“That’s good news.” As fast as news traveled among the wargs, having Dell with me was as good as wearing a headset and listening in to comm chatter. Or it would be if she heard the pack bond as well in human form as she did as a wolf. “Is everyone in place?”

“The lake is surrounded,” she assured me. “It can’t get on land without one of us seeing or hearing it, even if it casts again and we lose the scent.”

A pack of wargs could handle the kelpie if Harlow spooked it. I was more worried about what was happening under the water. The question of what is Charybdis hadn’t been answered to my satisfaction yet either. Were we dealing with one fae? Or two who shared a magical signature?

If a practitioner put in an appearance, we weren’t without resources. We had two witches on our side, but Charybdis was fae or at least from Faerie. His magic would be fae magic. The Garzas cast earth magic. Even with a home-field advantage, the Garzas might not stack up against the mystery fae.

“We could ask the Garzas to cast again,” Dell was saying, “but by the time they finished, this op will be over.”

A bloodcurdling scream glazed my spine with fear. The ethereal white head of a delicately boned horse parted the surface of the water. Steam bellowed from its nostrils. Its mane rippled in the still night air as though the strands were as dry as bone. Hooves stamped the water in front of it, and a massive tail whipped the water in its wake.

“Fish sticks,” Dell cursed. “I need to shift. I have to warn the others.”

An enormous silvery gray wolf with white markings on its forelegs kicked up dirt when it landed beside me. Its teeth were bared, and drool hung from its muzzle. I stumbled into Dell before my brain caught up to my feet. “Graeson?” The wolf’s hazel eyes flicked to me, and a sarcastic wag moved his tail before he lowered his shoulders and snarled at the stampeding kelpie. “You can’t take on a kelpie alone.”

The wolf, who must have been hiding in the trees all along, ignored me.

Dell cocked her head, already listening to things beyond my perception while her bones cracked and the change took her. “The others…will be here…soon.”

A vicious shriek pierced my ears. The kelpie was gaining speed, and I was a sitting duck without borrowed magic to wield. We had expected the kelpie to flee. We figured it would exit the far end of the lake, the farthest point from civilization. It must have followed Harlow’s scent trail back to the pier. It wanted this confrontation. It came looking for a fight.

“I can’t stand back and watch you two fight this thing.” I stuck out my hand. “Please, Dell. Let me help you.”