risk bigger magic. She reached for her magic, drawing on the power of fire.

Nothing happened.

The vampires were getting closer. At the last moment, they turned, running for Kai instead. They ran over him like a swarm of beetles. Sera screamed out, fear and rage igniting her magic. Every single vampire caught on fire at once—then they exploded.

“What was that?” Blackbrooke gasped. He stumbled to his feet, gaping at Sera.

She pushed past him, throwing vampire parts aside on her way to Kai. He was on the ground—unconscious, bloody, and torn. And he wasn’t breathing.

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

Healing Magic

SERA’S HEART WAS crashing inside her chest. She slapped Kai’s face, trying to wake him. He couldn’t be gone. He just couldn’t. Tanks had shot at him, and he’d said it only tickled. First tier mages had thrown their worst at him, and he’d merely sneezed.

She pounded her fists against his chest. He didn’t move. Didn’t breath. Magic boiled inside of her, melding with despair.

“You’re not getting out of our deal so easily,” she told him, pounding his chest again. “I killed dozens of monsters for you. You’re going to help get me through the Magic Games.” She pounded him a third time, tears streaming down her cheeks, lightning exploding out of her hands.