Page 85 of Elven Shadow

Damn him and those silver eyes rooting her to this spot.

Rebecca was not supposed to be here. She was not supposed to get involved.

If that bang from down the hall was some sort of signal that the time had come for an in-house takeover, she didn’t want to be anywhere close to the bulk of the action. Or everything would fall apart.

She had to get out of here while she still had the chance.

But now, staring at Maxwell, she had the sinking feeling he would go out of his way to make that impossible.

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When the next explosion tore through the compound, it became clearno onewas getting out of this unscathed.

The second blast was even louder and more intense than the first, and it sounded much closer. Its ensuing shockwave trembled through the ground floor of the compound, shaking the walls and rattling windows, making the lights flicker violently overhead.

A shower of dust seeped from the end of the same hallway Maxwell had just been about to enter, followed seconds later by terse shouting in multiple voices and another smaller boom carrying as much damage as the first.

Random murmurs of conjecture and indecision floated around the common room, and still, no one moved. The free-hanging lightbulbs dangling from the ceiling swung madly under the force of multiple blasts, making the light surge all over the common room and sending shadows flickering violently in every direction.

Rebecca couldn’t have said what was happening right now, because no, she’d had nothing to do with it. But even amidst the blasts, Maxwell hadn’t stopped staring at her.

Another explosion rocked the compound, louder and closer.

Rebecca leapt to her feet, ready to meet Maxwell head-on if she had to. Because now it looked a hell of a lot like he was about to start pointing fingers and declaring who he thought responsible for this.

Something told her she was about to be the first person he singled out. She wouldn’t let him place the blame on her like this. She wouldn’t let him get to her.

A high-pitched, keening wail cut her off when the siren finally filled the common room with its deafening, rhythmic volume and bright red-orange light flashing in the open archway of each intersecting hallway.

Bit of a delay after the first blast, wasn’t it? But at least they knew their security alarm worked. Mostly.

Despite the siren overpowering every other sound, it felt like every magical in the place burst into chaotic action at once.

“Breach! We’ve been breached!”

“The compound’s under attack!”

“What kinda suicidal moron would attack ushere?”

Another explosion rent the air, this one powerful enough to send a rippling tremble through the floor. The ground bucked and jerked violently, as if this were an earthquake instead. Those standing upright staggered sideways, adding shouts of surprise and snarls and angry hisses to the chaotic din.

Nyx simply levitated off the ground by several feet, her eyes wide and flashing with violet light as her gaze flickered all over the room.

Rebecca stumbled into the couch’s armrest and quickly righted herself as the last tremors through the floor quickly faded.

When Maxwell finally stabilized himself again, he turned back toward the room and roared over the wailing siren, “We’re under attack! Find whoever you can in the building and get everyone to the garage!”

Then he spun around again and practically threw himself down the hallway.

When he disappeared around the corner, Rebecca could have sworn she saw two quick strobing bursts of silver light reflecting off the hallway walls. Then the light was gone, overpowered by the atomic-red blaze of the flashing security light as the alarm signal continued without fail.

The shifter was gone too.

But not for long, Rebecca knew. He’d find a way to somehow turn this on her, to try to make thisherfault, just like he’d told her he would.

“Don’t give me a reason, elf.”

This definitely counted as a reason, didn’t it? Only Maxwell didn’t want to believe it could have been anythingbutRebecca.

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