The silver light inside me pulsed, responding to the threat.

Beneath it, the red flicker stirred.

Use me, the shadow whispered. I can end this. One surge of shadow power and he'll never see it coming.

No, I told it firmly. Not yet.

Even as I denied the shadow, I was pulling on the moon power.

Not flooding my system,that would alert Azrael immediately, channeling carefully, preparing my body for what came next.

"Time's up," Azrael said. He moved.

The speed was breathtaking. One moment he was standing still, the next he was a blur of motion, closing the twenty-foot gap in under a second.

Zane's crossbow fired. The bolt...