“Dinner with Jordan again?” she asked.
“I hate him,” I said, although that wasn’t completely true. I wanted him, and I hated myself even more for wanting him to touch me more, to kiss me, to claim me as his own. I shuddered, still feeling the ghost of his fingers on my hips grabbing me in a way that only one person had before. “We have to get out tonight. It’s our last chance.”
"I'm ready," Mira said, her eyes flashing with determination.
I looked outside at the moon lighting up the sky over the backyard. The only good thing about it being the night before the full moon was that my powers should be stronger. Since I still didn’t fully know how to use them, that would be important.
"We'll wait two hours and then go, so they'll think we're asleep," I said. "You have your bag packed?”
"Mostly. I'll go finish up now."
She headed out of the kitchen, and I pushed away from the door and followed her up the stairs. Luckily, Mira had brought two backpacks with her from the Pisces pack, which meant I could shove the little toiletries kit from the bathroom in, as well as some food and clothes. Just enough for a few days. I hoped we wouldn’t need more than that.
My heart continued pounding as I picked up the backpack I’d already started packing this morning, knowing tonight would be the time I’d use it. Now I closed the blinds in my room and finished up, then changed my clothes. I'd worn a black sheath dress for my dinner with Jordan, but I put on jeans and a t-shirt for my escape. Then I turned off my light and waited, sitting in the dark, going over my proposed escape route in my head a hundred times, wishing I had more info to make a better plan, wishing Kaden would just come save me, wishing I'd never gotten myself in this situation in the first place. I squeezed my eyes shut and pulled myself away from my dark thoughts. This was the lot I'd drawn in life, and the only person who could save me was myself.
When it was time, I grabbed my bag and knocked on Mira's door. Her bedroom had a balcony that I thought we could use to get onto the roof, since escaping on ground level wasn't an option with all the guards on patrol. They still might see us climb up, of course, but I prayed luck would be on our side tonight.
“Are you sure about this?” I whispered. “This is your last chance to stay.”
She gripped her bag tighter. “No way. I'm not staying without you. This isn’t my pack, and these aren’t my people. You’re my people, Ayla."
"What about Aiden?" I asked.
She hesitated, but then squared her shoulders. "He would want me to do this. And I doubt the Pisces alpha would let him be hurt—Aiden is his nephew."
I hugged Mira briefly, overwhelmed by her loyalty to me. Mira had been a constant in my life, and I was so glad she was going to come with me tonight. “Thank you,” I whispered. "Once we're back with the Ophiuchus pack, we'll get Aiden out of there, and they'll protect both of you. Now let’s go. The sooner we can get out, the more time we’ll have before someone comes looking for us.”
If this was successful, no one would think to start looking for us until tomorrow, when they noticed the house was empty. For now, they'd think we were sleeping, with the house quiet and dark. Or so I hoped.
Mira nodded and opened the sliding door to the balcony. She peered outside and hissed out a breath. “Crap. They’re in wolf form."
That was unusual. They were normally in human form as they patrolled, but maybe they were being especially vigilant tonight with the ceremony tomorrow. Shit. We still had to try though. It was our only chance.
Mira slid out onto the balcony first, watching carefully. I waited inside, antsy and thrumming with energy. Finally, there seemed to be a break in the wolves milling around the first floor, pacing circles around the entirety of the house. Mira crouched down and leaped, grabbing onto the roof above her, using her shifter strength to propel her higher. I watched her struggle to lift herself up, and went out to give her a boost. She tumbled onto the roof, making a lot more noise than I'd hoped, and immediately ducked down out of sight.
I pressed myself back into the shadows as one of the wolves twitched his ears toward us. After a moment, he shook his head, almost as he would have if he’d been in human form, and went back to circling. When it was clear again, it was my turn, and I gathered my strength and jumped. Mira scooted back to give me room to hoist myself up. I almost overshot, expecting it to be as much of a struggle as it had been for Mira, but I’d forgotten that I had a lot more training than she had. She gaped at me as I catapulted onto the roof with one great heave and then tucked into a silent roll.
“Where did you learn to do that?” she whispered, so quiet I could barely hear her.
"Kaden taught me," I whispered back.
Mira shook her head, a little smile on her face. I’d told her about training with Kaden, and she’d watched me warm up and go through a few basic routines a few times. I’d kept up my routine every day, just like Kaden had told me to. Even though he wasn’t here to teach me more, it still felt right. Like a promise. I’m coming back to you.
I turned and stood up once we’d gotten to the center of the roof, where Jordan’s guards wouldn’t be able to see us, even if they looked up. I tilted my face toward the moonlight and closed my eyes, letting the soft silvery light soak into me. A sudden rush of power went through me, infusing every cell of my body with magic.
I opened my eyes quickly, reaching over to grasp Mira’s hand. I didn’t even know if this would work, since I'd never tried to teleport anyone with me before, and it had been days—weeks?—since I'd used my magic...but I had to try. I gathered the power inside me and moved.
When I blinked, we were on the next house over. I could hardly tell the difference, except for the position of the trees and the sky. This roof was exactly like the roof of the house we were in, and there was a row of more houses just like it, forming a path for me. Like stepping stones.
Mira's hand gripped me so hard my fingers hurt. She'd slapped her other hand over her mouth, and her eyes were huge in her face. She looked like she might throw up, but at least it had worked.
“Thanks for not screaming,” I whispered.
Mira slowly lowered her hand and grinned at me. “That was...wow."