“Elisa!”

Someone called my name, the sound of it staticky as magic echoed around in my head. I felt the trickle on my face, swiped beneath my nose, found blood. Maybe she’d actually rattled my brain.

I heard someone move forward, saw the offered hand. I ignored it, looked up and into Claudia’s eyes, and climbed shakily to my feet.

Then I glanced back at Lulu. She looked shocked, afraid, defiant.

Lulu didn’t just have magic. She had powerful magic. And she’d used it on me.

I knew it was accidental—or accidental that it had hit me instead of Claudia—but I was still thoroughly pissed about it. Messing with fairies was no joke; we didn’t need more supernatural enemies right now. So I gave Lulu a look that promised A Very Long Talk Later, then turned back to Claudia.

“You move quickly, Bloodletter.”

“Practice,” I managed, and that single word took effort. Sparks of pain were still echoing through bone.

“I must thank you for allowing me to avoid that pain.” She cast her gaze back to Lulu. “And the battle that would have followed it.”

Lulu began to speak, but I pointed at her. “No. You are done.”

Claudia’s smile was wide. I didn’t like that, and I especially didn’t like the groveling and negotiating that I knew were going to follow Lulu’s show-and-tell. But that’s where I was tonight.

“Connor, take them outside, please.”

I could feel him pause, unsure if he should leave me alone. He respected my skills, but he was also protective. It was the alpha instinct.

So I glanced back, met his gaze, and let him see that I was confident. I nodded. “I’ll handle it,” I said quietly, and that was enough for him.

“Come on, Lulu,” Alexei said, taking Lulu’s arm. “Let’s get some air.”

It was to her credit that she didn’t argue or pull her arm away. Of course, that still wasn’t enough to clear away the debt of fireballing her best friend.

Connor gave the fairies one last long look before following Lulu and Alexei out, leaving me alone with them.

Time to break out those Cadogan House diplomatic skills. “I’m sorry she interrupted your evening,” I repeated.

That had Claudia blinking back surprise, and I liked that. Surprise was an advantage.

“She is powerful, your friend,” Claudia said.

Which was mostly news to me. “She is. You said you agree this was portal magic. Do you have any idea who could have done it?”

Claudia’s brows lifted. “You believe that we did not.”

“Not your style,” I said. “Not anymore.”

She inclined her head. “We cannot forge a bridge to all the worlds that may exist. Our connection is only to the green land, which you have seen.”

“Could a demon have done it alone?”

She nearly answered, then paused, seemed to consider. And in doing, began drumming her fingers on the arm of her chair. “I do not know the skills of all demons, and demons are legion. Before, I would have said it was impossible. But the demon’s was the only magic I felt.”