Chapter 23 · The First Lock

"Don't touch his heart!"

I slammed my palm over Cade's chest just as black light punched through his coat.

The blast hurled me backward. Cade dropped to one knee, one hand scraping across the cracked stone while the other clamped over his heart-lock.

Rowan stood between us and the dead soldiers. His face had gone gray. Black veins crawled up his throat.

"Pull the core out," he rasped. "Now. Before the next bell."

"You said pulling it kills him."

"Leaving it kills the city."

Cade lifted his head. Blood marked the corner of his mouth, but his eyes stayed locked on mine.

"Ivy." His voice was rough. "Don't listen to him."

"That's two dying men giving me orders." I shoved myself upright. "Try something new. Tell me the truth."

The chamber shook. Dust rained from the arched ceiling. Somewhere above us, the black bells groaned, their sound trapped behind layers of stone.

The dead soldiers raised their blades.

Mira fired first.

Her bolt punched through one soldier's shoulder and spun him sideways. He didn't fall. He simply turned toward her and dragged his sword free.

"They're not staying down!" she shouted.

"They don't have to stay down.