She had a prison break to put into motion.

24 hours later

“There you are.”

She tried not to groan at the familiar voice that sent shivers down her spine no matter the occasion. And right now, she did not have time to deal with the person belonging to that voice.

“Ssh,” she hissed at him, subtly sliding the actual book she had been reading under a copy of Practical Taekwondo: Back to the Roots.

“What are you doing here?” Lucien whispered, sliding into the chair beside her and leaning over to check out her reading material. He raised an eyebrow but made no comment. And then he lifted his silver gaze to hers and she had to force herself not to look away.

“Why are we whispering? There’s no one else in here.”

Caia glanced around the small, empty library and shrugged. “There could have been.”

Lucien stretched back in his seat, pinning her with a look of frustration. “I’ve come to a conclusion after our little meeting with Marita.”

“Oh?”

“Well, you know at first I was angry. And then angrier. And then today I let my stupid brain start working and I thought, no… Caia wouldn’t abandon the pack after what happened with Sebastian. She still feels raw about that, still feels guilty, even though it’s not her fault.” He heaved a sigh, running his hand through his hair, before leaning his elbow on the table and leaning in toward her. “You still grieve for him. So you would never leave us. So why would you tell Marita that you would consider her job offer?”

Crap. She had so wanted his obtuse lykan self to not figure this part out.

Even though her heart was determined to pick up speed, she held tight in her seat, her butt clenched with the tension it took not to give anything away. “I don’t know what you’re babbling about.”

He smirked, unconvinced. “You’re delaying leaving here. Now, again, when I first came to that conclusion I stupidly thought it was because you were a big something here, a rock star - enjoying the glory of being a mega-being,” he guffawed. “Then I came to my senses, and I thought no, this is Caia, the girl who blushed at her first pack run; the girl who looks as if she would give anything to melt into the wallpaper every time we meet in Marita’s suite to discuss the MacLachlan attack.”

Oh Gaia, she really wished he hadn’t decided to get all perceptive where she was concerned.

“Lucien-”

He held up his hand to cut her off. “So that leaves me with one question.”

She waited.

His eyes narrowed dangerously and his head lowered in mimicry of his lykan when going on the attack. “What the Hades are you up to, Caia?”

“Lucien-”

“I am still your Pack Leader and I demand to know what you are doing here?”

She wanted to tell him, she really did. But without knowing how he really felt about her, how could she trust him with this before she actually did it. If her plan went accordingly, she would have to tell him eventually. But now, when there was still so much at stake?

“The Center has made me see things differently. I really am considering Marita’s offer.”

He growled. “I don’t believe you.”

“It’s the truth.”

“Caia-”

“Lucien, I’m telling you the truth, so drop it.”

His nostrils flared and he pushed back so hard from the table his chair flew out behind him and smashed against the wall at the opposite end of the room.

Caia scowled at him. “Nicely done.”

“Don’t even start... do you know how close I am to... to…” He made a choking gesture with his hands and bared his teeth at her. Instead of responding to him, she glanced in what she hoped was a casual manner behind him and flicked her wrist, setting the chair to right and placing it back at the table.

He grunted at her use of magik and then turned back on her, his eyes glittering dangerously as he leaned down so close to her face she felt his warm breath whisper across her skin. “I will get to the bottom of this.”

Trying not to blink, Caia pulled back ever so slightly, but kept her own challenging gaze locked on his. “Good luck with that.”

With a harsh curse Lucien snapped back from her and began marching towards the double doors that led out of the library. She watched as he hesitated and half-turned to glare back at her. “Thought you might like to know that Jaeden got home safe and sound.”

Jae? She was alright? Marita had said...

“Is she OK?”

Lucien twisted his mouth in derision. “Safe and sound generally implies such.”

“Sarcasm. Wonderful.”

He grunted and turned back towards the door.

“Lucien!”

Heaving a melodramatic sigh, his shoulders hunching over in defense, Lucien refused to turn back and look at her. Instead he threw out an exasperated, “What?”

“Is... is Jaeden... has Jaeden... Was there any mention of Jaeden having... abilities?”

He curled his head back towards her, enough to raise a mocking eyebrow. “Such as the ability to morph into a wolf.”

Ugh.

She grimaced. “You really are unpleasant when you’re not getting your own way.”

“No. I’m just used to having my orders obeyed.”

“There’s a difference between that and abusing your position to nose into my privacy.”

Scowling, he made to turn away from her, and before he disappeared with a banging of the doors together, he murmured, “Don’t think I don’t find the Jaeden question weird.”

When he was gone, Caia blew out a weary breath.

Jaeden was OK.

And she would remain such as long as Caia had any say in it.

23 hours later after that

Vilhelm gazed back at her wild-eyed and shaking.

“You’re sure this is going to work?”

Caia nodded, poker-face on, her body steady as a rock. If they were to pull this off, she needed to project a calm confidence that he wouldn’t question.

She had to hand it to the kid, he was either extremely brave or just stupidly in love. After hunting him down it had taken very little to convince Vilhelm to break Laila out of the Center and take her to Ryder’s. It seemed they were both desperate enough to place their trust in a stranger. They stood now in a janitor’s closet, a few corridors away from the prison.

“You ready?”

Vil nodded excitedly. “Do it.”

With unruffled nerve, Caia raised her hand so that it hovered an inch in front of Vil’s face. Slowly and carefully, her fingers crackling with energy, she swept the air in a vertical motion from the tip of his hair to the tip of his chin.

“Is it done?”

She bit her lip, gazing at Vil who was now the exact image of Vanne. “Not quite.”

Softly, she placed a hand on his neck, where his voice box was.

“Cold,” he chuckled nervously.

With a satisfied nod, Caia pulled back. “Say something else.”

“I can’t wait to see Laila.” His eyes widened. “I can’t wait to see Laila. Wow I sound exactly like Vanne.”

Caia nodded briskly. “Remember, you have exactly thirty minutes to get in there and get out of the Center before your face and voice returns. Hold out your hand, palm forward.”

He did as she instructed and she placed her small hand against his large hand.

Lucien had almost caught her researching this act she was about to perform: the transfer of a small amount of her power to another magik. The transfer would last only ten minutes at the most, but they needed this so that Vil could break Laila out of the bars in her prison.

Yesterday morning, Caia and Vil had managed to sweet talk (to her utter mortification) the name of the spell wrapped around the bars holding Laila in, from a junior officer in the containment center. He had been more than happy to show off how the facilities worked for the VIP magik in their midst. With the help of a little something Vil had picked up during one of his air element lectures, he was able to stop the memory of their having been at the containment center by temporarily starving the oxygen flow to the hippocampus of the officer’s brain, where memories were consolidated from short term to long term.

It tended to be a little painful and cause some confusion for a moment, giving them plenty of time to get out of there before he came back to his senses.

Lucien had then interrupted Caia’s research in the library where she discovered what kind of spell to counteract the one keeping the magik up around the bars. It was a small incantation that needed to be said while focusing the energy used to produce glamour on the bars. The transfer of her power to him temporarily was necessary, since Vil wasn’t really good at anything but utilizing his air element and being a Traveller.

“You remember the password and incantation?”

Vil nodded vigilantly. “Locked in tight.” He tapped his brain.

It was weird talking to him when he looked and sounded like Vanne. Heart pounding with trepidation, Caia jerked her head towards the closet door. “You better get going. Remember you can trust Ryder, he’ll keep you safe. Just don’t mention Laila being a Midnight just yet.”

“Got it.”

“Just tell him what I told you to tell him.”

“Don’t worry, I will. I trust you.”

She guessed it was easier to trust the person who tells you they think the girl you love is actually a good person, than the person who imprisoned her and forbade you from ever seeing her again.

It was at that moment the familiar, sickening, icy feeling shuddered through her body, and a wealth of new information poured into her.

“Crap,” she whispered.

“What, what?” Vil asked frantically.

“Nothing. Nothing. It’s not about this, it doesn’t affect this. Go!” She pushed him towards the door and watched impatiently as he ducked his head out to make sure the corridor was clear. Caia closed the closet door behind her and nodded at him. “See you soon.”

He smiled tremulously. “Hope so.”