“That’s why I was calling. He’s awake, and we’re at the Guard house. He knows the location of the nest.”

My head shot up, and I met Malachi’s steady gaze and nodded. This was it. If we could make it there and attack preemptively, our friends might be safe. “Can you come get us at the Phase Three Club?” I asked quietly, looking apologetically at Jim. He didn’t notice, though. He had his tongue halfway down Tegan’s throat. So much for taking it slow.

I hung up. Malachi pulled his phone from his pocket and checked the time; then he reached over to pry Jim off Tegan. Duty called.

The SUV braked suddenly, and then lurched over a landscaped median, tossing Laney right off the seat. Alexis screamed, and Tegan and Jim jerked apart. Greg’s fingers curled over the edge of the seat, his face and knuckles white. Levi banged on the thick plastic barrier separating us from the driver, but there was no response from the front.

The SUV veered, and one wheel bumped up on the sidewalk, sending off sparks as it took out a parking meter. Malachi lunged forward and drove his fist against the barrier. It cracked but didn’t give. The SUV accelerated sharply to the shrill of horns and the sounds of screeching tires as a few cars swerved out of the way. It jumped the curb completely and skidded onto a dark, narrow side street.

Malachi punched at the barrier again, leaving a smear of blood across the thick plastic, but the thing didn’t give. As the SUV swerved into the parking lot behind some old brick building, I looked down at my hands, at the thin pockets of steel shot sewn into my silvery gloves. Then I drew back my fist—and drove it straight through the barrier, shattering it completely.

A wall of scent hit us, turning my stomach. Our driver was Mazikin. But it was too late for us to do a thing about it. He was driving straight for the side of the building. The only thing we had time to do was throw ourselves down as the thunderous impact raised the back end of the stretch SUV high into the air before sending it crashing to earth again. The front end crumpled, and bricks tumbled through the destroyed windshield. I was thrown against the seat and then fell to the floor on top of several of my classmates as glass and metal crunched and popped, as everyone around me screamed. And despite all that noise, I still managed to hear the animal howls coming from outside the vehicle.