Hunted (War of the Covens 1)

“Caia didn’t detect your presence?” Ethan interrupted.

Lars shook his head quickly, sending sparkles of sweat flying from his hair. Ethan curled his lip in distaste. “No, my lord. In fact, I was extremely fast in getting the information you needed. Xylena is dead and the pack now knows about their missing pup.”

Just what he needed. He grumbled and restrained himself from throwing something at the vainglorious idiot. “Fine. Change of plans. We don’t want the pack finding us here—”

“But, my lord, I thought this was what you wanted? The pack weak and emotional over the loss of one of their own?”

“Don’t. Ever. Interrupt me again,” he hissed.

Lars blanched and backed up. “Forgive me.”

Ethan jumped to his feet and began pacing. “Jaeden was never meant to be that kind of pawn. She was just a bonus punching bag. Now the pack is looking for her, and I don’t have any inside information on what’s happening with Caia and her Portuguese lover.” He stopped and made a clicking noise with his tongue as he thought.

After a tense few minutes, he huffed. “We need to kill Caia.”

“Isn’t that a little hasty? We don’t know for certain how things have progressed with her and the pack.”

“Lucien’s her mate. It’s enough to send him crazy and obliterate order in the pack. We need Caia gone before they become aware of her trace magik. They’ll know for certain that Caia is the”—he choked off, hating to admit it—“the true Head of the Coven, and that the Midnights are incredibly vulnerable with her in Daylight hands. Once she’s dead, we’ll attack. The pack will be too grief stricken to put up much of a defense.”

“I don’t mean to question you, my lord, but won’t that draw the attention you specifically wished to avoid?”

“No,” Ethan sneered. “Why would it? It will just be you and me taking them down.”

Lars paled. “Two of us against an entire pack?”

“For Gaia’s sake, man, they’re a tiny pack and we know everything about them from Xylena’s findings. We’ll sneak in after Caia’s death and take them out during their mourning. They’ll never see it coming.”

“But won’t they be expecting our attack if we kill Caia?”

Ethan smirked. “I didn’t say we were going to kill Caia.”

“You ready to talk to me rationally yet?”

Caia twisted around on her bed to see Lucien leaning casually against her doorframe. “Ah condescending to me. That’s the right way to open this discussion.”

He winced and pushed off the door. “I didn’t mean to be condescending.”

“Right. Well, as to your question: it’s been less than twenty-four hours since I found out that you lied, and possibly tricked me, into becoming your mate. What do you think?”

His face darkened, and she took some satisfaction in the moment. “Tricked you?” He seethed quietly, prowling into the room and slamming the door behind him.

“Uh-uh.” Caia scrambled off the bed and onto her feet. She flicked her hand and the door whooshed back open.

“Getting pretty good at that.” He lowered himself into her computer chair.

“Lucien, get out.”

“No.”

“Fine. I will,” she huffed and headed toward the door. He cut her off in seconds, looming over her like a giant cliff face.

“Finding myself bound to an eighteen-year-old is bad enough, but to a magik? Thanks.” He laughed humorlessly up at the ceiling, as if talking to the gods, and then glared back down at her. “Why don’t you cut me some slack and help me deal with this?”

Caia crossed her arms defensively. “Deal with this? This is how I’m going to deal with this. I am not binding my life to a guy—any guy—but especially not some jumped-up Alpha who doesn’t trust me, let alone love me. How’s that?”

“Caia.” He looked pained as he brushed his hand through his hair like he always did. “I do care about you. But you have to understand this has not been the usual situation, and yeah … I’ve screwed up.”

She wanted to believe him. Upon gazing up into those intense silver pools, feeling his heat so close to her, unfortunately timed flashbacks from last night sparked through her head. A flush erupted across her skin and she cursed herself. Lucien’s eyes darkened, feeling her heat. He made as if to move toward her and she backed away, holding up her hand, warding him off.

“Whoa, stop. I know enough about a mated couple to know that the attraction thing is just part of the deal, but this”—she gestured between them—“will not be happening again.”

“Caia, you can’t deny a mating.”

“Doesn’t it bother you? Don’t you feel cheated? What if you fall in love with someone, Lucien, and you can’t have a family with her?”

“I’m not falling in love with anyone. Neither are you, for that matter, because you are my mate. Mine. Deal with it.”

A silence descended over the room like a thick, uncomfortable blanket.