Unleash the Storm (Steel & Stone, #5)

by Annette Marie

“Why is it changing color?” Kiev whispered to Piper. “When it turns red, we all die,” Lyre said flatly. Her eyes shot down to the orange circle surrounding her boots. “I can figure this out,” he muttered. “I should know—ah!” Unceremoniously dropping his bow and arrow, he lunged forward and touched a hand to one spinning symbol. It lit green instantly. He stretched out the other hand and laid it on a second symbol. It turned green too. But the rest of the lines kept darkening, shifting from bright orange to the reddish orange of flames. “Shit,” Lyre hissed. “Piper!” She leaped to his side. “Do you see the small symbol like a starburst by my left knee?” Heart pounding, she dropped to a crouch, eyes scouring the glowing lines. It was so hard to see with everything moving. She squinted as the color dipped firmly into red territory. There: a tiny starburst in the center of one of the smallest circles. She pointed. “This one?” “Yes! Touch it—only the starburst, nothing else.” Her heart rate kicked up. The lines grew brighter red and hissed ominously as she reached out two fingers and pressed them to the center of the starburst. The hot metal singed her fingertips. All the spinning stopped and every line flashed back to green before fading away. The rings around their feet disappeared too. Lyre let out a long breath and pushed gently on the door.