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The dingo made a face. She says that like it’s a bad thing.

Feeling a little playful himself, Robb deadpanned, “Your phone will have to be scrapped afterwards, though. Can’t have Agency numbers being called from civilian phones.”

Tahnee grinned. “You can’t fool me – I’m on to you and your ways. You wouldn’t do that. You’d just make whoever it was you called change their number instead.”

I actually will have to get Zina to remove any evidence of the number from your phone, he didn’t say. Instead he just said, “You got me,” and held out his hand, and Tahnee unlocked her phone before handing it over.

With a little trepidation, Robb prepared to call Euan. While the faint sounds of battle seemed promising, there was no guarantee that no one had been seriously injured or killed.

Before he could dial the number, though, the ground rumbled.

“Whoa!” Tahnee exclaimed, grabbing on tighter to his arm as the hedge’s leaves rustled and shook. “Earthquake?”

Robb looked around, but, being in the maze, he couldn’t see much of anything.

It was perfectly possible that it was a minor earthquake, but Robb had learnt over the years that where shifters were concerned, the most obvious answer wasn’t always the most likely to be correct.

“Maybe,” he said, slowly forcing himself to his feet with Tahnee’s assistance. The worst of the injury seemed to have healed, but he wasn’t in great shape. The knife wound in his side would definitely need at least a few hours before he felt he could move freely without it reopening.

The dingo was on high alert, its training and practical nature at war with its natural instinct to hide under a table at the first sign of the earth trembling.

“We should get back to the others ASAP,” Robb said, bringing up Tahnee’s phone again even as he prepared to make the slow stagger out of the maze. If nothing else, James’s destruction of several walls would make it much easier for them to get out quickly.

“Oh, it’s locked itself,” he said, looking at the phone. “Would you mind unlocking it again?”

Tahnee grumbled, but held out her hand.

But as he handed it back to her, a very large, very dark shadow passed overhead. It was gone within a moment – but then a breeze followed in its wake. One strong enough to rustle the top of the hedge maze walls and send up a swell of dusty air from the winding paths.

“What was that?!” Tahnee exclaimed, and the dingo looked about wildly.

“I’m not sure,” said Robb, “but I’d rather not wait around to find out.”

Before they could move, however, the shadow passed over them once more, coming from the opposite direction.

Robb looked up –

And saw an enormous shiny, scaly, purple-blue belly, with gargantuan wings spread out on either side.

And there were also feet with very sharp claws.

The dragon, Robb thought, feeling oddly blank. It woke up anyway.

But why?!

But then the answer came to him – and it must’ve come to Tahnee as well, because as one, they turned in slow horror to look at the earthly remains of James Eyre, arm raised, knife in hand, mouth open in surprise. And made out of pure, solid gold.

The gold. It wants the gold.

“We woke the dragon,” Tahnee said, her voice no more than a whisper. “I woke the dragon. Oh my God.”

Her face fell in utter devastation, and Robb pulled her close.

“You did no such thing,” he murmured, sending reassurance through the bond. “You saved my life, Tahnee. That’s what you did.”

“No –” Tahnee began.

“You saved my life. And now, we’re going to save everyone else’s.”