She stared at him. “Have you learned nothing in the last few days?”
“That’s my niece in there.” A stiffened finger stabbed the air, and the unseen barrier buzzed almost angrily as lightning flared away from his touch. “And if you won’t get her back, I will.”
“Ethan, no!”
He thrust at the wall, fists clenched as he tried to force his way through. Electricity swarmed around his wrists, locking him tight, then began crawling up his arms. He swore vehemently, tugging to get free as the slithers of lightning reached farther up his arms and began wrapping him in a web of energy.
“See what happens when you don’t listen to me?” She swung off her pack and pulled out the slender chain of pure silver—the only metal immune to the effects of magic. It could also be deadly to shifters, but she’d been handling the stuff for so long now she’d developed a fairly strong immunity to it. Ethan, however, would not have the same advantage, so she’d have to be careful not to burn him.
“Now is not the time for an I-told-you-so.” His teeth were clenched and sweat beaded his forehead. “Get me free of this damn thing. It feels like it’s sucking me dry.”
What she should do was leave him there a few minutes, so he’d learn to pay magic a little more respect. “Since it was made by a creature who steals souls to survive, I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s exactly what it’s doing.”
She looped the chain around his arms—making sure it touched his sweater rather than his skin—and the lightning instantly shriveled away from it. Cut off from the main source, the web of energy wrapping around his body fizzled and died, leaving only his clenched fists in contact.
“Now pull free.”
With a grunt of effort, he did. “Thanks,” he muttered.
She nodded and unwrapped the chain from his arms. If she’d had enough silver chain with her, she could have created a doorway to crawl through, but neither she nor Gwen had expected the soul-sucker capable of something like this. Though why, she had no idea. An ancient spirit would have had more than enough time to learn a magic trick or two.
“It won’t take much more than an hour to go back to the cabin, get supplies, and come back.”
His look suggested an hour was fifty-nine minutes too long. “Then go. I’ll wait here.”
“For what? You can’t get past the barrier.”
“But I can watch. I can see if she’s moved or anything.”
And what if the soul-sucker came to taste rather than move? What could he do, other than go insane watching? “The zombies or the mara could come down this tunnel at any time.”
His gaze went back to the cavern. “The tunnel will force the zombies to come down one at a time. That I can handle.”
“And the soul-sucker?”
“Leave the pack.”
She sighed in frustration. “I will, but I insist you wear the chain under your collar.” She didn’t wait for argument; she simply lifted his shirt collar and looped the chain around his neck. Once she’d folded the collar back down, the chain couldn’t be seen.
He frowned. “Why?”
“You saw how the energy reacted, didn’t you?” When he nodded, she continued. “That’s because pure silver is immune to magic, and as such, repels it. So wear it and make yourself a little less of a target. Just don’t touch it yourself, because it will burn you.”
“It didn’t burn you.”
“That’s because I have some immunity to it.”
His frown deepened. “Does that mean I can’t shift shape?”
“Magic is magic, whether it’s a wall or the ability to shift into another form.”
“I think I’d rather not wear the chain.” When she opened her mouth to protest, he threw up his hands and added, “Go. And be careful going through those zombies.”
“I will.” She hesitated, wanting to kiss him but not daring to take the step that separated them. Not sure how he’d react to the everyday act of lovers the world over.
He made no move, his attention on the cavern more than on her. She sighed, dropped the pack at his feet, and walked away.
The darkness closed in around her again. She dragged her fingers along the walls to keep her bearings and tried not to think about the tons of rock and dirt hanging overhead. She was trembling by the time the end of the tunnel came into sight, and she shifted shape with relief, flying through the trapdoor and out the window. Out into the wide-open skies. Lord, the freedom of it felt so good!