The tension mounted as we waited for the barrier to drop, not knowing what to expect to find hidden behind it. Shay and Jeremy had already shifted and were flying for the general vicinity of the vessel, each carrying a vial in their talons. Sebastian would give them the word on when to drop them. The pixies were so focused in the direction of the other ship, they were practically quivering with anticipation. Our coven shifted anxiously. This wasn’t their first battle and they’d proved they worked well together, but here, out on the water, it all felt different.
Sam and Rand stayed close by my side. Danai had her medical bag at the ready. She was the only one of us besides Cappy who looked even remotely calm and collected. Sebastian’s tail swished back and forth rhythmically, his gaze intent on the area ahead of us. I looked up as the few clouds threading over the moon passed and the night sky suddenly brightened. With the reflection coming off the water, it was nearly as bright as day.
Now! Sebastian’s order reverberated in my mind. From somewhere high above, a screech sounded, followed by Jeremy’s raucous caws.
“There,” Rand pointed. The ship that appeared as if out of nowhere was huge, towering above us. “That looks like either a freighter or a research vessel.” He sprinted for the cockpit as Rasta lifted her sword with a blood curdling cry and flew for the other ship, eleven eager pixies racing behind her in formation, only Gryff remaining behind with Tess. Before the pixies crossed the span, the lights on the other ship suddenly cut out, leaving only the moonlight washing over it to lend any visibility.
Rand's words finally hit me. A research vessel? My blood felt like it had suddenly gone cold. What if we were too late? Just as quickly as that thought ran through my mind, anger pushed fire through my veins, chasing the cold away. If those children were hurt—or worse—I would rip that ship apart.
Our spotlight lit up the other ship as Rand and Cappy began maneuvering us closer to it. Toward the back of the ship, something flew up out of the water and landed on the lower platform. Three more forms followed in quick succession. Olen and several of his warriors. I heard shouted warnings and watched as they were met by men with guns. Before any could so much as take aim, the wrath of twelve pixies descended on them. The water fae streaked past them to search for their children. One of them—we were close enough to see it, was Dorn—took the butt end of his trident and knocked two of the men out cold before the pixies could damage them too much more. The third man ran, trying to escape the tiny, but fierce warriors, and dove off the back of the ship. A huge, black and white form leapt up before he even hit the surface. I watched in horror as the orca caught the man before falling back into the water with a splash.
“Roxie, get your shields up!” Rand yelled.
Without hesitation, I threw a shield up between our boat and the other ship—and not a moment too soon. A wickedly barbed harpoon hit the section protecting the cockpit and glanced off, falling harmlessly into the water. The shield wasn’t big enough to cover the entire side of the boat, but hopefully the people launching harpoons at us didn’t know that.
Another harpoon hit the shield, just a few feet away from where the first had, and also fell away. Gunfire followed and I could see—and feel—where each bullet struck. None made it past the shield, but I had no way of knowing if any unprotected areas of the Sea Witch were hit.
The bracelet on my wrist began glowing and I felt the push of more magick flowing through me and into the shield, expanding it. Trixie. There wasn’t time for more than a brief mental thank you, before we were under fire again. I tried to look for who was shooting at us, but even with the spotlight trained on the side of the ship, all I could make out were several shadowy dark figures hunkered down low, popping up from different areas to fire on us, then disappearing again. As we moved closer, I adjusted the angle of the shield so it was somewhat covering us overhead.
Rand reappeared at my side. “Cappy is going to get us as close as he can. I’ll board the other ship and do what I can to help.” His expression darkened. “And make sure they leave at least a few alive for questioning.” He held up a handful of zip ties.
Crap, crap, crap. There was no way I could go with him and shield the Sea Witch. I looked around for the others. Danai and Tess were standing with the rest of the coven on the opposite side of the cockpit, out of the line of fire in case my shield failed. Sam stood just a few feet away from us. She had her gun trained on the other ship, but knew not to shoot with my shield up. Where was Sebastian?
Look to the back of the enemy ship, Trixie said.
I searched that part of the vessel, but saw nothing. The back was considerably lower than the front end of the boat, and probably had a ladder or docking area that I couldn’t see from this angle.
Wait . . .
My eyes widened and my breath caught as an orca cut across the surface of the water, heading straight for the larger vessel—and a black cat leapt from its back onto the ship. As Danai’s familiar landed, he transformed into his battle cat form and ran for the front of the ship. The orca twisted its body, changing direction to
