Destined (War of the Covens 2)

For what? Caia snapped internally. She pushed harder with the trace until she made a connection to the girl, the strongest she’d felt since her horrific invasion of Ethan’s conscience. The young girl had fled from someplace where there were many Midnights. She’d hated them. She had found a Daylight.

She had come here to join the Daylight cause.

Caia gasped and tightened her hold on the connection. Could this be right? She scrambled like an excited child through the trace, trying to find evidence of this girl’s duplicity, of her malevolence. She found none. Only a bitterness that she had naively wandered into the Center and been imprisoned.

No! Caia shook her head.

Who was this girl? Where did she come from?

Frustrated, she collapsed back in her chair. She couldn’t pick up any definitive details, but she knew enough to know that an innocent girl was imprisoned here in the Center.

“Caia?”

She suddenly became aware that Mordecai was shaking her, and others were no longer paying attention to the lecture but staring at her, bewildered by her presence and the disruption she was causing.

She didn’t care about them. She turned to Mordecai. “I need to speak with Marita. Now.”

His cell buzzed on the coffee table, and he grumbled when he saw the caller ID. He really didn’t want to speak to that Midnight at the moment, not with what had happened. He needed Nikolai to maintain confidence in him, and this situation was only going to incite the opposite.

Sighing, he picked up the phone.

“Yes.”

“I’ve called you twice now. Why haven’t you answered?” Nikolai’s thick voice queried suspiciously down the line.

He better just get it over with. “There’s been a development.”

“Good or bad?”

“Not great.”

“Outline the problem quickly. I have one of my own.”

“Du Bois?”

“Du Bois. Speak, Kirios.”

He bristled at the use of his name but bit his tongue. He swallowed and tightened his hold on the phone. “I’ve temporarily lost my access to Caia.”

Silence.

“Nikolai?”

“I’m still here,” he said wearily. “This is not a good time. Things seem to be unraveling.”

“No, they are not. If you had been paying attention, I used the word temporarily. I’m on this, don’t worry.”

“I shall try to maintain faith in you, Kirios. You can’t have survived the world this long without a certain amount of ability.”

He grunted. “I appreciate the confidence.”

“Hmm, well, I can do no other thing but trust you will take care of this. I am having enough trouble with du Bois. He has gathered some rebels, idiots who believe in his faithless words. I have one in custody—she says they are planning an attack against a pack of lykans, the MacLachlans.”

“Have you taken du Bois into custody?”

“Not yet. I need verification from the other idiots who are joining his little rebellion before I can take him before the Council. I will put a stop to the attack in time.”

Frustration rippled through his body. “You better. You realize Caia will be aware of this little attack, which means the Daylights will be gearing up to defend the pack. If Caia is caught in the crossfire, our plans will be obliterated. We need that girl alive.”

“I am aware of what is at stake, Kirios!” Nikolai raged. “Do not push me. I am not the one who lost our inside asset.”

“It looks like we both have a lot of work to do and very little time. And Nikolai … don’t ever speak to me that way again. Understood?”

A tense silence, followed by, “Understood, Kirios. Apologies.”

“Accepted.” He sighed. “Call me when you’ve squashed du Bois.”

He hung up, threw his phone over his shoulder, and leaned back into the sofa with his eyes squeezed tight.

He had to get moving. There were too many years at stake to let Caia and du Bois control this war.

10

Mate

The television flickered, lighting her face in the dark motel room, revealing her sardonic smirk as she chewed on candy and watched the soap opera. He studied her from his place on the adjacent twin bed, amazed at the feeling of peace that settled over him just by being near her, by being allowed to look at her.

Ryder closed his eyes briefly as he fought the courage to say what he had to say. Maybe he should just let it be. She’d had a rough few days.

After her revelations the night before, Jaeden had fallen asleep quickly, exhausted from her much-needed crying jag. He, on the other hand, couldn’t even close his eyes, her descriptions of her torture rolling around in his brain and roiling his stomach. How had she survived it, still able to function as normally as she was?

Her strength amazed him.

Jae had been sleeping for only an hour or so before she’d started crying out in her sleep. Her bed shook, and then the telephone on her bedside table flew across the room and smashed into smithereens. The TV in the corner was just beginning to rumble when Ryder jumped across the room and slid in beside her, pulling her into his arms and soothing her away from the nightmare.