Her body now dangled from the fae queen’s large, clawed hand. Mason squeezed the trigger. Bang!-Bang!-Bang! It was the only thing to do. Not that he cared for Liv herself, not anymore, but she’d given him Fletcher, the meaning in his life, and he couldn’t let Fletcher’s mother go unavenged. At the first bang, Cari tried to dive in front of him—“Mason, no!”—but his arm was already pushing her behind him. He’d die himself before that creature would hurt her. Mad Mab gave him a smile that withered his guts. “I can’t have you.” If the bullets had found their mark, the fae made no sign of it. The seething Shadow that came together in her form was like nothing he’d ever felt before. A sentient black hole was before him, drawing all Shadow to her, except this magic had no end and so she would only grow and grow until she swallowed everything and everyone in her wake. How could she be destroyed? Cari emerged quickly on his other side, a hand raised to keep the fae back.
