Natasha’s work, but not something they were prepared for.

Maeve yanks me toward the trees while the illusory dragon chases nearby guards, but I wrench my hand free. Her face falls. “You said you wouldn’t try to escape.”

“I’m not escaping. I’m being rescued,” I say.

“But you must come with me. I’m your mother.” She lunges for me.

I run as fast as I can. I don’t glance back until I’m safely sandwiched between Rachel and Sebastian.

And when I do look back, I wish I hadn’t. Maeve’s face has transformed into a hard line.

“You tried,” Rachel says. “It’s all you could do.”

Thanks for coming back for me, Sebastian thinks.

Likewise. I manage a smile that quickly fades as the struggle unfolds.

Maeve still has control of one of the guards, and he prevents the others from capturing her until his fellow soldiers apprehend him. Rocks and branches fly through the air. Melanthe’s talent hard at work. Rachel shoves us behind a tree to keep us safe.

Finally, the guards manage to subdue Maeve, catching her up in a net. She struggles and grunts.

“Simone! Tell them I’m your mother. They must let me go. Our family depends upon it!”

Before I can stop him, Sebastian gets to his feet and approaches Maeve with an outstretched arm. She tilts her head at him, as puzzled as the rest of us. But a quick look with my talent reveals all.

“No! Sebastian, don’t!” I lurch forward and pull Sebastian away from Maeve. He gives me a confused look.

“Why not? If I remove all memory of meeting us, she’ll leave us alone. She’ll have no reason to trouble us ever again.”

Rachel shrugs helplessly in our direction. “I didn’t have time to fill him in on everything,” she says.

“First of all, she’s looking for shells. Even if you take the memory of meeting us, she’ll still keep after us because of what we are. That’s how she found us to begin with.” I take a deep breath. “Secondly, what Maeve said is true. She is my mother, Sebastian. She’s doing this because she wants our family back. She isn’t a bad person, and the fact that she cares about me is the only crack in her resolve to carry out her plan. If you take those memories, we’ll have no way to reach her.”

Sebastian hesitates. Before he can make up his mind, a terrible sounds rips through the clearing. It’s as if the forest has launched itself in defense of Maeve. Thick branches—much larger than the ones Melanthe has thrown thus far—strike the guards. When the sound stops, the four guards who were holding the net are on the ground, dazed or unconscious. Before the rest can even react, a knife dropped in the struggle shoots up into the air, then whistles toward the net holding Maeve captive. The knife makes short work of the ropes, and Maeve slips out unharmed. She gives a hard look at me and Sebastian, then retreats into the dark forest, leaving Melanthe to keep the guards at bay until she’s a safe distance away.