My eyes find Lucas. He hasn’t said anything. He hasn’t crossed the room to me. He is standing just inside the door with his hand braced on the frame, and he is not meeting my gaze.
I get up. “Lucas.”
He looks at me at last.
I walk over to him and whisper, “Come with me. Just for a second.”
He follows me out into the corridor without a word. We take three steps away from Lydia’s open door. I turn to face him, and he drags both his hands down his face. The mud on his palms leaves dark streaks at his jaw.
“Tell me.”
“Sienna.”
“Tell me what you didn’t say in there.”
His hands drop, and his eyes close. He takes a deep breath before telling me, “It was an inside job.”
The corridor disappears around us.
“Two patrols are dead. Sixteen soldiers. We pulled fifteen bodies out of the woods tonight. The sixteenth is…missing.”
“Missing?”
“A shifter named Jacques Renier. Second patrol, eastern stretch. His personal kit is gone from his quarters. We have not found him or any sign of his death.” His hand drags through his hair. “None of his blood is at the scene. Yet, he was on duty tonight.”
Lucas clenches his fist by his side, and I wrap my hands around it.
“They knew exactly where to hit our line. They knew exactly when. The two patrols on that stretch didn’t know they were carrying tracking devices, stitched into their pack-issued kits. Whoever sewed those in must have left one out. And whoever told the attackers when the patrols would be on rotation tonight must have had access to the duty book.”
My hand has come up to my mouth. “So, someone in this house,” I whisper.
“Someone in this house. Someone who knew the patrols. Someone who knew Lillian was here. Someone who has been feeding the enemy the information they needed, probably for weeks.” His voice is very low now. “I was looking for one traitor. There may be more.”
I step closer and wrap both arms around his torso, pressing my face to the front of his ruined shirt. I do not care about the mud or the blood or whatever else is on him. He hugs me back, hard. His chin drops to the top of my head. He does not say anything for a long time. Neither do I.
Sixteen from his pack. Fifteen bodies in the forest. One missing.
“You will find them,” I murmur against his chest. “Whoever they are. You will find them.”
He holds me tighter.
“And we will get Lillian back.” My voice is firm. “I’m with you all the way.”
He sighs. “I’ve never been happier to have you by my side.”
Before I can reply, Violet’s voice calls to us. “She’s awake!”
We rush into the room. Violet is sitting on the bed, both of her hands wrapped around one of Lydia’s.
Lydia’s eyes are open. Fluttering and tired, but open. They find Lucas first, then me, then Violet.
Tears suddenly spill down her cheeks. “I couldn’t stop them,” she rasps. “Lucas…I tried. I couldn’t.”
He approaches her and drops to one knee at the side of the bed. “Tell us what you saw.”
She nods, then pulls in a shallow, careful breath. “We were walking on the lawn…Past the rose beds, down toward the boundary stone…Lillian wanted to see the estate by moonlight. She said the witch in her liked to see new ground at night.”
Her breathing is unsteady, the pain evident.
