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I nod, unable to form words.

“We can help him.” She kneels beside us, placing her hands on Talon’s chest. Understanding dawns, and I rest my hands over hers.

Our magic flows together, crimson and gold, channeled through the Shard. I feel his body responding—torn flesh knitting, broken bones realigning, the dragon within him stirring in response to our combined power.

But it’s not enough. The damage is too extensive, his life force fading too quickly. It’s not like with Hargen, who shared my blood, who wasn’t as far gone as this.

“I can’t hold him,” I gasp, feeling him slip away beneath our magic. “He’s dying, Elena. I need help.”

“The penthouse,” Dorian says urgently. “Juno’s there. She can help him.”

“Can he make it that far?” Hargen asks, doubt heavy in his voice.

Caleb and Dorian exchange a look of grim determination.

“We’ll get him there,” Dorian says, moving to Talon’s side.

Caleb steps back, shifting seamlessly into dragon form. His scales shimmer in the dim light, and Dorian follows suit, muscles rippling as he transforms beside us.

“Get on,” Dorian says, his voice a deep rumble.

“What?” Hargen stares in disbelief. “You’ve got to be kidding me!”

“Now is not the time for this, Hargen,” I snap him out of it. “Help me get him up!”

With trembling hands, I help Hargen and Elena heft Talon’s dead weight onto the beast towering over us. Then I clamber up alongside him onto Dorian’s back, feeling the raw power beneath me.

“Now!” Caleb roars as Hargen and Elena take a seat between his giant wings.

They leap into the air together, wings unfurling against the night sky. The wind rushes past us, whipping through my hair as we soar above Seattle’s skyline. Below us, city lights twinkle like stars scattered across dark water.

“Just hold on,” I whisper to Talon as we fly faster than I ever thought possible. “We’re almost there,” I add as we circle in toward a gleaming high-rise apartment block of steel and glass.

His breath rattles in his chest and then comes to an abrupt stop.

No! No, no, no!

“Talon, please!” I beg, almost tempted to try to shake some life into him.

The penthouse balcony looms ahead, and the dragons angle down sharply. With a powerful beat of their wings, we land softly before the glass doors swing open. I clamber down, Hargen at my side, helping me ease Talon’s lifeless body to the ground. He sags between us, unconscious… dead? I can’t bring myself to think it.

A woman stands in the open doorway, pale eyes wide with alarm as she takes in our bloodied appearance.

“Dear God, Dorian!” she chokes out, rushing over to where the dragon has shifted into human form behind me. “You swore you’d never go off without me again, dammit!”

“Explanations later, Juno,” Elena calls. “We need your help.”

The phoenix.

She’s smaller than the visions I’ve had, with delicate features that belie the power I sense radiating from her. She assesses the situation instantly, focusing on Talon’s broken body.

“I… I think he… he’s dead.” I don’t want to say the words out loud, but they come out anyway.

“We’ll see about that,” Juno says firmly. “Death happens to be my specialty. Guest bedroom,” she commands, already moving ahead of us.

They lay Talon on a massive bed, his blood immediately soaking into expensive sheets. Juno doesn’t seem to care, her hands hovering above his chest as she takes in his injuries.

“Everyone out,” she orders, golden light beginning to glow beneath her skin. “Except you.” She nods to me. “He’ll need an anchor. Someone he has a connection with.”

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