She had absolutely no warning, but suddenly Hektor had his arms wrapped around her, twisting her off her feet, throwing her toward the ground. She stiffened, shock whiplashing through her, and there was a crack of thunder like the end of the world, a brilliant flash half-screened by Hektor’s body, a sound like a thousand hissing serpents, another sound like a baseball hitting a catcher’s mitt, and his sudden, convulsive gasp. There were the beginnings of screams, the sudden realization of terror, and then his weight was coming down upon her, horribly and horrifyingly limp. Something hot and wet sprayed across her wedding gown, her head struck the Cathedral step, and her own frantic cry of denial spiraled into the darkness with her