Her mind stalled, and the sick feeling in her stomach grew.
No. It wouldn't be enough. She knew what she really had to do.
I have to go back there. Just me. I owe Diana that much. I owe the whole family that much. I'll be the best one to search. I can drive over to the house feist and see what's going on. Borrow a car from Brett. That way, when the dragon attacks-and he's going to attack-I'll be the only one there. You'll be the only one dead, a snide little voice in her mind pointed out. But Keller gave it the cold shoulder.
She knew that already. It wasn't important.
You're going to risk your life-give up your life- for a baby? One who's not a Wild Power, not even a shapeshifter?
At least I'll get another chance at the dragon, she told the voice.
You're going to risk the mission, the alliance, the whole daylight world, for a single individual? the voice went on.
This was a better point. But Keller had only one thing to say to it.
I have to.
"Here." Brett gestured at the open door of a pretty bedroom, then followed Keller when she went in.
"Um, can I help you?" He was getting over his worry and trying to cozy up to her again.
"No."
"Oh. Well, I'll leave you alone, then." He slid out the door, closing it behind him.
And Keller let him. Later, that was what she couldn't quite believe. That she had been stupid enough to walk into the trap and stand there while it snapped shut.
She picked up the phone. "Mrs. Dominick?"
Silence. .
At first, just for a moment or two, she thought Hiana's mother might have stepped away from the phone.
But then the nature of the silence got to her.
There were no sounds in the background at all. It was dead air.
Keller hit the plunger to hang up the phone. Nothing happened.
No dial tone.
She glanced at the phone cord; it was plugged into the wall. She pushed the plunger rapidly, four times, five.
Then she knew.
She'd been suckered.
In one motion, she whirled and sprang to the door.
Only to twist the handle uselessly.
It was locked.
And it was a good, sturdy door, made out of solid wood, the kind they used to make. She found this out by throwing herself against it hard enough to bruise her shoulder. It had been locked with a key from the outside, and the bolt was a good, sturdy one, too.
White icy-hot rage swept over Keller. She was more angry than she could ever remember being in her life. She couldn't believe it-she'd been fooled by an idiot human boy. The Night People must have gotten to him somehow, must have bought him...
No.
Keller knew she wasn't a genius. But sometimes ideas came to her in a flash, allowing her to see a complete picture all at once where other people saw only fragments. And right now, like a bolt of lightning, realization dawned on her, and she understood.
Oh, Goddess, how could we have been so stupid?
She knew how the dragon had done it.
Chapter 16
We were so careful, she thought, setting up wards three days early and having agents watch the house. Nothing got inside during those three days; we were sure of that, and so we thought we were safe. But we didn't stop to think-what if the dragon was already inside when we put the wards up?
Brett.
He's the dragon.
It could take on any shape, assume any animal's form, and know all that the animal knew. A human being was an animal.
So why couldn't it touch a human and know all the human knew?
It would be the perfect disguise.
And we all fell for it, Keller thought. I knew there was something creepy about him, but I just put it down to him being obnoxious. And he's been here all the time, inside the wards, laughing at us, waiting for Iliana to come.
And Iliana's with him right now.
Keller felt sure of that in her gut.
She wanted to throw herself against the door again, but that wouldn't do any good. She needed to be calm now, to think, because she couldn't afford to waste any time.
The window.
Keller tried to open it, looking down at a hedge of rhododendron bushes below. The sash was stuck, nailed fast. But it didn't matter. Glass was more breakable than wood.
She stepped back and changed.
Melting, flowing, jumpsuit becoming fur. Tail shooting free. Ears. Whiskers. Heavy paws thumping down. A single long stretch to get used to the new body and being on four feet instead of two.
She was a panther, and she felt good. Strong and mean. Her muscles were like steel under her soft coat, and her big paws were twitching to bat someone silly. That dragon would be sorry he'd ever messed with her.
With a rasping yowl that she couldn't help, she gathered herself and sprang straight at the window. The full weight of her panther body hit the glass, and it shattered, and then she was flying in the cold night air.
She got cut. Panthers actually had thin and delicate skin compared to other animals. But she was indifferent to the pain. She landed and took off running, shaking her paws in flight to get rid of little bits of glass.
She raced around the mansion, looking for a place to enter. Eventually, she found a low, unshuttered window, and once again, she gathered herself and jumped.
She landed in a sitting room with glass falling all around her onto a fine, old carpet Brett.
And Iliana.
She would smell them out.
She lifted her muzzle, smelling currents in the air. At the same time, she expanded her sense of hearing to its fullest.
No Iliana. She couldn't get even a whiff of her. That was bad, but she would try again from the game room, where Iliana had been last. That was where she was going anyway, because that was where Brett was.
Not Brett, she reminded herself as she loped through corridors and rooms. The dragon.
She raced through the ballroom and heard a scream. She barely turned her head to notice a girl standing frozen, just lifting her hand to point. The college band crashed to a halt, almost as one, except the drummer, who went on playing for a moment with his eyes shut.