Stolen

LOYALTIES

At the meeting, Jeremy summarized what my escape added to our knowledge. By combining my info with Clay's, we had a good picture of the internal and external geography of the compound. Perhaps most important, we knew where to find our enemies. Given the size and complexity of the operation, it was unlikely they'd move camp anytime soon. So, Jeremy reasoned, we could take the time to plan an infiltration strategy, end the threat permanently, and release Ruth and the others.

As Jeremy said this, I realized everyone assumed Ruth was still alive. Why wouldn't they? I hadn't said otherwise.

"Ruth-uh-didn't make it," I said.

"What?" Adam's gaze darting to Paige. "You mean she-"

"She's gone," Paige said, her voice hollow and small.

"Shit." Adam walked over to Paige and put his arm around her shoulders, then looked at me. "What happened?"

Now I was trapped. Would I lie in front of the entire group, knowing they'd learn the truth after I explained everything to Jeremy? Or would I be honest and have Paige wondering why I'd lied only minutes before? How did I get into these scrapes? Better make a clean breast of it before I dug myself in any deeper.

"It's-uh-complicated," I began.

"They murdered her, didn't they?" Paige said. "I know the kidnapping must have been stressful, but she was in excellent health."

In other words, Paige hadn't bought my heart-attack story. I mentally thanked her for giving me a graceful way out and not calling me on my lie.

"Actually, no," I said. "They didn't kill her. Not the people who kidnapped us, anyway. It was one of the other captives. But it wasn't her fault."

Paige frowned. "An accident?"

"Umm, kind of, but not exactly." I inhaled. "Ruth didn't tell you everything when she contacted you. There was another witch there. A young girl."

I told the whole story: Ruth's training of Savannah, the unexplained events in the compound, the attacks on the guards, Ruth's death, and the mayhem Savannah caused during our escape attempt.

"So you're saying this kid's evil," Adam said.

"No. She's not," I said. "She just does-"

"-evil things," Cassandra finished. "I'm sorry, Elena, but that sounds like evil to me. Whether it's intentional or not is hardly the point. We have to consider the wisdom of freeing a child with this capacity for destruction. From what I've heard, I seriously doubt any of us is capable of controlling her. Especially the Coven."

Cassandra slanted a look at Paige. The young woman's cheeks burned, and she opened her mouth as if to argue, then closed it.

"It's settled, then," Cassandra said. "We can't worry about the girl-"

"Savannah didn't do these things," Paige said quietly.

Cassandra sighed. "I understand why you'd like to think that, Paige. No one wants to believe a child capable of evil, much less condemn her to death, but the fact remains-"

"She didn't do it," Paige said, stronger now. "A witch can't do things like that. We just can't. A spell for moving an inanimate object? Yes. For moving the object with enough force to crush someone's skull? Absolutely not. The best a witch could do would be to knock a plate off the table, not hurl it across a room."

"But Eve was also a half-demon," Adam said. "We were only kids when she left, but I remember that."

"Her father was an Aspicio," Paige said. "That means Eve's power was limited to vision. She had enhanced sight and could cause temporary blindness. That's it. Besides, powers from a half-demon aren't transmitted to offspring. You know that."

A long minute of silence passed.

"Look," Paige said. "Cassandra's right. I don't want to believe there's something wrong with this girl. But would I lie to save her if it meant endangering others? Of course not. Give me credit for a little common sense. If Savannah could kill Ruth, she could kill me too."

"There was another theory," I said. "Some people thought it was a-uh-poltergeist."

"A what? "Clay said.

I scowled at him. "I'm just repeating what I heard, okay?"

"It wasn't a poltergeist," Paige said. "And yes, Clayton, such things do exist, but this isn't how they manifest themselves. Someone inside that compound was responsible. What other supernaturals were there?"

"On the opposite side?" I said. "The teleporting half-demon we met in Pittsburgh, but he left a few days ago. Plus they supposedly had a sorcerer named Isaac Katzen on staff, though I never met the guy."

"A sorcerer could do it," Adam said.

"Some of it," Paige said. "Opening the cell doors, playing with the intercom system, jamming the exits. All possible sorcerer spells. But hurling objects and unscrewing lightbulbs? No way. That requires a very specific talent."

"Telekinesis," I murmured.

"Exactly," Paige said. "Several races have varying degrees of telekinetic power, such as-"

"Such as a telekinetic half-demon," I said. A lump of ice settled in my stomach. "But she said-Damn it!" I inhaled sharply. "There was one at the compound. A captive. She said she wasn't capable of stuff like that. And I believed her. I know that sounds incredibly stupid, but everyone believed her. Besides, she wasn't even around when most things happened."

"That doesn't matter," Paige said. "A Volo, the highest level of telekinetic half-demon, wouldn't need to be present to exercise her powers. I remember hearing about one case where a Volo could find an arrow in an adjoining room and fire it into a bull's-eye with enough force to shatter the shaft into matchsticks."

I closed my eyes. "How could I have been so stupid?"

"It's not your fault," Paige said. "Like you said, everyone believed her. When people think of telekinesis, they picture a person bending a spoon, but in reality Volos might well be the most dangerous type of half-demon. They could throw a person out a tenth-floor window without lifting a finger."

I cursed myself for having bought into Leah's whole girl-next-door routine, the displays of concern, the offers of help, the overtures of friendship. I'd believed Leah. I'd listened as she wove a web of lies and deceit around an innocent child, spreading the tendrils of doubt until Savannah herself believed she was guilty. Had Leah known about Ruth's training? Had she killed her to stop it? Whatever Leah's agenda, it involved Savannah. And I'd left them together.

Suddenly, I couldn't breathe. I staggered to my feet and ran from the room.

I heard Clay behind me. Not slowing, I loped around the motel and headed for the forest. He didn't call for me to stop or wait, just jogged up beside me as I walked into the forest.

"Paige is right," he said after a few minutes. "It wasn't your fault."

"Yes, it is. I wanted to get Savannah out. But I didn't. The moment came and I choked. I told myself that I was doing the best thing, leaving her in there, but deep down I knew better. I saw my chance to escape and I took it. To hell with everyone else."

"I don't believe that. If you left her behind, it's because you had to. We'll get her out when we go back."

"But it doesn't sound like we're going back anytime soon."

Jeremy stepped up behind us. "We'll return as soon as we're ready, Elena. You're safe, so I won't rush."

"But Savannah-"

"Our main objective is to stop these people, not to rescue anyone."

"But you were planning to go in for me."

"That's different. Clay and I were willing to take the risk. Everyone else was free to make their own decision. I won't risk your life or Clayton's by rushing in to rescue a stranger. Even a child."

"What if I decide to take that risk myself?"

"You're not free to make that decision, Elena. So long as you're part of the Pack, I can make it for you, and I am forbidding you to return."

"That's not-"

"Not fair," Jeremy finished. "Yes, we've been through this before. But it's Pack law. And don't threaten to leave the Pack because I will make certain you don't go back to that compound alone, no matter what rights to self-determination you claim. I take the responsibility for this decision. We'll make every effort to save this child when we return. If anything happens to her before we get there, blame me, not yourself."

I started to argue, but Jeremy was already walking away.

I didn't chase Jeremy down to pursue the matter. After ten years of living under his roof and his rules, I knew what worked and what didn't. Hounding him didn't. Once Jeremy made up his mind, the only way to change it was to erode the obstacles with logic and persuasion. Bring out the battering rams and he only doubled the fortifications. I'll admit, patience isn't one of my virtues, but I resolved to give the matter some time. A few hours at least. Maybe overnight.

"So the security system requires both a fingerprint check and a retinal scan?" Jeremy asked.

He was seated at the tiny dining table in our room. Clay and I were sprawled across the bed, Clay dozing, me trying hard not to join him.

"Uh, right," I said.

He jotted something onto his papers. "Index finger?"

"Huh? Oh, no. Sorry. It's a handprint, not a fingerprint. You grab the handle and it reads your handprint."

"We don't have to do this tonight. We'll have plenty of time later."

Not if I had anything to say about it. "I want to do it now, while it's fresh in my mind."

"Have we had dinner?" Clay's muffled voice floated up from the pillows.

"What?"

He rolled onto his back. "I'm counting meals. We had breakfast in Maine, then another breakfast here. Or was that brunch? If so, was the picnic lunch or dinner?"

"I'm counting it as lunch," I said.

"Good. Then let's go get dinner."

Jeremy insisted on being polite and inviting the others to join us. As Clay knocked at Kenneth and Adam's room, the neighboring door opened and Adam stepped out, turning to say a few words to someone inside. When Kenneth opened his door, Clay went in. I waited outside for Adam.

"We're going to dinner," I said. "Have you eaten?"

"Nope. I was just about to ask you guys the same thing. Let me grab my car keys."

"Was that Paige?" I said, nodding to the next room.

"Yeah. She's pretty upset."

"Should I ask her to join us?"

He shrugged. "You can ask, but I don't think she's feeling up to it. If not, tell her I'll bring something back."

I'd rather Adam asked Paige himself, but he vanished into his room, leaving me to it. I was probably the last person Paige wanted to see. Her aunt was dead and I hadn't even had the decency to tell her straight off. I inhaled, walked to her door, and rapped lightly, half hoping she might not hear me. After a second's pause, I turned to leave. Then I heard the clank of the chain lock and the door opened.

"Hey, there," Paige said, managing a wan half-smile. "You still up? How are you feeling? I've got some sleeping teas if you're having trouble."

How was I feeling? Oh, about two inches tall. Paige's eyes and nose were splotched red, as if she'd spent the last couple of hours crying, and she was worried that I might not be able to sleep?

"I'm really sorry," I said. "About your aunt. I don't mean to intrude, but we're heading out for dinner and I was wondering if you felt like joining us."

"No," she said. "Thanks, but no thanks."

"Adam said he'd bring something back for you."

She gave a distracted nod, paused, then said quickly. "Could you-I don't mean to be a pain. Really. I know you're tired and sore, and I hate to pester you, but could you stop by when you come back? I have-"

She stopped and looked over my shoulder. I heard Clay's footsteps behind me. Paige paused, then straightened up, as if bracing herself, and went on. "Clayton, I was just asking Elena if you could spare her for a while tonight. Thirty minutes tops. I promise."

"You're not coming to dinner?" he asked.

"I'd rather not."

"No one stays alone," he said. "That's Jeremy's rule." I shot him a glare, warning him to be more sensitive, but he didn't catch it and continued. "Cassandra will stay with you."

"Oh, she'll love that," Paige said.

"If she doesn't like the rules, she can leave."

"We should all be so lucky," Paige murmured under her breath. "Seriously, though. You don't need to leave someone behind with me. I have plenty of protection spells."

"Those are the rules," Clay said. "No one stays alone. It's not like Cassandra eats anyway." He started to leave, then added, "If Elena's feeling up to it, she can stop by with your dinner. Twenty minutes. Then she needs her rest."

"Gee, does that mean I have your permission?" I called after him.

"I'm not answering that," he said without turning.

"Smart man." I looked at Paige. "I'll pop by afterward."

"Thanks. I appreciate it."