The undead tore into the giant. He roared, frantically trying to knock them off. Flesh flew as they ripped, clawed, and burrowed into his body. The vampires piled on, maddened by bloodlust.

A minute passed. The giant was still standing.

Another . . .

Two vampires dropped down, their bodies engorged with blood. Lago stomped on them.

“Steady,” Ghastek said.

The giant careened, rolling his shoulders in, as if trying to gather himself into a ball. The vampires nearly covered him now.

Magic exploded like a clap of thunder. With a deafening howl, Lago jerked upright, his arms straight out. The vampires fell off, knocked aside by an enormous force.

“Acquire!” Ghastek snapped.

The horn screeched again, frantic. The navigators grabbed the minds of their vampires.

Smokeless orange flames sheathed Lago’s feet. He turned, roaring, his face no longer bearing any trace of humanity. The metal scales were up to his collarbone now and those at his waist and below glowed orange. The glass under his feet softened, melting. The giant turned in our direction, casting a long look at the city, and raised his foot . . .

Oh no, you don’t.

I drew Sarrat, sliced my left arm, and stabbed the bloody blade into the body of the bloated vampire. My blood dashed down the blade, its magic spreading through the undead blood, like a spark charging down a detonation cord. In half a second, all of the blood was mine. I yanked the blood out of the undead’s body. It hovered before me in a massive round sphere. I thrust my bleeding hand into it, flattening the liquid into a solid disk, two feet across, spun, and hurled it with all my strength and with my magic.

It flew, expanding as it whistled through the air, its edge turning razor sharp, and cleaved the giant’s neck. The impact shattered the now five-foot-wide disk into dust. The giant’s head flopped to the side, his neck three-quarters severed, his mouth contorting silently, his red eyes looking in different directions. Blood gushed out, washing over the torso, and hissed, evaporating as it met the hot scales covering his skin.

There. No power words.

The Mole Hole turned completely quiet and in the silence, the sound of hoofbeats rolled through the night. A huge gray horse galloped toward us, bearing a rider in a gray cloak. He carried a lance tipped with a glowing green spark.

The giant dropped to his hands and knees, his neck jerking, trying to flip the heavy head back into its proper place. The wound on his neck tried to seal itself.

The horse leaped onto the giant, pounding its way through the flames up his spine, to his head. The rider clamped the lance to his body and rammed it into the bloody stump of the giant’s skull. The horse reared, silhouetted against the orange flames. The rider’s cloak flared, his hood falling. Nick Feldman, a knight of the Order.

Oh hell. We were so screwed.

The massive horse jumped, clearing the gap between the giant and the side of the Mole Hole.

The giant’s head exploded. Brain and blood flew, splattering the vampires in front of me and drenching me in gore.

Fan-freaking-tastic. That’s just the cherry on top of the sundae of this day. Curran would kill me.

Nick’s voice boomed through the clearing. “The Order thanks you for your assistance. Kindly disperse.”

Ghastek stepped forward, clearly untroubled by the size of the horse. Two vampires moved in unison to sit on both sides of him like loyal dogs.

I braced myself.

“This is a People matter,” Ghastek said, his voice ice cold.

“The People have no jurisdiction here,” Nick said. “This investigation belongs to the Order.”

“A crime has been committed against a member of the People and we responded to it decisively and with overwhelming force. The People find the Order’s presence and response insufficient to properly secure the body.”

Translation: there is only one of you and a lot of us.

“I am the law,” Nick said. “Impede me and you will suffer the consequences.”

“Last time I checked, the Order was not a law enforcement agency,” Ghastek said, his voice dangerously mild.

“You’re only one man,” someone called out.

Ghastek took a moment to glance toward the speaker. Heads would roll when they got back to the Casino.

Aw, hell. I really hated the Order.

“Three,” I said.

Everyone looked at me. Julie pulled out her axes.

“He is three. Biohazard brought the Order in on the previous giant appearance. Therefore, this occurrence is a continuation of an ongoing investigation, authorized by a formal petition from a state law enforcement agency. He is the law. I will uphold the law.”