“Lucie—” She was cut off as he kissed her so deeply, she thought she might faint. She clutched him tightly, stroking his muscled back as he strained against her, clearly delighted by every gasp that escaped from her mouth when it wasn’t being devoured by his lips.
“We really have—”
“We will, we will.” He groaned and then kissed her harder. “Caia.”
“Caia.”
Oh dear goddess, she blinked and then blushed as she came back to the present, shaking the outstretched hand of Penelope Argyros, the magik whose suite they’d been using and whose bed she and Lucien had christened … several times.
“Are you alright, dear?” she asked sweetly, a crinkle of concern between her brows.
“Oh, I’m fine. Now. Thank you, by the way.” She gestured to her shoulder. Jeez, she had to start paying attention. Just because she had Lucien back did not mean she could forget that the Head of the Daylight Coven had fled and was probably gathering followers at that very moment to take back the Center. Then there was Reuben who was pressuring her into doing what he wanted because he’d helped rescue everyone and had offered to show her how to control her “superpower.” Not to mention the complication she felt buzzing in the trace. A Midnight faerie had been spying in Paris and somehow got wind of what was happening at the Center. She warned Reuben, who in turn warned Nikolai, who was heading out to stop the faerie before she took it back to the Midnight Council.
When had her life gotten this complicated?
“Oh, I am pleased.” Penelope nodded and then turned to gesture at the Council who circled the table at the other end of the room. Caia sighed. She’d had strategic meetings there before when she hadn’t known Marita was a psychopath.
She wasn’t going to lie—the Council intimidated her slightly. But this was no time to show that. They needed her help, and she had to prove she was as capable as she’d promised. Helping break them out of prison was a start, but technically that had been Vanne. She was, after all, being eaten by a werewolf at the time.
“Caia, do you remember the rest of the Council?”
“Of course.” She nodded at them, glad to see them all in one piece. She smiled when she saw Vanne and Saffron, and they acknowledged the smile with a nod of their heads. They were both still grieving.
Marion.
Her absence, here, now, in this very room, was more gaping than ever. Caia missed her so much even her teeth ached with it. A fire erupted in the pit of her belly. Caia couldn’t wait to find out what the plan was to bring Marita down.
“Caia, as you can see for yourself this morning, we, the Council, have brought the Center back under control.” Alfred Doukas led her to the table, his hand on the small of her back, guiding her and giving her reassurance at the same time. “We’re getting the word out to the rest of the coven about Marita, and things are progressing smoothly. We want to thank you for the part you played in rescuing us from the containment center—which, by the way, will be called prison from today onward.” He rolled his eyes. Yeah, Caia had always thought it was a dumb name as well. “We brought you up here to thank you and to let you know that we know about everything … Reuben and all that.”
She blinked. Shocked. Surely … they didn’t know everything? Reuben wouldn’t have allowed that, right?
“Vanne tells us that Reuben has a very particular gift against trace magik.” Alfred was frowning, as were the others around the table. “As much as we’d love to know more, we are not Marita, and Reuben is free to go. Vanne tells us although Reuben isn’t a very old vampyre, he is extremely apt at training and control. Apparently he has helped Vanne in the past, and with the loss of your mentor Marion, we think it only best that you do as Vanne has suggested and return home to the pack to train with Reuben. Not only will he serve as extra protection for the pack but it means we can get on with finding Marita and bringing her in.”
OK … so, one: Vanne and Saffron have lied to the Council about Reuben’s age.
Two: They think he can train me in Marion’s stead like it’s nothing but an inconvenience she’s not here to do it herself!
Three: They’re politely asking me to stay out of their way.
Caia shook her head in shock. “I-I’m confused. I thought we had discussed before—”
“This is for the best, Caia,” Vanne spoke, his eyes asking her to trust him. “Marita selfishly drew you into this war. You needed more time, more training. And I know we discussed the possibility of making you Head of the Coven to begin peace negotiations with the Midnights, but the Council is not in agreement on that account. You’re still so young and untried and … well, we don’t all agree that peace negotiations are a credible solution at this point. So for now, no one expects anything from you.