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Kai’s grin appears again, and a moment passes between us. For a second, it’s like we’re back in the first challenge. There’s an openness and raw affection.
Then Kai turns away. Searching some cabinets and rifling through drawers, he starts collecting dishes.
“What are you doing?” I ask, hovering closely.
“I don’t think our respite will last long.” He drops a cup into his sack. “When the lycans arrive, we need to be at full strength. We’ll have lunch while we wait.”
“What’s the plan after that?”
Hesitating, he pauses with a fork in his hand, and it’s almost like he doesn’t want to tell me the full truth. “We can escape out a window and fly to another location.”
“I don’t mean to sound skeptical, but we’re just going to hop around the city? How will that help if they’re just going to keep chasing us?”
“It could make them lose interest if we lead them on long enough.”
“But what if defeating them is the challenge?”
“Then evading them will be impossible, and it’ll become obvious that we have no choice but to face them.”
Soon, Kai’s gathered everything he wants from the kitchen.
On the way out, he gives the fridge and pantry a quick check, but unlike the Day Realm palace in the last challenge, there’s nothing to eat or drink.
Tipping his head toward an exit at the back of the room, Kai silently directs me to go with him. We walk into a tower of sorts, and I gape at the vast and expanse above us.
“What is this place?” My words echo off the cloudy glass walls boxing us in. “It looks like an elevator shaft.”
“You’re close. It’s a flight shaft.”
“A flight shaft,” I repeat, curious.
Kai tilts his head. “You’ve never heard of it?”
“No.”
“Notice the excessive width. It’s big enough for someone to spread their wings and fly up to the other floors instead of taking the stairs.”
“I thought it was considered rude to fly indoors.”
“In the palaces, yes, it is uncouth. And it’s discouraged in houses, just because there isn’t enough room. But the rules are different in Sterling. Most buildings with three or more levels have a flight shaft. This one is unique because the honorary suite on the third floor can’t be accessed any other way. It’s what keeps the special room so private.”
“Is that where we’re going? The suite?”
He shakes his head. “The library.”
Pointing out the obvious, I say, “Wouldn’t it make sense for us to go to the room where the lycans can’t get to us? Then there would be no risk of a confrontation.”
Wearing an unsettled frown, Kai scratches his facial hair and guiltily glances down.
Okay, he’s definitely keeping something from me.
“What?” I prod, putting a hand on my hip.
“I want them to find us,” he admits. “Well, not us. Me. I want them to be able to get to me.”
My head jerks back. “Why?”
“I need to pick a few of them off. They’ll be way more discouraged if they start losing members of their pack.”
