The next morning, Selina woke up before Elijah did, and even though it wasn't her turn to do the morning chores, she found she couldn't go back to sleep, so she left Elijah a note that she put on her pillow and headed to the kitchen. She sat and looked at the view for a while, then made herself a cup of coffee. Then she decided to make another one and see if Remiel was up. She knew that coming to the ranch was a change and combined with the pregnancy, it was a lot to deal with at once, so she just wanted to check in. At the very least, to make sure the angel had made it through the first night without trouble. Cause that was a good start. She took the second cup she made and headed down the hallway, pausing by the half open door to speak in a whisper. "Remiel? Are you okay? Do you need to talk? I have coffee!" Then, she looked in, her jaw dropping just a little.

"Huh," Seeing no Remiel in her room, Selina took the cup of coffee and looked the one other place she thought Remiel might be: Ricky's room. She tiptoed very quietly to the door, opening it just enough with her free hand that she could see Ricky and Remiel tangled up in each other, but fully clothed and sound asleep. "Awww!" She whispered. "How sweet!"

She turned around, bumping into Elijah who had sneaked behind her, grabbed the cup tighter just in time to stop it from falling, and then put a finger to her lips before gesturing for him to come closer to the door and take a peek.

He yawned and smiled at her before she closed the door, grabbed his hand, and they both walked back to the kitchen where she promptly teared up.

"I'm so glad he found someone!" She said. "I hope it lasts!"

"It's a good start," Elijah agreed. "But remember that they still have a long way to go."

"Yes, but, she's a sweet girl," Selina told him. "He needs someone like her."

"I like her," Elijah grinned.

"Of course you do," Selina scoffed. "She calls you Supreme being."

"Speaking of," Elijah replied and spanked her. "Now bow down to your master and get me a cup of coffee, woman!"

Selina scoffed and drank the one she poured for Remiel. "Hell no. You get your own damn coffee. And if you actually want me to call you that, you have to come up with a nickname for me that has the same sort of ring to it. Like Empress Selina of Southern Comfort Ranch. And say t to my face. Got it, you ungrateful man?"

Elijah grumbled and scoffed, but got his own coffee. "If that's not the most ridiculous thing I ever heard," he got out, loud enough that she could hear.

"No, I think you insisting that I call you Supreme being when you know me better than that is way more ridiculous," Selina countered.

By the time Ricky came into the kitchen, both Elijah and Selina were drinking their coffee and juice in tense silence. "Good morning, Grandma, Grandpa," he greeted. "Am I interrupting something? It feels really tense in here."

"No, you didn't interrupt anything, sweetheart," she told him. "Don't worry."

"Good morning, Ricky," Elijah grinned as he put his paper down. "How did you sleep last night? Did you sleep well?"

This made Selina spit out her juice and turn her laugh into a cough, changing the mood significantly.

"I...I suppose I did," Ricky replied. Even though he and Remiel had gone to bed fully clothed, he still felt himself blush.

Selina leaned in closer to Elijah and gave him a wink and a nudge. "And I wonder if Remiel slept well too."

"Of course she did," Elijah nodded and winked back. "How could she not? The blankets on that bed of hers are just as comfy as if someone crawled into bed with you and put their arms around you!"

"I...I wouldn't know," Ricky lied. "The last time I saw her was last night when she was finished brushing her teeth and on the way to her room. No time after that."

"Right," Selina nodded. "I see."

Just then, Ricky's phone rang. "Oh, it's Natalie!"

"Who's that?" Selina wanted to know.

"A girl from my class at the tattoo parlor," Ricky explained. "She was gonna bring me more books of tattoo designs to practice sketching. I almost completely forgot. She's out there now, so I'm gonna go...deal with that. Be back soon!"

"Wait a minute!" Selina cried.

"What, I'm sorry," Ricky turned. "I promise I won't ask her out or anything. We're just friends, I swear!"

"No, I wasn't even thinking about that!" Selina shook her head and grabbed a muffin off the plate on the table. "Since it's early, why don't you take this to her in case she hasn't had any breakfast? I know it's not much, but at least it's something in her stomach."

"Right," Ricky flushed and took the muffin. "Thanks!"

The second the front door closed, Remiel shuffled into the kitchen, rubbing her eyes and stretching. Then she yawned and gave Selina and Elijah a small, shy smile. "Good morning Selina. And Supreme be-" She paused and shook her head. "I mean, Elijah."

"Good morning, Remiel," Selina nodded.

"Good morning," Elijah returned, then gave a small pout. "No calling me Supreme being anymore, I guess?"

"Apparently not," Selina shook her head. "And I think that's best for everyone."

Remiel sat down on one of the chairs around the island and gave Elijah a very serious look. "I can still call you that if you want."

"No, no, I was teasing, I promise," Elijah assured her. "Just being silly. How did you sleep? Very well, I hope?"

"Yes, thank you," Remiel nodded. "Many long and peaceful hours. And I hope you did too."

"I think we did," Selina smiled. "Thank you for asking. "Now, are you feeling up to some breakfast?"

"I don't think I should, but thank you," Remiel told her. "I think I made it through the night without being sick and I want to keep that going. This morning sickness is not fun at all. It takes me forever to get up the courage to put things in my mouth and then when I do, they fight with my stomach and just come back up again!"

"Oh, I'm sorry," Selina apologized and put a hand on Remiel's shoulder. "I'll make you some tea with lemon and honey. That should help."

"Thank you," Remiel smiled and took the cup. "I appreciate it."

"You're welcome," Selina smiled. "You want to come with us into the foyer? We usually have drinks and read the paper and things like that before we eat." She paused. "That'll give you a chance to talk a little before the food smells catch up with you and you have to run and hide to get away from them."

"Sure," Remiel nodded. "Thank you. I would love that." She paused. "Is Ricky in there too? I didn't see him this morning and I wondered where he went."

"No, he's outside," Selina told her, trying to phrase it delicately. "A person from his class brought him some drawing books to practice with."

"Ah," Remiel licked her bottom lip and put her hands behind her back. "I see."

So they headed into the foyer and Elijah continued to read the paper after giving Selina the comic pages and entertainment section. They read in peace for a little bit until Elijah heard swishing noises and looked up in surprise to see Remiel running from window to window (there were many), opening up the curtains, and peering out.

"What do you think she's doing?" He whispered. "The view isn't different from window to window."

"I believe she's seen the competition and wants a good look at what it seems she's up against," Selina whispered back.

"Just what in the world do you mean by that?" Elijah wanted to know.

Then, loud laughter sounded from outside. "You remember Ricky's friend?" Selina reminded him.

"You can't mean that!" Elijah decided. "That's absolutely ludicrous! There's no way Ricky would want to be with anyone else besides Remiel!"

"Well, you know that and I know that...but she doesn't right now," Selina reminded him. "And she's experiencing having feelings and relationships for the first time, remember. And I don't think she likes seeing Ricky talking to another woman very much. You should go talk to her."

"Why me?" Elijah asked. "You're the woman! It should be you!"

Selina pulled a penny that she'd found on the floor that morning out of the pocket of her red polka dot bathrobe. "Let's flip for it. I pick heads!"

"All right," Elijah nodded. "Let's do it." He took it from her and flipped it, groaning.

"Ha, ha, I won!" Selina crowed.

"Damn it!" Elijah swore.

After the laughter abated, Remiel ran into kitchen and sat down at the table, drumming her nails on the wood. "I don't believe it!" She yelled. "Did you see that woman Ricky was talking to? Her, you know-" She gestured at her chest. "This part is so big! And you know the yellow hair, and the-Oh, I just can't believe-"

Elijah tried his best to calm her down. "Are you all right?" He asked gently.

She shook her head. "No!" She yelled. "I am not all right!"

"Well, all right," Elijah nodded, very shocked and unable to think of anything more to say.

Selina then came in and looked back and forth between the two and sighed. "Elijah, why can't you handle this? What's so hard?"

"Hey, I tried my best!" Elijah defended himself. "But she said she wasn't all right, and she said it really loud, and I don't know how to respond to that!"

Selina sighed and rolled her eyes. "You wanna go to your office?" She asked.

"Yes, please," Elijah nodded and stood up. "I would like that very much."

He ran off and Selina took a seat next to Remiel. "Why aren't you all right?" She asked gently. "I mean, I know it's because of Ricky, but...you wanna talk about it?"

"No, and I'm not upset," Remiel shook her head, speaking firmly but quietly. "I'm fine!"

"You know you don't have to hold it in like that with me," Selina reminded her. "You can tell me if something is making you unhappy and I promise I won't laugh or anything."

"Well, I just..." Remiel gritted her teeth. "Who is that girl outside talking to Ricky? Do you know?"

"It's no one you need to worry about," Selina replied. "Just a woman from Ricky's class. She came to bring him more books to study."

"And she has blonde hair and blue eyes," Remiel got out.

"Yes, but you're much prettier than she is," Selina assured her.

"We both think so," Elijah added. He had sneaked back from his office, less intimidated now that all of Remiel's energy was now focused on someone other than him. "You look...unique and exotic. And very, very beautiful."

"You think so?" Remiel asked.

"I promise," Selina nodded and put a hand on her shoulder. "We both do."

Just then, Ricky came back, happily whistling through his teeth. "Hi, everyone. Remiel, I am so glad to see you up! I just got some new stuff to study but that doesn't mean I'm gonna forget about you."

Remiel frowned at him, arms crossed and chin raised. "Well, I wouldn't want to interfere with your studying!" She cried, then turned on her heel. "Have a nice day and goodbye!"

She strode off to her bedroom and soon they all heard the door slam.

"What was that about?" Ricky asked. "What have I done?"

Selina chuckled. "Nothing, really. Remiel just...you know how she's learning about feelings. She saw you outside with Natalie and it made her a bit jealous. Scared that you were looking elsewhere and were gonna leave her alone in a scary situation."

"I have to tell her I wouldn't do that!" Ricky said. "It just...that hurts!" He paused, a small grin curving his lips. "But was she really jealous? That's...I think I like that. Is it bad that I like that?"

"It certainly seemed like she was jealous," Elijah confirmed. "And it's not wrong to be flattered by it. It happens."

"You should go tell her the truth," Selina urged him. "I know she's mad now, but I'm sure that if you apologize and are gentle, she'll let you in her room. Remember to acknowledge her feelings. You don't have to go on and on about how you did something wrong, but don't tell her she's being ridiculous either. That will make things worse."

"I won't," Ricky assured her. "Thanks!" Then he shook his head. "I hope this works," he remarked, and took a deep breath before heading to Remiel's room to explain everything.

"Are we good or are we good?" Selina asked once he was gone.

"We're good," Elijah grinned and clinked his cup against Selina's. "We most certainly are."

Meanwhile, as Ricky made his way to Remiel's door, he tripped over the edge of a nearby rug, and whacked his head on the door. "Damn it," he yelled. "That hurt!"

The door opened and Remiel glared down at him. "Are you okay?" She asked, her voice frosty.

"Yes, I'm fine," Ricky replied.

"Good," Remiel told him. "Goodbye!"

She moved to shut the door, but Ricky stopped it with his hand. "Please don't shut the door on me," he said and got up. "Let me explain!"

"What's there to explain?" Remiel asked. "You were talking to a pretty woman with blonde hair, blue eyes, and a large chest and here I am, fat, with my boring dark hair and dark eyes...nice to find out you wanted something else that way!"

"That's just it!" Ricky cried. "I don't! I don't want anything else!" He made his way into the room, put his arms around her, and held her close to himself. "The woman was from my class and was just giving me books of photos to practice sketching. That's all. I have no interest in her romantically. Why would I when I've got you?"

"Because I'm no prize," Remiel sighed. "I know that. I get worked up over the tiniest things...I've never had much control...I'm not a cheery cake baker like your mother...so why in the world would you want...?"

"Because I do!" Ricky said.

"Tell me why, please?" Remiel insisted. "Tell me what's good about me. Tell me why, when there are so many other women in the world who know what they're doing and how to just...be people, you want me."

Ricky sighed. "It's very hard to explain," he said. "And if I say it out loud, you'll probably hate me. But part of why I like you and want you the most is because you don't have things together. Neither do I! I'm as big a mess as you are. We're extremely attractive big messes together! Do you know how screwed up I'd feel if I was with someone who knew how to do everything right? We can learn together. We can build each other up. We can laugh, we can cry, we can get angry...then go to bed, wake up in the morning, and do it all over again. That's why I want you. Is that enough? I have more."

"N...no..." Remiel shook her head and hugged him back. "That's good enough. You can tell me the rest some other time."

"And by the way," he whispered, "Natalie's nice, but she's also married with three kids. So don't worry. Please?"

"I won't," Remiel said. "Not anymore, now that you've explained."

"Good," Ricky nodded. "I love you best, don't forget that, please."

"I won't," Remiel shook her head. "I promise."

Beep! Beep! Beep!

"Ugh!" Astrid opened her eyes, looked around, then looked at the clock on her desk. Damn! She had a meeting in an hour and she'd meant to get up befire her alarm. No time to run home and shower, or continue her research, or...

She sighed and zapped herself neat. She didn't have to look in a mirror to realize that she probably wasn't a pretty sight. Sleeping crammed on a small office sofa would do that to a person.

Just as she set her last hair in place, she heard a loud thud and turned to see Alistair, who was frowning at her. "Figured you'd be here, since you didn't come home last night," he said flatly. "It's always 'work, work, work' with you, isn't it? Oh, and I found the list of books you wanted. It was on the kitchen table. Since you don't want to see me, I thought I'd be the nice one and bring them to you."

"Oh, don't be like that," Astrid said, and tried to embrace him, but he moved away. "It's not that I don't want to be at home, but helping Helene with the defense for her trial is a lot of work."

"Obviously!" Alistair cried. "She kidnapped and jailed a pregnant woman. How in the world do you defend that? Have you lost your mind?"

"You said you weren't going to mention that again," Astrid muttered through her teeth.

"Well, I lied," Alistair shot back.

Astrid began leafing through one of the books he's brought, then looked up, eyes wide. "Ooooh! I know, we could say that she was insane at the time of the kidnapping! That'll get her a lighter sentence!"

"She doesn't need a lighter sentence!" Alistair cried. "She needs to face the consequences of her actions! And besides that, how is it gonna look for your leadership as a whole if you're going easy on your daughter when you know punishments for crimes such as hers are much harsher?"

"You don't care about your daughter, do you?" Astrid screamed. "You don't give a damn about her at all!"

"I do," Alistair replied in a much calmer voice. "But I also care about Eloise and what she went through. I can't believe you're so blind that you've forgotten that." He paused. "I know what evil looks like. Think about all the time I've been around Klaus."

"There you go again," Astrid sighed. "Klaus this, Klaus that. If you think he's so great, why don't you just go back to working for him, even though it took a lot of effort to get you out of that deal with him the first time!"

"I know that you're just being sarcastic, but we've actually talked about my coming back," Alistair told her. "And he's accepted my offer."

"Excuse me?" Astrid's jaw dropped, she blinked rapidly, and then sank heavily into her desk chair. "I can't believe it. Why would you leave the council to go back and work for that...for that..."

"Because I feel like it's time to make some changes, Astrid," Alistair said firmly. "I'm starting by leaving the council, and once that's done, I'm gonna work on leaving...other things."

"What other things?" Astrid asked. "By 'things' you mean our marriage, right? Even though that's technically one thing."

Alistair shrugged. "Semantics don't matter. I've decided after all this time to face facts and that it would be best to just give you want you want. I'm not blind; I know that your mind has never truly been on marriage."

Tears began to fill Astrid's eyes. "I...I don't know what you're talking about! How could you say...?"

"I've never truly been enough for you," Alistair replied. "You want more in life than just a home and kids. Oh sure, we get a couple decades here, a year or two there...but then a government job comes along and off you go. You tell me you'll write...take a few days leave from time to time...but then you get busy and you forget. It's how it was during World War II and all those years after, and even though I hoped it would be different this time...it's the same. I mean, can you tell me the last time we...danced together? Went on a date? Said 'I love you'? Kissed?"

Astrid's heart sank. "I..." she began and trailed off when she realized with a sinking heart that she couldn't give him any answers he would like.

"You see?" Alistair got out. "You like work. It fulfills you more than I can. And I...I deserve better than that. I want a home. I want a wife. I want a home with a wife. And since you can't give me that, I'll have my things out of the house by the end of the day."

Astrid opened her mouth to reply, but was interrupted (or saved) from responding by a knock at the office door. "Come in," she said.

"Sorry," Malachai poked his head in. "I hope I'm not interrupting, Astrid. Your assistant said you weren't busy."

"Of course you can come in," Astrid sniffled and wiped her eyes. "We're done." She then said to Malachai, "Thank you so much for coming to help me with Helene's case."

"Oh?" Alistair raised an eyebrow. "You've agreed to do that? You might not know this, but she wants you to do whatever you can to get our daughter off. I disagreed when it was my job. Thank you for taking over so I can quit."

Malachai looked at Astrid. "You know I'm more than happy to help, but I'm not just going to give you the tools to let Helene off the hook. She needs to face what she's done."

"Thank you!" Alistair cried. "See? He agrees with me!"

"Don't you have packing to do?" Astrid snapped. "Goodbye, Alistair!"

"What's going on?" Malachai wanted to know as he looked back and forth between the pair. "Is something wrong?"

"Nothing much," Alistair replied. "I've just decided to leave the council. Good luck with Astrid, Malachai. You'll need it."

He slammed the door and then Astrid burst into tears and grabbed Malachai tight. "It's...it's okay," he said, surprised, but trying to stay calm. "Whatever's wrong, we'll fix it, okay?"

"Please don't make any promises you can't keep," Astrid requested. "In fact, don't say anything more. Just hold me, all right?"

"Yeah," Malachai nodded, still a little lost and stunned. "Okay."

Ludovic grinned as yet another rat scampered toward him in his cell and he grabbed it. "You know, I'm not in very nice accommodations right now," he said. "It's like a prison in here!" He then broke the rat's neck and threw it into the ever growing pile by the wall "Forty-five dead rats on the floor, forty-five dead raaats! If one more dies and it lands by the wall, there'll be forty-six dead rats on the floor!"

"Hey!" Yelled one of the guards. "Shut up!"

"Why?" Ludovic yelled back. "I've always thought I have a pleasant voice! Stop disturbing my singing!"

"Meet your new friend," The guard told him as he watched them try and force a struggling woman into the cell next to his. But she was firmly resisting. "Unhand me!" She yelled. "I'm Alistair and Astrid's daughter. I'm practically your boss! You'll pay for this, you miscreants!" Her eyes widened when she saw Ludovic. "You can't put me in here with that common trash!"

"We know who you are," the guard told her. "And we promised your parents we'd take very good care of you."

"Wow," Ludovic said with a smirk as he looked down at her through the bars. Her clothes were dirty now, her hair was tangled, and she glared at him as she struggled to get up off the floor. "You really know how to make friends."

"Oh, shut up!" Helene spat. "No one asked for your opinion!"

Once she was on her feet, she grabbed the cell bars tight and began begging. "Please!" She yelled at the guard. "Get me better accommodations than this! I don't see how sticking me in here with lowlife bastard criminals such as that-" she gestured wildly at Ludovic-"is going to help me learn any lesson."

"You are ordered by the council to stay locked up in maximum security until your trial," the guard snapped and rubbed his temples, wondering how many more times he'd have to explain that to her.

Meanwhile, Ludovic was laughing uproariously. "I wish I had some popcorn," he said. "This is like the funniest thing ever!"

"And why is that?" Helene demanded as she began to pace back and forth because there wasn't much else to do.

"Well, first off," he said as he surveyed her jumpsuit. "Orange really is not your color. Did they have any pink jump suits? You seem much more like a spring than an autumn."

"Oh, bite me!"

"I'd be glad to if you came closer to the bars," Ludovic said slyly and licked his lips.

Helene's mouth twisted in disgust. "You're gross! I can't believe I'm stuck in here with you! How did I end up here? I'm a good girl!"

"Well, your definition of 'good' is very strange," Ludovic told her. "Because, to recap, you're here due to: extortion, kidnapping, and holding an innocent pregnant woman against her will. I don't think a good person would do any of those things."

"Don't forget that you helped me!" Helene reminded him. "You wanted money, so you kidnapped that pregnant girl!"

"Don't remind me!" Ludovic told her. "It was the biggest mistake of my life! I rue the day I laid eyes on you!"

"I came to you first!"

"I don't know why I didn't kick your ass out of my camp that day! I should have left you face down in the muck! It would have improved it!"

"Someone must've hit you in the face with a brick or something when you were a kid and it obviously never healed!"

They went on like this for hours, trying to out do each others' insults, until, at last, a guard came and rapped on both their cell doors. "It's lights out, you two. I don't want to hear another word! Or else!"

"Or else what?" Helene asked. "You'll tell my mother on me?"

"Oooh! She's got you there, Captain!" Ludovic said.

"Don't tempt me," The guard told her. "Lights out and silence. Now."

"Fine," Helene huffed, getting on her hard cot and pulling the itchy blanket over herself. "Whatever."

Then it got darker, and before Helene's eyes closed, she thought she heard, "Good night, idiot," from the next cell.

"Goodnight, loser," she whispered back, then did her best to go to sleep in the cold, dark, dirty room.

The next morning, the guard came back and woke her up rather rudely and roughly. "Fale, come here!" He yelled.

"What?" Helene asked, sitting up and wiping her bleary eyes.

"You have a visitor."

"I do?" Helene asked, eyes brightening. "Who is it? My father? My mother? I knew they wouldn't keep me in this horrible place forever. They probably just wanted to teach me a little lesson before they let me out."

But then, another figure stepped out from the shadows beside the guard and the angry look in his eyes made Helene shrink back a little. "I'll teach you a lesson," he told her. "I've just been waiting for the chance."

"Adrian," she whispered and then began babbling.

"That's Adrian?" Ludovic asked. "Great! Now the fun will begin!"

"Oh, shut the fuck up, this is none of your business!" Adrian snapped. "I have every right to yell at you too, you know. You were also a part of what happened to my wife. But since, for some reason, she wants me to spare you, just stay out of all this."

"Well, all right, touche," Ludovic conceded. "But can I ask...how is your wife? Is she okay? Is...is the baby okay?"

"Yes, no thanks to Helene," Adrian nodded. "My wife is fine. Nothing went wrong, through some miracle. Now, do you mind?"

"Fine," Ludovic nodded and curled up in a corner opposite the rat pile. "Just talk quiet and don't disturb my sleep."

"Fine, I won't, Sleeping Beauty!" Adrian spat. Then he turned back to Helene. "I should throttle you!" He said. "If I were allowed, I would reach through those bars and just slowly strangle the life out of you!"

"I-"

"Shut up!" Adrian hissed. "I'm far from being done and you can talk when I say. Did you know she was pregnant when you kidnapped her? If you did and you still treated her badly...you are just...you are the worst! I hope Ellie or whoever is in charge of Hell now finds out and gives you the same treatment for a long time! All the time we were married, you went on and on about how I should be more selfless and let us have a family, but the second I get to that point, you kidnap my wife and try and destroy my chance to have a good, stable home life. Why would you do that to me? Why?"

"I did it for her and the baby," Helene got out. "So you wouldn't be able to hurt them like you hurt me."

"Oh, don't give me that bullshit," Adrian spat. "This wasn't about saving anyone. You were pissed and you wanted to take it out on someone. You hated that things turned out well for me and they sucked for you!"

"But-"

"Seriously, tell me," Adrian hurried on. "What did you think this would prove? I mean besides the delusion that Eloise and the baby were in danger from me and you would get to be the hero by 'saving' them."

"That's pretty much what I thought it would prove," Helene muttered without looking him in the eye. "They would be gone or dead and you would be miserable. Then I would be happy cause we'd both be miserable at the same time."

"You are really sick, you know that?" Adrian scoffed. "And I am so glad to find you in here instead of walking around out there and being a danger to polite society. Did you think your parents would just let something like this slip past them? That it wouldn't matter because they make the laws and you're their daughter?"

"Well, yeah."

Adrian growled, narrowed his eyes, reached between the bars and slapped her. "You...you are just...I can't..." He shook his head. "I don't believe you! You are lower than dirt! This is the best place for you. I hope the rats eat your face while you're sleeping! I hope someone murders you in here because you're dumb enough to pick a fight and think you're gonna win! And I hope...with every breath in my body, that your parents exercise good judgement, and never let you out so that you never see daylight again!"

"I'm sorry!" She cried as she gripped the bars. "Adrian, I am so sorry!"

"Too little too late," Adrian shook his head. "Did you think you would just be able to apologize and smooth everything over? Because it's not enough. Nothing ever will be." He shook his head and let out a breath. "Shame on you." Then he turned on his heel to face the guard. "Get me out of here."

The guard took Adrian and left as Helene gripped the bars, slowly sliding down until she was on her knees on the floor, then sobbing face first in the dirt.

"I wanna die," she cried. "Just let me die, please! I don't have anything to live for!"

Ludovic let this go on for some time and then got up and whistled at her. "Would you stop?" He asked.

"Sorry," Helene sniffled. "Am I disturbing your sleep?"

"No, I just think you're being pathetic," Ludovic shook his head.

"No, I'm not!" Helene shook her head. "I got nothing! My parents hate me, I don't have a boyfriend, my kids probably won't ever talk to me again after this...so what's left?"

"I don't know," Ludovic shook his head. "But what I do know is that whatever it is, you're strong enough to figure it out. Don't just give up!"

"Leave me alone!" Helene gasped.

"I'm serious," Ludovic insisted. "You have your whole life ahead of you. This is just a bump. well, actually it's more of a big, ugly pot hole or a giant crack in the pavement, but you have lots of other days ahead of you and it'll get better!"

"Not if I'm stuck in a cell my whole life," Helene got out. "And before you suggest it, I don't think books and potpourri will cheer this place up any."

"I wasn't gonna say anything as dumb as that," Ludovic shook his head. "I doubt you'll be stuck in this cell forever. I might be cause I don't have any sympathy to appeal to from anyone around here, but you might if you behave yourself.

"You think?" Helene sniffled.

"I do," Ludovic nodded. "I do."

"Will you stop pacing?" Helene asked sometime later. They didn't really know what time it was, but they assumed it was dark. "Sit down."

"No," Ludovic shook his head. "I can't be cooped up like this. I need to get out!"

"Oh, please!" Helene chuckled. "Like that'll happen. I'm not even gonna get out and you're lower than dirt, so what chance to do you have? You even said so yourself earlier, remember?"

"More of one than you think," he said with a grin as a bit of light suddenly entered the cell. "I have a trick or two up my sleeve."

Helene then watched in horror and struggled to back away as he began to transform into a wolf. Glad that she had the bars to protect her, she tried to get a good look at the animal, even though her heart was pounding and she wanted to scream. She'd seen Adrian transform, of course, but this was different. Whereas Adrian had been very much an animal, the creature in the cell next to hers seemed almost human as it gave her a look, growled, and strode off into the shadows.

The noise of the transformation brought the guard back and he frowned at Helene after looking in the seemingly empty cell. "Where's the prisoner?" He asked. "You're not keeping him in there with you, are you?"

"What prisoner?" Helene asked innocently. She had to admit that she wasn't the world's best actress, but if Ludovic was going to escape and saw that she was capable of being helpful, maybe he'd let her come with him. Anything would be better than being stuck here. Even the prospect of a life on the run with him. "You mean the guy who was here? I'm sure he's in there and you're not looking hard enough. Get in the cell and see."

The guard looked at her suspiciously, but to her disbelief, did what she suggested. Then Ludvic pounced and pinned the man to the floor, growling and snapping at his face. She almost felt sorry for him. Then she remembered that the guard was in league with her parents and she didn't feel sorry for him at all, silently cheering Ludovic on.

Finally, the guard was in no position to move. Not dead, but injured enough that there was no way he'd be able to leave the cell on his own.

Satisfied, Ludovic turned back to human, either forgetting or not caring that Helene was watching and getting a very good view of him.

"Wow," she breathed. He was very lithe and muscular. And though it was hard to truly tell in the dim light, she decided he was probably well-endowed too. She blushed as this thought crossed her mind. Not that it mattered, she told herself. Not at all.

"See anything you like?" He asked.

"Yeah, I...sorry," she apologized and turned her head away.

"Oh, calm down," he said. "I don't mind. It's not like I had no idea things would end up like this." He paused. "Now, if you've had enough, I'm going to take this guy's clothes and get out of here! No point in staying another minute if I don't have to!" He got the guard's clothes on and grabbed his keys. "Bye!" He saluted her. "Have a nice life!"

"Wait a damn minute!" Helene said. "I helped you and you're just gonna leave me here to rot? Some friend you are!"

"I didn't ask for your help," Ludovic reminded her. "You did that on your own. I thank you for it, but I don't think I owe you anything in return. You have a debt to society and you should pay it." He paused. "You'll be fine, you're among your own. I'm not, so I won't be and I need to go. I hope you'll understand."

"I'm not gonna be fine!" Helene cried, tears falling down her cheeks. "In fact, things will probably be worse for me, considering what I did. They'll probably hang me, or set me on fire, or..." The thought of one of the old punishments being used on her was just too much. She began sobbing in earnest and wheezing so hard she could barely breath.

"Oh, shit," Ludovic muttered. "I know I'm gonna regret this. Damn my soft heart!" He opened the door with one of the keys on the guard's key ring and pulled her out. "All right, you can come with me. But your powers better work out there in case we need them."

"They will," she nodded. "It's only in the cell block that they don't."

"Good," Ludovic nodded. "Let's go. Don't say a word or do anything dumb that will get us caught. Do you think you can manage that?"

Helene nodded, her lips pursed.

"Good girl," Ludovic told her. Then grabbed her by the hand and pulled her along after him as they made a run for freedom.

Malachai gave Astrid a gentle kiss on the forehead and hugged her for what some would say was too long, although there was nothing sensual about their touching. "Are you going to be all right?" He asked.

"Yes, thank you," Astrid sighed. "I'll be fine."

"All right," Malachai nodded and let her go to make his way to the door. "But you know where I am if you need me."

Once he was gone, Astrid turned from the door, took a deep breath, and began straightening up her desk. When she heard a noise behind her, she froze. Alistair was standing just inside the office door, a smirk on his face.

"Sorry," he apologized. "Was I interrupting something?"

"I thought you left!" Astrid cried.

"I changed my mind," Alistair told her. "And lucky for me, too. How long have you and Malachai been carrying on like that? Very long? Have you been grateful I've been so blind?"

"Oh, you're a complete and utter fool, Alistair Fale," she sighed and rolled her eyes.

Then he burst out laughing and she caught a whiff of his breath as he strode up to her desk and leaned against it. "And since when have you been drinking? Where in the world did you find alcohol?"

In spite of how mad she was at him, when he stumbled just a little, she reached out to catch him, and he pushed her away. "Get off," he mumbled. "Don't touch me!"

"Fine," Astrid sighed. "If you don't notice you're too drunk to stand up straight, that's not my problem." She even tried to push him over, but even though he was more lithe than muscular, he still didn't move.

"Are you through?" He asked.

"I guess so," Astrid nodded and sighed deeply.

"So," Alistair pressed. "How long has he liked you? Has he kissed you?"

Astrid chuckled incredulously. "You're ridiculous! Malachai doesn't like me that way! We're friends! I wouldn't do something that immoral to you!"

"Yes, well, it would have been nice for you to have done something to me!" Alistair cried. "Why is it that you can stand Malachai's touch and not mine? He went out of his way to touch you. How could you not see that he finds you attractive? But if you can't notice any of the effort I put in, it's not surprising that you're blind to his games as well!" He paused. "But maybe I was a fool to point it out to you because you'll probably go running to him now. A whore is a whore and this way, you can get in your time in bed and not completely disrupt your precious work schedule!"

That earned him such a hard slap that he actually did fall down hard on the floor this time.

"I am not the only one who's dropped the ball on this relationship," she panted. "Don't forget all the years you were busy kissing Klaus' ass! You could have come with me all the times I left, and you chose not to! It's obvious where your priorities are!"

"You know that things with Klaus were the way that they were because I was still being punished by the council!" Alistair defended himself. "You know the rules! I couldn't have left, even if I'd wanted to!"

"You could have!" Astrid cried. "I should have been worth it! What happened to the guy who murdered someone because he thought he sucked at his job and you could do better? I wish I could have known that guy! At least he had purpose and integrity. You're just...I don't know what you are, but it's nothing good!"

Alistair got up from the floor, growling and baring his teeth. Then he grabbed her by the arm and pushed her hard against the door, his eyes jet black with rage. "You want that man?" He asked. "No holds barred?"

"Yes!" Astrid yelled defiantly. "That would be a nice change!"

Then he pulled her close against himself, kissing her deeply, biting her neck and earlobes, pulling her dress off her shoulder and her neckline down so he could kiss her shoulder and collarbone until she was panting heavily.

"More," she breathed. "More, don't stop!"

He gave her a good hard spanking and then zapped up a scarf to gag her with. "No speaking!" He snapped and then moved her to the desk, sliding everything onto the floor and setting her down on it. He undid his zipper and kept his eye on her. "Take off your panties," he ordered.

She did, and then he buried himself inside her, deep and hard, as she let out a cry from beneath the gag. After that, she lay back across the desk, and before he buried himself inside her again, he removed the gag so he could hear her cry out with each thrust.

Then, suddenly, the door opened without so much as a knock. They turned to face the intruder, who turned out to be one of the guards from the jail. He was panting heavily, his face flushed red.

"Yes?" Alistair asked, not at all embarrassed at how he'd found them.

"Sorry to interrupt," the guard replied. "Very, truly sorry. But your daughter and the werewolf have escaped. I thought you'd want to know that. What would you like us to do now?"