Her dragon grinned inside her mind. You didn’t bring any corrosive solutions along?

No, Sera replied. It took her a few moments to remember the conversation her dragon was referring to. So, I take it you agree with Kai’s strategy for breaking iron bars?

Nah, I’m more subtle than that. But Riley is too subtle. I have a better idea. The top edges of the bars began to smoke. By the way, you should have had me handle the pirates. Remember, the iron doesn’t affect me since I don’t have a body.

We should do something about that. I’m pretty sure dragons are supposed to have a body.

Or really? Where did you hear that?

Sera shrugged. I think I read it in a comic book once.

I don’t know. I think maybe you just need to shift into a dragon. She grinned. Your boyfriend would love that.

You should be worrying more about those bars than about my love life.

I can do both. See? Already half done.

The bars groaned and split from the inside rim of the window. Steam rose from the bottom edges of the bars. The air smelled of burning metal. Hopefully, the stench hadn’t reached the pirate in the other room. Or he was too distracted to notice. Sera leaned back, stealing a peek at her friend’s progress. The new pirate had wandered close to the bars, and from the look in his eyes, Naomi already had him wrapped around her little finger.

“No, I’m not sure why he passed out,” she was telling him. “All I did was smile at him.”

“Does that happen often to you, honey?”

“Yes, it does, if you can believe that.”

“Oh, I can believe it.” The pirate gave her a dopey grin. “You have beautiful smile. They probably just got a bit too excited. And they were hitting the rum pretty hard tonight.”

Naomi giggled. “Say, this is a pretty impressive place. Real big,” she cooed. “I sure would like a tour.” She batted her magically-lengthened eyelashes at him.

“I’d love to, darling, but I’m afraid the Captain wouldn’t allow it.”

“Shame.”

His gaze caught on her pouted lips. “But I could ask him.” He shot her a sappy grin. “For you.”

She winked at him. “As long as you’re the one to give the tour.”

“Eh…I…um…”

“What are you boys doing out here anyway? Angel Island is dangerous. Haunted.”

“We’re protected.”

Her eyebrows arched together. “Oh?”

Your bars are ready, Sera’s dragon announced.

Thanks.

Sera pulled on the first of the wobbling bars, jostling it loose. She repeated the motion with all the others. It was a good thing they didn’t make much noise. And that the guard was too busy drooling at Naomi to notice anyway.

Do you think you can melt the glass too?

You don’t ask for much, do you? her dragon groused, but she set to work anyway. Heat bathed the window pane.

“We’re collecting the hybrids for a fellow named Darksire,” the guard was telling Naomi. “He’s the one who gave us spells to protect against the spirits here.”

“Darksire? As in Darksire the Destroyer? The Harbinger of the Black Death? The dark fairy who killed roughly half of Europe’s population in the 14th century?”

“I thought that was rats,” said the pirate.

“Nope. It was Darksire.”

“Oh. In any case, yes. He introduced himself as Darksire the Destroyer.”

Naomi paled. “I thought he was dead.”

The pirate shrugged.

“And what does this Darksire want with the children?” Naomi asked him.

“Don’t know. Don’t really care.”

Naomi frowned, the enchantment she’d woven over him splitting a crack. The pirate shook his head, as though throwing off a dream.

“Look, hon. We’re getting a lot of money and magic out of this deal, enough for us to take over all of Angel Island. Very soon we will be the island’s only residents. The Princes of Twilight are expanding.” He looked at her, the corner of his lip quirking up. “We might be looking for new members.”

“I’m not sure I’d fit in.”

So, anyway, your glass is done.

Great. Sera scoured the windowsill for glass bits but found none.

I dissolved the glass particles against that magic barrier. It seemed to appreciate the offering. It glowed a particularly nasty shade of blood-red as it chomped down on them.

Let’s see how it likes what I have to offer it next.

You’re going to blast it, aren’t you?

Of course. What else?

Her dragon snickered. No wonder you and Kai get along so well.

Sera made a loop around the room, gathering the children to the window. When that magic barrier went down, it would do so with a bang. They all had to be ready to run. Once the children had gathered, Sera went to go check on Naomi’s progress.

“How did you know we were coming?” Naomi asked the guard.

“Oh, that.” He motioned for her to come in closer, but when she did, he didn’t even bother to drop his voice. Naomi had muddled his mind up nice and good. “We used that drug guy. The one with the Fairy Lily.”

“Wait, you mean Cloud?”

The pirate nodded. “That’s the one. Apparently, he’s having a bit of a supply issue. The Fairy Lily only grows on Fairy Island, and that hippy who rules there refuses to give him enough plants to meet the needs of the drug-addicted mages of San Francisco’s magic dynasties. So we promised him Fairy Island if he helped us locate hybrids in the city. Fairy Island is more complicated to take. But so full of hybrid blood. So far, we haven’t been able to get there. Magic is blocking us. Powerful spells. For months, Cloud has been sabotaging the magical defenses protecting the island, all under the pretense of strengthening them.”