“Caia, we’re coming with you.” Alexa and Jaeden rushed over.

Lucien opened his mouth to speak but Caia beat him to it. “No, you’re not.”

“But, Caia-”

“Do you want me to do this?” she hissed, feeling so angry at them. Stupidly she’d hoped their conscience would suddenly make an appearance, and they’d tell her no. Not that it would matter because Reuben would still take away his protection if she didn’t do it.

Jaeden blanched but Alexa just nodded enthusiastically. “Of course we do.”

“Then stay here.”

“Bu-”

Jaeden grabbed onto Alexa’s arm. “Be quiet, Lex. We’ll stay,” she agreed, and Caia could see a shimmer of guilt in her eyes. So she wasn’t so comfortable with blackmail after all. Too late.

Caia turned away from them and gave Vil and Laila a reassuring smile. “You’ll be fine here,” she promised and strode towards Reuben who stood at the doorway, waiting for her.

“Caia, wait!” Magnus ambled after her. He grabbed her arm and spun her around. She had never seen him look so mad before. “Why?”

Impetuously, she pulled him down to hug him close so she could whisper in his ear where the others couldn’t hear. “I can’t explain. I wish I could. But I can’t. I’m still me, I promise.” She choked on tears and he squeezed her tight.

“I love you,” he told her softly.

That was it. She had to get out of there before her control broke. “I have to go,” she mumbled and pushed away from him, hurrying from the room. Through the glass fronted doors she caught sight of Saffron waiting by Reuben’s car in the driveway. She crossed the foyer and felt Reuben at her back.

“I hate you,” she told him quietly.

After a moment of silence came his sad reply, “I know.”

Caia flinched at the sound of Lucien’s almighty roar from the dining room. It was followed by a horrendous crash. A shower of tinkling ensued.

Reuben sighed as he held the front door open for her. “There go my windows.”

Jaeden had never felt this guilty in her life. She still couldn’t believe Lucien had actually thrown Caia out of the pack. And everyone had let him! Ryder had let him! She wanted to beat the crap out of him for that. She ambled wearily along the corridors of the hotel. The place was surprisingly big and surprisingly nice. Everywhere was hardwood flooring and bright lighting. Faux flowers added a little romance here and there, and the paintings and décor were modern and airy, giving the whole place a sense of openness and space. The bedrooms were huge as well. She had taken one next door to Alexa and was studiously avoiding Ryder, who for the moment was thankfully preoccupied with making sure Lucien was OK. Their Alpha had cut himself up pretty good when he started throwing chairs through windows and smashing, crushing and basically destroying anything in his path after Caia had left. If it hadn’t been for Laila and Vil, who managed to magik them up some new windows, they would all be freezing their asses off. So… pfft! Who gave a damn if Lucien was hurt? He’d thrown Caia out.

You’re angry at yourself, not Lucien.

Like hell!

Dad would be so mad at you.

She growled at herself and stomped through the halls. She was looking for Lucien’s room. She wanted to give him a piece of her mind.

“There you are.”

She tensed at the voice and turned slightly to see her mate walking towards her determinedly. “Ryder.” She nodded at him as if they were strangers instead of mates.

He grunted at her, “Jaeden. Nice to see you. It’s been a while.”

“I’m not in the mood for your pathetic wit.”

At that he pushed her up against the wall, his eyes sparking with irritation. “I’m not in the mood for your childish behavior but still I’m going to put up with it because you’re my mate… or have you forgotten that?”

The feel of him close to her, his scent, his heat nudged at her heart, adamant to start it beating again. And she so wanted to just let go, to just fall into his arms and tell him everything and make him persuade Lucien to retrieve Caia. But she wouldn’t. Instead she pictured the gory sight of her father’s body.

She wanted revenge more.

“I haven’t forgotten,” she replied quietly. “Although I’m trying.”

Ryder flinched and she refused to feel bad for the hurt that flickered in his gaze. “What the hell does that mean?” he growled, pushing his face more aggressively closer.

She shrugged, pretending indifference. “I don’t want it. I don’t want… you,” she lied, struggling to forget her amazing first time with him that night at the Center. She’d never felt closer to anyone in her entire life.

He exhaled slowly and took a step back. “You’re grieving. And you’re angry. Confused. You need time.”

“I do need time,” she agreed with her dead eyes. “But I don’t need you.”

And with that she brushed past him ignoring his shocked countenance, and continued on through the hotel in search for Lucien, determined her heart wasn’t breaking.

After all… she didn’t have a heart left to break.

“Lucien.” Rose sighed, gazing up at him imploringly from the sofa in the bedroom suite he had chosen for himself. “Talk to me.”

He didn’t want to talk to anybody. He was afraid of the damage he would do; afraid he would take the frustration over Caia’s departure out on one of the pack. He had managed to shake off Ryder – who was pelting him with questions – and retreat to his room. Then Rose had shown up. She didn’t deserve his attitude.

“I really appreciate your concern, Rose, but-”

“But why don’t you stick your damn nose in someone else’s business.”

They turned to see Jaeden striding into the room, the door slamming shut behind her. Lucien frowned as he glared at Rose.

“Jaeden,” he warned.

She sneered at him and he flinched at the disrespect. Jae had never dared to look or speak to him in any manner but that which she owed her Alpha. “Don’t,” she bit out and then turned back on Rose. “Get out.”

Rose’s mouth fell open momentarily before she remembered herself. Her eyes narrowed dangerously. “You don’t tell me what to do.”

“Jaeden, don’t speak to Rose like that.”

“Don’t speak to Rose like that?” She guffawed and sliced him another disdainful look. “Pity you can’t show the kind of concern you reserve for your ex-girlfriend for your actual mate. Or has Caia already been forgotten and I’m interrupting the re-stirrings of a beautiful relationship here?”

For some reason her remark stung and Lucien felt a sense of shame. Not about Rose. There was nothing going on with Rose. He loved Caia. Which was exactly why he felt sick to his stomach for kicking her out of the pack. His plan had totally backfired.

“Rose, can you give us a minute?” He nodded to the door.

By the tensing of her shoulders he knew Rose was annoyed at being dismissed, but if he didn’t have this out with Jaeden now they would be at each other’s throats for days… weeks even.

When Rose was gone, Lucien turned his full attention to Jaeden, reminding himself she was going through an unimaginably difficult time and to be patient with her. “If you’ve come to shout at me about Caia you can stop. I already feel as bad as I’m going to feel.”

Jae curled her lip. “I somehow doubt that. I mean you have Rose hanging out with you already.”

He sighed, running his hands through his hair. “Jaeden, Rose is none of your business.”

She smirked derisively. “Is that why you kicked Caia out? To be with Rose?”

“For goddess sakes, Jaeden, no!” He yelled dropping down into a seat, glaring at her the whole time. “I love Caia.”

“Oh yeah sure, I really got that you know… when you humiliated her and kicked her out of the only family she’s ever known.”

Sharp streaks of guilt spiked him all over. “Don’t. Do you think I wanted to? But this pack has been through enough and Caia is going to do something unforgiveable. We need out of this and Reuben has promised us safety.”

A tense silence fell between them before she finally nodded and lowered herself into the seat across from him. Her eyes were suddenly limped pools and he saw a reflection of his own guilt in them. “And what about Caia’s safety?”

“You think I don’t care?” he hissed. “You think I just threw her out of here like it was nothing? She is my mate, Jaeden. It goes against everything that I am to throw her to the proverbial wolves like that… but she’s made this insane decision and her reasons are not good enough for me to back her up.”

He couldn’t understand. He needed to understand. He needed to run.

“I don’t think her decision is insane.”

Lucien shook his head. “Jaeden, we’re not going to kill innocent people to further our means. I don’t know why Caia feels she has to do it, there’s no good reason-”

“Oh for the love of the gods, Lucien!” Jaeden snapped out of her seat. “This is Caia! She always has a good reason!”

What did she want from him? What did she want him to say? That what Caia was doing was OK? Because it wasn’t. It would never sit right with him.

“Jaeden, I don’t want to argue. In fact, I want to go for a run. So you can stay here bitching at the wall or you can come with me.”

She screwed her face up at him like a child and took a moment. Finally, she exhaled with a huff, “Fine. I’ll come running with you. But I want you to know that I think she’s doing the right thing.”

He shrugged numbly refusing to look at her, feeling little more than a young boy lost.

“Dear Gaia,” she breathed. “You think she’s going to change her mind. You only kicked her out ‘cause you don’t believe she’ll go through with it.”