Their journey through the temple was so fast, it spared Rory the sight of any bodies Trevor might have left lying around. She knocked at The Door of Trials to warn Rosemary and the shifters before she barged through.

Rosemary gasped at her, and Rory realized her injuries might be worse than she thought. She tried to smile, but the swelling prevented much movement.

“This is Trevor. Trevor, this is Rosemary. Almost everybody else is from Inboco. Well, other than that goldfish right there. You remember Billie? Byron’s friend?”

“I know who Billie is. Every vampire I’ve met knows Billie.”

The goldfish fanned its tail and jumped, creating little rings on the water’s surface.

“Still, you need to back way up. What’s an Inboco?” Trevor scowled at her, confused. “And why the fuck is Billie a fish?”

“Never mind about Inboco. Your kind aren’t welcome. You understand, right?” Rosemary said in her sweetest voice. Her eyes narrowed. “Especially after the events of Haven.”

“We don’t talk about Haven, got it?” Trevor wiped at the blood on his chest. “If that fish is Billie, where’s the rest of your dwarves, Snow White? You know, Pussy, Druggy, Skanky, Weirdo, and Doc?” He roared at his own joke but grew silent after he realized his was the only laughter and shrugged. “Ah well. I’ve been locked up so long I’ve had plenty of time to imagine this conversation.”

The weight of Grace’s news about her friends caught up with Rory. Her legs shook and collapsed. Grief took hold of her and her body numbed. So she had that going for her. At least her face wasn’t throbbing anymore.

Rosemary grabbed her arm before Rory fell. “What happened? What do you know?”

“Bitch was lying to you. I could smell it from a mile away,” Trevor said and crossed his arms. “Pretty sure, at least.”

“She—Grace told me they’re all dead.”

“How?” Rosemary glanced towards the front of Alma.

“She collapsed the tunnels. Trapped them inside or smashed them.” Rory cried, and the act made the pain from her injuries flare back, brighter than they had before.

Rosemary gestured to the shifters. “Meet me at the gates.” She drew another door on the side of a building and opened it, revealing the broken earth, the front doors with a tree now planted in front and a scattering of Blueskin corpses. She pulled Rory through and Trevor pushed his way behind them before it slammed shut.

Rosemary ran to where Grace collapsed the tunnels and, after finding no one near, moved the large blocks of stone that once supported the ceiling using a powerful earth magic spell. A cry left her lips after she uncovered a mangled man wearing nothing but tattered blue jeans. It was hard to tell where the tattoos ended and the bruising began, but it was Asher. She jumped into the hole and felt for a pulse.

Rory moved to go in after her, but hesitated. “Where’s Doc? Is he down there?”

Rosemary ignored her question. “Don’t jump down, I need you up there to guide my son safely to ground. Are you ready?”

“Yeah. Is he alive?”

“Barely but he is thanks to his blood… magic. Rather, his tattoos are blood magic to help protect him.”

Rory caught the added pause in her first sentence, but before she could think of it further, Asher’s gray form traveled her way on a cushion of air similar to the one they’d used to transport the Starfall crate. Together, they guided him to solid ground without further injury.

Rosemary leaped from the hole in a quick, graceful movement. She looked exhausted from overuse of her magic that day. And it was hardly a wonder. The lake alone should have wiped her out. “He’ll be all right for now, but I must take him back to the farmhouse as soon as we’re able. I hope you won’t mind a live-in patient.”

“I’ll do what I can but I can’t do-” She started, but a familiar voice interrupted her.

“After all the help you’ve given us, it would be my pleasure,” Doc said as he limped towards them. He bore Sven on one side with Nadine holding the other. Sven’s face was an angry red and the left eye swollen shut.

Overcome with emotion, Rory ran to the large witch and buried her head in his chest. A hiss of pain escaped her on impact.

Doc held her with his free arm and bent to kiss her forehead. His radiant expression faded as his eyes scanned her injuries. His jaw set and he glared toward Alma.

“We get the bitch at least?” Sven asked. Closer up, the burns he’d received looked serious enough that no matter how much Doc worked at it, there would be scars.

“Holy shit. Your face,” Rory said. “What did you do?”

“I could say the same about you, love,” Sven said and winced. “Ran headlong into my own magic barrier when Dini went down.” He took a sharp breath and Nadine snuggled him closer.

“What happened to you, Rory?” Doc asked through gritted teeth. His voice a soft gravel that threatened to break.

“Turns out the Daughters have a vow of nonviolence that Grace doesn’t take too seriously.” She drew away from him to survey the aftermath.

Not too far from where they stood, naked corpses of shifters from Inboco were being readied for the final transport home.

Closer to the outer wall, Gus and his companions began building pyres to dispose of the ones they lost.

Disgusted with Grace’s hate and the destruction it brought; she closed her eyes. “I found Trevor, but Grace got away. I shouldn’t have left. I should have found her and killed her myself.”

“Rory,” Doc said and gripped her shoulder. “Don’t put that on yourself. The entire plan was to prove that we don’t take the low road like she does. If we want unity, we need to act like it from day one.”

“Look where that got us. How many died today, so we didn’t kill any of them? Doesn’t that seem backwards to you?” She faced him. Her blue eyes, full of indignation, met his own sympathetic hazel.

“If we kill Grace without a fair trial, another will take her place. We need to show compassion to give the masses hope.” Doc held a palm against her cheek and the pain melted away. His eyes flickered a milky white.

She leaned into his touch and kissed his palm. “Take care of everyone and don’t follow me. If you do, I’ll just make you leave.” She spun on her heels and walked towards the smoking hole in the ground.

I’ll get in the first set of gates and force someone to open the second. Find Grace and take care of this.

Trevor moved to her side. “I’m going with you.”

“Nope.” She shook her head and knelt to jump down. The wall was only about five feet away, so she wouldn’t have far to go in the tunnels before finding an exit in the refugee area.

He grabbed her hair and held her in place, forcing her neck to bend to look up at him. “Whether you like it or not.”

“I could make you walk away,” Rory said, putting a hand up to Doc before he rushed to her side and got himself killed. She jerked herself out of Trevor’s grasp and glared at him.

“I could rip your tongue out, but I haven’t done that… yet. There’s still time.”

She narrowed her eyes.

Trevor guffawed and pulled up on the band of his underpants. “What the fuck is your deal? Is Byron’s angst catching?”

“He’s not around anymore, and I don’t know where the fuck he ran off to. But, thanks for reminding me.”

His chest deflated. “I’ve kind of been in a cage for the last little while.”

“Tough shit. And the world kept moving while you were away. If you haven’t noticed.”

“What is your fucking deal?” Trevor asked, snapping his fingers in front of her face with each syllable.

She glowered at him. “We lost how many lives today? And for what? A pacifist siege on a city? Who the fuck even does that?”

Trevor crossed his arms and sneered. “All right, Princess, I’m gonna tell you something once. So fucking hear me out. After that, if you still want to run in and slaughter a bitch, I’ll be right next to you.”

“I’m listening.”

He paced in front of her, cracking his neck and sneering at anyone that might approach. “When I met you a year ago, my only plan was to have a drink and take you back to Vic.”

“Ick.”

He rolled his eyes, “But I’m glad I didn’t.”

“Thanks? I think. Your point?”

“I like you and I’m willing to help, but not because of any leftover slave magic. That wore off the first time Grace starved me. And wipe that goddamned expression off your face before I slap it off. I’m not declaring my undying love for you. I just don’t want to kill you as much as I do the rest of the humans around this place. And if you tell a single fucking person I said that, I will curb stomp you into the next apocalypse.”

“Holy shit, you are so fucked up,” Rory said and scrambled to her feet.

“Yeah? Glad I’m not the only one.” He spat at the ground. “You’ve changed, Princess, but not in a good way. Running around, talking all tough like you’re gonna go kill some folks. That ain’t you. You could have put me down the day we met. Instead, you sent me as a warning to the other vampires to make certain no one else got hurt. I wouldn’t have blamed you if you’d have killed me. Hell, I expected it. That’s how it is when a person gets the better of another.”

“What are you getting at?”

Trevor scratched his head and frowned. “Don’t go in there to murder her or anyone else. Sure, I probably butchered three or four, but I was settling a score. And let’s face it, it’s what I do. Killing isn’t what you do. So let’s not start now, huh?”

“I can’t promise anything, but I’ll keep it in mind.” His words, as insane as they were, made sense and rattled her at the same time. It was one thing to hear kind words from Doc. It was another entirely from a vampire who both threatened physical harm and seemed to care.

In his own foul way.

Am I becoming like them? So bloodthirsty even Trevor can’t stand what he sees? She shivered.

“Good.” He looked her in the eyes and sobered. “Last point, when I drank from you, I felt something really unpleasant lurking inside there. If you kill someone, I will put you down. Are we clear? That includes today.”

Terrified, she only nodded.

“Excellent. I’m glad we had this heart to heart. Now, are we still going to find Grace?”

“I don’t know-”

An explosion on the outer walls drowned her reply out. The center of the blast, not even ten feet from where they stood. The force hit her and knocked her down. It skewed her vision, leaving her ears ringing. Smoke billowed around a newly formed hole and bits of concrete trickled down. The dust settled and Grace hovered over her. Her mouth moved but there was no sound, only a loud constant whine. Rory fought to make words, but they came out slurred.

Shit.