“Toby.”
“Yeah?”
“Thank you.”
“For what?”
“For always being there, for not judging me.”
“It’s all right, Kat.”
“I’m going to miss you,” she whispered as she closed the door.
She couldn’t be certain, but she thought he whispered back, ‘I’ll miss you too, Kat.’
Chapter 9
With a full belly, Katalina fell instantly into a deep sleep. She woke up at midday, her stomach growling as she climbed out of bed.
God, I’m starving.
She turned the handle, intending to go find food, but the door was locked. Katalina rattled on the handle and then banged against the door. Her heart pounded. They’ve locked me in. She’d felt like a prisoner from the moment she’d arrived, but in that instant, she really was. She banged again and started shouting.
Jackson’s voice drifted through the door a moment later.
“This is for your own good, Katalina. As soon as that wolf is caught, you’ll be free to leave your room.”
She felt sick, her head fuzzy. Each pound of her heart boomed through her skull; she had to be careful. She needed to make them think she’d behave or she’d never get away.
“Jackson, please, I won’t leave the house. I’m hungry and bored,” she said in her sweetest voice.
“I’ll send Toby up with food. Sorry, Kat, you’re staying put.”
A surge of anger raced through her and then a sharp pain spread through her fingers. She gasped at the hand she had pressed against the door. Changing and cracking, it morphed into a wolf’s paw. With great effort, Katalina managed to regain control of her body and keep her wolf at bay, but she knew only the smallest thing would set it off again.
Oh, my God, what has happened to me? Anger consumed her.
She paced the room, feeling more agitated by the second. Her body didn’t feel like her own anymore. There was a rage, a wildness inside of her and it scared Katalina. Glancing out of the window, she realized Bass would come for her in a few hours. She needed to get out of the room. I need to go home.
The door clicked and then opened. Toby looked miserable when he walked in carrying a tray of food.
‘Sorry,’ he mouthed. The door closed behind him and clicked, locking Toby inside with her.
Katalina sat in silence eating the food, racking her brain for some semblance of a plan, or at least some idea of how to escape. She could barge past when they let Toby out, or climb out the window when he left. She stood and walked over to the window. Cage was circling the house, keeping her in and Bass out. Can I get past Cage?
She watched him as he vanished from view lapping around the back; it took him two minutes to come back around the front. Two minutes she’d have to climb out the window and make it to the cover of the woods. She wasn’t even sure she could make that with her new wolf speed.
“He nailed the window shut while you were sleeping, Kat,” Toby whispered.
Katalina turned and looked at Toby with wide eyes. “While I was sleeping? Are you for real?”
“The body takes the first change hard. I slept for more than twenty-four hours after mine. There could have been a riot outside and you wouldn’t have noticed.” His voice was a gravelly whisper.
“What is my best chance of escape, Toby?” she whispered.
Toby looked at the door, the window and then back at Katalina. Taking a deep breath, he whispered, “If I can slip away, I’ll open the door. You’ll have to then sneak out, wait for Cage to be out of sight, and run. I’m not even sure if I’ll be able to get the door unlocked, and then you’ve got to get through the house and past Cage. Kat, it’s going to be pretty hard. The best chance you’ll have is turning wolf. You’ll be quicker. Jackson has all four enforcers patrolling around the pack’s perimeter too. He’ll come after you straight away. You’ll have to keep running and pray you can get enough of a head start to outrun them.”
“You’d do that for me?”
“It’s only unlocking a door.”
“No, Toby, it’s going against your alpha to help me.”
“This isn’t right, Kat. I can’t just sit back and do nothing. Cage has gone insane. I’ve no idea why he’s siding with Jackson.”
There was a bang on the door. “Toby, time to come out.”
“See you, Kat,” Toby smiled.
Katalina spent the next hour pacing. She’d given up trying to open the window; it was well and truly nailed shut. She’d watched Cage for a while; his constant marching drove her mad. Arne was still running around free, which made her feel better, but she wasn’t sure she’d be able to sneak out and get his attention.