“Shh.” Her eyes darted left and right, then her expression relaxed. “The guards are gone, thank fates. Did they get you, too?”
I nodded. “Yeah. But help is coming. I was bait, and it went wrong.”
Coraline’s brows rose. “Bait? That’s quite bold.”
“We couldn’t get into the temple otherwise.”
She nodded, a knowing look in her eyes. “The shield. I know. It’s powerful. Is my coven coming?”
“Yes. If I can get out and pull the lever to drop the shield that protects this place. How many other prisoners are there?”
“At least a dozen.”
“A dozen?” It was so many more than I’d expected. They must have been taking supernaturals from other towns as well, maybe organized through someone other than Anton.
Cordelia appeared at my feet. Coast is clear out there. No one in any of the nearby halls. Lots of prisoners, though. Each locked in their own room.
“Thanks, pal.” I looked back up at the witch on the other side of the hall. “Give me a moment, and I’ll get us out of here.”
She nodded, and I ducked behind the door and fumbled in the wrist cuff for a tiny vial of magical acid-like substance that would melt the metal. When Eve had given me these bracelets prior to the party, she’d explained what each of them did.
We had hoped I wouldn’t need them, but we both knew it was a possibility.
The tiny vial glowed yellow between my fingertips. I uncorked it and poured a tiny amount onto the metal lock. I was stingy with it, wanting to preserve as much as possible to help get Coraline out. There was no way I’d have enough to free everyone, but I’d cross that bridge when I came to it.
The lock sizzled, a tiny cloud of green smoke billowing outward. When the smoke settled, I pulled on the door. It stuck for a moment, then broke open.
Across the hall, the witch grinned at me. “Nice.”
“I’ve got a little more. Step back.”
She disappeared from the window, and Cordelia and I hurried across the hall. I poured the rest of the potion onto the lock and watched it smoke and sizzle. When it was done, I pushed hard on the door.
It popped open, and Coraline rushed out. She was still wearing the crazy feathered outfit that she’d been abducted in, but the plumes were all broken and dirty now. She flung her arms around me. “You rock, Carrow.”
I hugged her back, then pulled away. “We have reinforcements coming—including your coven—but we need to disable the barrier that protects the temple. There’s supposed to be a lever that will drop the protective shield. Do you know where it is?”
“No, but I know some places it’s not. Areas where the weirdos congregate.”
“We’ll want to avoid those.” I crossed the hall and shut my door, so it looked like I was still inside. She did the same to her door. “Let’s go find it.”
“What about us?” A voice whispered.
“We’ll get you out, Beth,” Coraline whispered. “Promise.”
“Beth’s over there?” I hurried to the door and looked through the window.
A woman sat against the wall, looking exhausted and too skinny. Her midnight braids hung down her back, threaded through with beautiful emerald silk that sparkled despite the dim light. She surged upright. “Carrow!”
“Beth. We’ve been looking for you.” I fumbled in my bracelet for another one of the potions that would melt the lock. I only had two more, and I needed to save one in case the lever was behind a locked door. But I could get Beth out at least.
When I looked back up, she’d come to stand at the window. I handed her the potion. “Just use half, and you can use the other half to let someone else out.”
Coraline shook her head. “We don’t want to alert them that something is amiss. There are over a hundred people in this crazy cult, and if they know we’re out, we’re screwed.”
Beth nodded. “She’s right. I’ll hang onto this potion and stay here. If the guards show up, I’ll create a ruckus to keep them from noticing you’re gone.”
“Thank you.”