“Radley,” she breathed, swerving. “It’s leeching power from the car. We need to get it off.”
The wolf cursed and unfastened his harness. “Window!” he ordered.
Cricket hit the button to roll down the glass. “Be careful!”
The dart was embedded in the front fender of the Ferrari, and it would need to be removed for them to continue using their full power. It was a simple spell, meant to slow whatever it hit, and while it was simple enough to remove, they couldn’t stop to do so. Radley would have to climb out while they were swerving on the road going eighty miles an hour, all the dart would allow. The slower they went, the greater their chances of being passed or worse, something coming from the trees. Even at the speed they were going, Cricket could see the shadows shifting in the tree line. The creatures of Orion were watching them.
Dragging himself up on the ledge and sitting there, Radley leaned forward, finding the dart just out of reach of his fingers. “Don’t throw me,” he ordered. When his hand appeared again, there were claws. He dug them into the metal of the car, carving out the lines where there were no weapons and using it to brace himself as he climbed out fully, clinging to the side of the Ferrari. The car would be marked but it was a small price to pay for victory.
Cricket panicked, trying her best not to swerve but it was difficult to do when this portion of the race seemed littered with sinkholes. Every mile a new one opened up, a trap of darkness that would take them out of the race if they fell into it.
Stretching as far as possible, Radley grunted as his fingers grazed the end of the dart and missed when she had to swerve. “Cricket!” he growled.
“I can’t help it!” she spit back. “If you’d hurry up, this wouldn’t be a problem!”
He stretched again and his fingers finally closed around the tip. He yanked it out and tossed the dart out into the trees. Something snarled just as he dragged himself back inside and rolled up the window. Their eyes met.
“I don’t want to know what that was in the trees,” he said as he fastened his harness again. “But it sounded big.”
Cricket nodded. “It did.”
They were silent for a few minutes, both watching the jungle around them warily. Cricket didn’t know what was hiding out there, but she wasn’t going to stop the car and find out.
Shooting forward, they left the Jungle of Orion behind and entered the snowy caps of Mount Chaos.