"The Cage"

Sitting in class was the last place I wanted to be on a normal day, but it was nearly killing me to be here. I wanted to be home with Dee. There wasn't much I could do for her. Words were never good for grief, but I hated that I couldn't be there for her. I also wanted to be with Kat. Yeah, she was in the same building as me, but it wasn't the same. I wanted her close by.

I had no idea what the shape was that the teacher drew on the chalkboard. The only thing I really saw was how

amazing Kat had looked in my bed

how amazing she had felt and tasted. I could still feel

her without even trying. It was insane. Mind-blowing.

Stretching my legs out, I still couldn't believe I'd stopped.

Do it the right way? Man, I was going to need a training bra soon.

But stopping had felt right. We'd gone through a lot of crap and emotions. Honestly, I didn't want

our first time to be marred by grief and leftover anger. Might not have felt like it would've been in the

moment and maybe it wouldn't have, but I hadn't wanted to risk it.

When class finally ended, I made it out into the hallway and pulled my cell out of my pocket. I

frowned as I stepped around a cluster of classmates. There was a missed text from Kat that had come in

around forty minutes ago. Annoyed that I missed it, I clicked on the text.

Mom N accident. Going 2 hospital.

I came to a complete stop, stomach sinking. Where did her Mom work last night? I racked my

brain for an answer. Winchester. Roads were still slick in many areas and covered in snow in others.

Stepping out of the hallway traffic, I quickly called Kat.

It rang and rang. No answer.

Leaving a short message, I fought the urge to rush out of the school and find Kat. The problem

was I didn't know what hospital she would've gone to. It could be anywhere between here and

Winchester. I'd have to wait until she got back to me.

Patience was a virtue I didn

't believe in.

Before I headed into my next class, I checked in on Dee. She was as expected. Not good. Sitting

through history class

was a test in true control. When lunch arrived and I still hadn't heard from Kat after

trying her again and sending a text, I

couldn't stay at the school any longer.

On the way out, I tried her once more. Still no answer and a sense of unease built in my gut like

pools of acid. Cell service was spotty anywhere in town and the whole way into Virginia, but she

would've made

it to Winchester by now and Kat… she would've returned my calls, especially after

everything.

I stopped over at the Thompsons'

house before going home. Sorrow clung to the walls like mold.

Spending time with them, I found myself at a loss when it came to what I could say or do. A rare moment

in my life, but

death was a void that even I couldn't fully understand. Here one moment and gone the

next. Death was that quick.

There'd be a private funeral within the community. Adam's body would be

cremated, as was the

tradition, and then there'd be nothing.

There was already nothing but memories.

Heavy with those thoughts, I headed to our empty house, where I paced back and forth like a

lunatic. Several hours had passed and with no word from Kat, I started to feel desperate. What if her mom

had passed away and she was too distraught to call? What if she had gotten into an accident on the way to

the hospital? Her car was still in the driveway next door, so that meant Mr. Michaels mostly likely picked

her up.

I was halfway to where I left my phone on the coffee table, about to start calling every hospital I

could think of when it rang. There was a dip in my stomach as I shot through the room, picking it up.

"Kat?" I answered.

There was a stretch of silence and then, "No. This isn't Kat."

Concern

exploded. "Mr. Michaels? Where's Kat? Is she okay? What—?"

"She's not… really okay, Daemon."

I reached out, planting my hand on the wall, legs suddenly weak. That off-kilter sensation was the

same thing I felt before the officers had told me about Dawson. I knew Kat had to be alive, but…

"Daemon?"

I took a deep breath

. "What happened to her?"

"Nothing irreversible at this point."

Wait. What? I pushed off the wall, my whole world centering on what Mr. Michaels was saying.

"What do you mean by that,

Will

?"

There was a pause. "Kat is okay. Sort of. Well, she's definitely not having a lot of fun right now."

Fury rose like a heat wave. My fingers curled around the cell; grinding the plastic and metal. I

didn't know why he'd done something

to Kat

. I didn'

t care. All I knew was that I would kill him for this.

"You son—"

"Now, let's not

waste time. You can fix this, Daemon.

Are you listening? You don't want to miss

this."

"Oh, I'm listening. I'm also taking notes."

Mr. Michaels laughed dryly. "Come to the warehouse. You know exactly which one—

and

Daemon? I'd hurry if I were you."

The bastard hung up before I could respond. For a second, I stood there staring at the phone. My

skin tingled and I felt myself lose control of my human form. Tossing the phone aside, I shot toward the

door and was halfway down the driveway before I spun back

around, heading for Dolly. I didn't know

what was going on with Kat or if she was hurt and how badly. I would need to bring the car, which would

slow me down.

I broke about ten different speed laws as I raced out of town, toward the warehouse where those

two officers had cornered Kat. My mind was blank during the drive. I couldn't let myself think about

a

nything. I had to keep my cool. I couldn't let my

head go down that road

—

the one where she was hurt,

because after Blake and

Adam, I wasn't sure how I'd deal.

I'd probably lose my shit and expose my entire race.

The sky was a deep blue and cloudless as I pulled into the back of the warehouse. Parking Dolly,

I flew out of the car and around the building. The first door I came to was unlocked, which had me on

high alert.

Dim lighting in the ceiling cast yellow light over a metal desk and chairs. The stale smell of

cigarettes lingered, but there was nothing else. From memory, I darted to the right and up the stairs. There

was no time to prepare myself, to really even think about what might be waiting for me. I hit the second

floor landing and pushed the double doors open. The door slammed off cement walls.

What I saw almost brought me to my knees.

Disregarding where Will stood, my eyes locked on Kat. She was in a cage

—

a cage

. Like some

kind of rabid animal, chained up. So many emotions rushed me I almost lost complete hold of my human

form. Rage and desperation warred with just a flicker of relief. There was Kat. She was in one piece

—

Kat made the slightest movement toward me and her body spasmed. Her mouth dropped open in

a silent scream.

Cold fear whipped through me as I shot forward and gripped the bars. Sharp red-hot pain laced

my palms and I jerked back. "What

is

this

?" I glanced down at my palms and then at where the metal

circled her wrists. I was going to be sick, for the first time in my life.

"Onyx mixed with ruby and hematite," Will answered. "A nice

combinatio

n that doesn't sit well

with the Luxen or hybrids."

I

looked at Will. "I will kill you."

"No, I don't think you will." Will

moved a few steps back, though

. "Onyx covers every

entrance

to this building, so I know you

can't pull in any power or use

the light. I also have the keys to that cage

and those handcuffs. And

only I can touch any part of that."

"Maybe not now, but I will," I growled low in my throat. You can believe that."

That was a

promise I would keep.