I was appalled at how casually she could speak about it after what she had done. Dorian had no such qualms. “Will it be easy,” he asked quietly, “to sleep at night knowing you’ve killed an innocent boy?”

“There was nothing innocent about him,” Maiwenn replied bluntly. “I’ve saved both of our worlds a great deal of trouble. You should be grateful. Now, if you’ll release Kiyo, I’d be much obliged. I’d like to be on our way.”

“Grateful?” I hissed. “Grateful ? I’ll show you gratitude!”

In an instant, I pulled the charges in the air together and created a bolt of lightning to send straight toward Maiwenn. Just before I released it, I heard Jasmine scream behind me. I had no idea what had happened, but I was just able to barely divert the lightning in time so that it struck a tree inches from Maiwenn instead. Thunder cracked deafeningly around us, and the tree exploded in a spectacular show of fire and wood. My ears hurt, and Maiwenn’s were probably bleeding from the noise.

I immediately turned toward Jasmine and saw her writhing on the ground. Her face was contorted in pain. “It’s like ... pins and needles ... like my body’s on fire... .”

“Damn it!” I glared at Maiwenn. Dark clouds rebuilt up above, and the wind swirled restlessly around us. The elements answered my anger. “I should’ve let it hit you! Let her go.”

“No. You were actually wise to spare me,” Maiwenn said. “I’ve already worked the spell. Her body’s right on the edge of tearing itself apart. Only my control right now keeps it in check. Kill me, and the spell will seize hold with nothing to stop it.”

“Damn it,” said Jasmine through clenched teeth. “Why ... am I ... always ... the hostage?” I watched her worriedly, but thus far, the spell mostly seemed about pain. She didn’t seem in danger of dying as Pagiel had just done—yet.

“Now,” continued Maiwenn. “Please don’t make me ask again. Free Kiyo.”

Without Pagiel’s added pressure, Kiyo had simply been trapped in my misty whirlwind. Inconvenient, but not lethal. Angry and frustrated—but out of options—I let him go. He was still in giant fox form, his fur soaked in water. His eyes assessed the situation quickly, and then he trotted over to Maiwenn’s side. She rested a hand on his head. He stayed in fox form, and I knew from past experience that the larger the fox, the longer it would take him to switch back.

“We’re going to leave now,” said Maiwenn. “I can hold on to the spell a fair distance and will nullify it once I feel secure. If I see any sign of you following me before then, I’ll release what’s holding it back. The only good thing that will happen then is that she’ll die quickly.”