Hunted (War of the Covens 1)

Feeling no one of the Midnight variety down there in the dark, Caia gave up all pretense of quiet and rushed down into the blackness. Lucien was behind her with the flashlight.

“Holy … ” His voice trailed off hoarsely when the light came on.

The basement was nearly the entire size of the house, completely unfurnished except for the row of five cages that decorated the far end. In the first cage, they saw Jaeden curled on her side, recognizable by her long, dark hair. And in the other four cages were the remains of supernaturals. Caia gagged and turned to Lucien without thinking. He put a comforting hand on her shoulder and led her toward Jae.

Why hadn’t she seen this in her dreams? she thought, trying to rid herself of the images of these poor creatures and their mangled bodies. Now that she was aware of their presence, the smell of death, which she’d always put down to Ethan’s energy, was because of them.

“Jaeden,” she managed, kneeling and reaching through the bars to touch her friend. She got no response. “Jaeden.”

“Jaeden,” Lucien said urgently.

Jae whimpered.

“Jaeden!” Caia cried and shook her a little.

With that, her friend whimpered but moved, still curled into herself, her naked skin covered in dirt and blood and healing scar tissue. Her dead blue eyes blinked and blinked and then widened.

“Lucien? Caia?” Her voice was hoarse and cracked as if she hadn’t used it in a long time.

“Yes.” Caia smiled through tears, and then looked at the cage, trying to find a way in. Like the dream, there was no door and no lock.

“Are you really here?”

“Yes.” Lucien’s chocolaty voice would have comforted anyone. “We’re here. We’re going to take you home.”

Jae began to cry silently.

Caia retreated and pulled Lucien away too. “Jae, I need you to move to the rear of the cage.”

The girl complied without a word.

And with all her fury and all the impotence she felt in this disgusting situation her uncle had put the people she loved in, Caia threw out an arm of energy that twisted and bent the steel until there was enough room for Jaeden to crawl out. Lucien took off his shirt, still wearing a T-shirt underneath, and Caia knelt to draw it over Jaeden’s head.

“You’re really here.” Jae’s bottom lip trembled, and the blankness began to recede from her eyes. “You’re really here.”

Caia forgot her friend’s injuries and pulled her into a tight hug, not caring that Jaeden was too dazed to return it.

“Come on.” Lucien bent down now and scooped Jaeden easily into his arms.

Caia wished she hadn’t been so exultant, so cocky, as she followed Lucien up the basement stairs and out into the kitchen. She was smiling, actually smiling, as he made his way to the kitchen door. And then she felt it—like ice crawling slowly through her veins, freezing her in her tracks and icing over her heart so that the next frightened beat shattered it and all of her hope. Caia had never experienced such a malevolent trace before.

From behind her, she felt the blast of power like a train chugging past at full speed, blowing her hair up around her shoulders and face. It knocked Jaeden out of Lucien’s arms and across the room, her head slamming against a cabinet. She slumped limply to the ground. Caia whirled and stood a few feet from her uncle.

“My goddess, you look like Adriana,” he said, momentarily stunned.

She was stunned too. She looked like him—the same blond hair and slant to her eyes.

“Uncle,” she whispered. That brought him from his lapse and his dangerous blue eyes slid past her to Lucien. Without thought, Caia threw up a shield around the Alpha as he took a menacing step toward her uncle. Lucien banged against it and snarled at Caia. He wasn’t in lykan form. He wouldn’t stand a chance against Ethan.

“Well.” Ethan smirked. “Seems your powers are indeed blossoming.”

Lucien punched at the shield. “Drop it, Caia! Now!”

She shook her head, refusing to look at him.

“I’ll let them go.” Ethan smiled evilly. “All I want is you.”

“Caia, don’t listen to him! Drop the shield!”

Her eyes swept to Jaeden, a crumpled mess, and then to Lucien, whose eyes blazed once more with emotion. Anger. He was furious with her. And more than that, he was frightened for her.

Unflinching, she focused on her uncle. As calmly as she could, chanting at her heart to quit racing and stand strong for her, she asked, “You’ll let them go? You won’t go near Lucien and the pack … if I let you … ”

“Kill you without a peep?” Ethan said. “Of course.”

“Caia, NO!” Lucien bellowed, but she steadfastly ignored him. Ethan smiled triumphantly at Lucien and a wave of his emotions hit Caia like a battering ram to the gut. She gasped and clutched her stomach, actually staggering back from the blow.