Roane and I hide behind tangles of overgrown shrubs and watch the girls walk toward the wrought iron gates surrounding Convent. Roane isn't happy about letting them go in alone, but there's no way we can sneak inside. Though she had been blindfolded, Gia told me she smelled mildew and sewage when they took them earlier in the night. At one point she said she stumbled and held onto a pipe. Whoever is taking the girls has access in and out of the school grounds and the sewer system seems like the ideal place.

Problem is, we couldn't find the outflow pipe. With Roane being a Troll, I refuse to take any chances at sneaking in another way. It's best to send the girls ahead, entrusting Gia with a message for Caleb to meet me alone and not to reveal my identity to anyone.

"Do you think they'll tell anyone else your message?" Roane asks. The girls grow smaller the further they run from us.

"I didn't say anywhere in specific. Only Caleb knows of our place. He won't tell anyone of it."

The guards open the main gates and run out to meet the girls. They look up to the woods from whence the girls came and I hold my breath as if somehow it'll give Roane and me away. The guards turn and walk the girls inside. Roane nods, and we slip back into the forest. If my suspicion is right, they won't get to see Caleb for a while, until after they're questioned. That's enough time for us to get to our destination. The simple thought of being at our place again flames my core and energizes me. I've missed him so much.

It was my second trip to Convent the day Caleb first took me to our place. The year before Crossing, all pre-magics are made to visit Convent and meet with the leaders of each branch of magic. It was a weeklong visit, but with Caleb more interested in our extra-curricular activities, he bumped my name to the top of every list. I was done with all my meetings by the second day. The rest were spent with him where he showed me around Convent grounds... and outside of them.

We slipped away one night and he took me to a small cave that was hidden by a waterfall about an hour away. Speaking a spell against the stone, a doorway appeared. Inside was a room within a cave lined with bookshelves and scrolls, his mother's life work.

I remember it being damp and cool when we walked in, but it was the first time we'd been alone-really alone, and the attraction that already existed between us expounded. It was there, with the hush of the falling waters as our backdrop that we fell into one another, promising ourselves to each other, body and soul. It was there he had asked me to rule at his side.

"Tell me you're mine," he had whispered, planting sleepy kisses at my eyes, my nose, my lips.

"I'm yours and nothing will ever change that," I vowed against his mouth, the words of a naïve mind, an inexperienced soul, and a heart not yet broken.

We reach the waterfall at nightfall. Roane insists we hide until Caleb comes, just in case he doesn't come alone. I tell him his worries are futile, but more useless is arguing with him. Either I wait with him at a safe distance or he'll wait with me right by the waterfall. I know for Caleb to see Roane right away will do more harm than good and so I fold. We climb one of the taller trees, enough to have a view of the waterfall and the surrounding areas from behind our camouflage of leaves.

I settle into a nook between some branches. "I'm sorry to hear about your king-well, I mean, I'm not sorry he's dying, but you seem upset so I'm guessing he was important to you in some way."

He leans back against the bark, flipping a small blade from in-between one finger to another. "He was going to die, eventually," he says, carelessly, though it's getting easier to read his moods. Since he heard of the coronation, he's been quiet, save for the moments he argued with me about waiting for Caleb.

"Then what's wrong? Is the new King worse than his father?"

He stiffens. "He's nothing like his father."

"You think he's different? I find it hard to believe that. They're still taking girls and he's done nothing about it."

"It's the king who wants those girls. The prince has never been into non-magics. He never even wanted to inherit, but when his older brother died, he was next in line. It's not a position you can turn down."

"Oh," I say. I feel for him. I do. "Was he a friend of yours?"

Roane nods. "Something like that."

He straightens and juts his chin in the direction of the waterfall. Someone stands beside the ridge that leads to the opening. They wave their torch from side to side-the sign I had told Gia to tell Caleb.

My heart pounds and I make to climb down. "It's him!"

Roane grabs my hand, stopping me. "Wait here. I'll see if it's safe."

He climbs down first and inches toward the flames. I dig my nails into the rough bark to keep from bolting from the tree. Seeing Caleb there in running distance ties my heart and stomach into one impossible knot that lodges in my throat.

It plummets when Roane appears at the base of the tree and waves me down. I half climb-half fall, and Roane catches me when I slip the last few feet.

"He's alone, but I'll keep watch. Just wave the torch side to side when you want me to come." His hands are still anchored on my waist. I glance down at them and when he realizes this, he lowers them and steps back.

I spin to leave, but Roane catches my arm and stops me. "You're sure about this?"

His concern is logical and I would doubt too if put in his position, but the desire to see Caleb, to feel him stable in an otherwise shifting world of secrets and danger pushes the words from my mouth. "If we can trust anyone, it's Caleb."

He holds onto my arm for another moment before letting me go. A smile steals onto my lips at the prospect waiting by the waterfall and I dash in that direction.

When I get to the waterfall, Caleb is gone, but light spills out from behind the flowing waters. He's inside the hidden cave. I climb down onto the ledge, flatten my body against the wall, and let the cool mist blanket me as I shift sideways. Every step quickens my pulse. This ledge has never seemed so long.

Walking into the narrow cave, I hurry to the open door within the tunnel. My heart slows and my steps stop. Caleb stands in the center of the room, the candles in the room lit around him. With his back to me, he stares out into the open space, to nothing at all. I close the door behind me and he spins, a dagger in his hands. His fighting stance withers instantly upon seeing me, and the dagger clatters on the floor.

The sight of him is my undoing. He looks exhausted. His green eyes, cradled by deep black circles, are swollen as if he's been crying for days. His hair is a mess, flattened on one side, spiked in the other. His tie is half knotted and his shirt barely tucked into his pants. Though he looks as worn out as I feel, he's never looked so beautiful. I want to run to him, but can't force my body to move. Only tears fall.

A gleam fills his eyes and he swallows tightly. "They said you died in the fire." The last of his words fade to a whisper, his voice brittle and spent. "I saw the rubble..."

I shake my head. "I'm here."

He's in front of me in a second. I'm against the wall, in his arms, and under his lips the next. Different parts of me war, telling me that I smell and that girls can be going missing in these moments he kisses me. But I close my eyes and feel him, no longer willing to lose him to the darkness of my bitterness.

He breaks away and hugs me so tight, my ribs crack. He digs his fingers into my back where I'm bruised and cut, but any pain is worth having him in my arms.

"Tell me I'm not dreaming this, Ro," he murmurs against my hair. "I conjured up every spell to reach you, wherever you'd gone, but I got nothing." He presses me closer. "I thought I'd lost you."

I bury my nose into the crook of his neck, hauling in his scent of musk and pine, of warmth and safety, and anchor my strength there. I don't want to let him go, ever, and I've been a fool for pushing him away. Memories of the last time we were there tangle my words and I need him closer.

"I'm sorry," I whisper. "I had to leave quickly and it was safer if everyone thought I was dead."

"I told you to reach out to me if you were ever in any trouble."

"I know, but everything happened so fast and I... I'm here now." I clutch his shirt as if holding the hands of time, to keep them from ticking.

He rests his forehead against mine and skims my face with trembling hands. "Did those bastards take you, the same ones who took the non-magics earlier today?"

I nod and break from his embrace remembering Roane outside, remembering the trolls at the bridge, remembering everything that I had learned and things yet to come. Remembering his mother...

With his hands in mine, I lead us to the small couch and tell him everything, from Lachlan and Perry, to the trolls on the bridge, to Roane...but not the whole truth about him. And in that seat, where I know his mother read to him when he was a child, I slip her ring onto his open palm and tell him that she's dead.

I've seen him cry before. The night news of his mother's disappearance broke; he came to the shop and the minute we were alone, he crumbled. Those were tears of worry that I was able to soothe with words of hope, saying that his mother would come back. That she was strong and would make it out alive. He said I was his confidante, his strength that night.

Sitting on the settee with him there in the dark, unable to offer him any words of hope, unable to tell him that she would return, destroys me. He gathers me onto his lap and holds me, needing me, but I've never felt so useless.

"I'll kill each one of them, I swear to you I will," he whispers. "I want them all dead."

"You can't wage a war." I soothe him with slow strokes as he rests his head on my chest. "Your mother wanted to unite the realms, not create a bigger division."

"It was her life's work and they killed her. They took you." He lifts his head to mine. The look in his eyes frightens me. I've never seen it before, unhinged, desperate, and angry. His tone is low and equally manic. It isn't the right time to tell him about who Roane really is.

"They took me, but I made it out, thanks in part to Roane." I unwind his hands from my waist and stand. "I want you to meet him. He helped me through all of this."

"So he's a Magic? What year Crossing is he?"

"Well, kind of. He's a magic, but hasn't been Convent trained. He escaped from the Trolls."

Caleb's eyes narrow as he digests my lie-well, it isn't exactly a lie. Lara's power flows through Roane, so he is a magic indirectly. He hasn't been Convent trained, and he did escape from the Trolls, even though he is one. But Caleb won't ever listen to reason. I have to lie.

"Where is he?" he asks.

I fight off a sigh of relief and offer to go and get him.

No doubt having seen me running over, Roane meets me at the base of the tree. He's unconvinced about my white lie, but agrees to play along and keep his jacket on. Though I didn't know about the tattoos, I'm sure Caleb might have some idea as to what they are.

The air thickens the moment I walk in with Roane, a palpable thing that makes it a bit hard to breathe. Caleb's jaw tightens, and I'm scared he'll punch Roane in the face for taking me across a troll bridge. He inclines his head then, and the tension eases, but not much. Still, it's good to see we're all on the same page, however much of that page is riddled with lies and secrets.

With Roane there, we explain to Caleb the trade between the humans and the trolls. I skip over the tattoos-including mine-and the fact that we've been Sharing. Each filtered word that leaves my mouth feels like a lie, but looking into Caleb's eyes, I know I'm doing the right thing. He's suffered enough.

"I'll feel better having you both stay inside Convent," Caleb suggests, standing. "You can stay in my wing. No one will know you're there. You have all my passwords, Ro. You'll have access to all the files, so you can search there while I talk to a few people on the grounds. You said the ones who delivered the girls went back into the woods, right?"

Roane and I nod.

"Everyone in Convent is a suspect," Roane says. I shoot him a glare, hoping Caleb doesn't read into his words.

Caleb rubs his temples and exhales weightily. But then as if realizing Roane's words, he pauses and cuts a glare at him. "Are you implying something?"

He moves toward him and Roane rises to meet him. I shift before them, holding them back. "Look, I know we're all tense and tired, but this isn't going to solve anything." I give Roane a pointed look, and then turn my eyes to Caleb. He still looks over my shoulder, his posture stiff.

"Roane is right. Everyone in Convent is a suspect, but I trust you. We trust you," I say, glaring at Roane momentarily. "We think Mage Claudius may be responsible, but we need more proof. Maybe he's been accessing the non-magic files, or visiting more than usual. He definitely has help on the inside, someone with access to uniforms and campus layout. Not to mention now he wants you to marry Vale. This plot runs deep and we don't know who we can trust. That's all Roane was saying. We know you have nothing to do with this."

After a stagnant moment, he lowers his eyes to me. It's a look that burns, but after a second, he nods. "I need to get back." He flicks Roane a glare, turns and walks to the door. "With word of the kidnappings, patrol will be sent out if I'm gone for too long."

I step outside with him and close the door behind me. We stand in silence. My eyes are focused on him, but his are turned to the water.

"So what are we going to do?" I ask.

He blows out a weighty breath. "The Crossing Masquerade is tomorrow night. It's the perfect distraction. Security will be tight, but I'll handle them. I'll get something together for you and Roane to wear and come back later tonight." He throws his hood over his head. His eyes never meet mine.

I lift a hand to his cheek and encourage him to face me. "You're angry." I skim his cheek as if doing so would soothe him. "Roane didn't mean to offend you. It's been a hectic few days and he was just being cautious. He's been protecting me, so I guess it's just hard for him to shut it down, you know?"

His jaw clenches. Cradling my fingers gently, he lowers them from his face. "I'm glad you know him so well."

"Caleb-"

"It's fine. I didn't mean it like that. I'm just..." He shakes his head, exhales, and gazes down to our hands, a debate warring in the spaces between us.

I weave my fingers into his. "Do you remember the last time we were here? You asked me a question..."

Finally, he lifts his eyes to me and nods.

"I still mean it. Nothing has changed."

He looks at me for a moment then lowers his eyes back to our fingers. Releasing me, he closes the space between us and places a kiss at my temple.

"Everything has," he says and walks away into the dark without another word.

Left alone, I lean back against the door, meditating on his answer: everything has. But what? Yes, the outside world has, but have we changed? Has his promise to me changed? Pushing off of the door, I open it and walk inside, suddenly feeling that my words were, once again, those of a naïve mind, an inexperienced soul, and a heart not yet broken.

Caleb came back just before midnight, but I was asleep. I had hoped to get a moment to talk to him about what he had said, but he didn't let Roane wake me. Along with food and basic toiletries, he brought two invitations, a key, and one of his mother's old gowns, a velvet burgundy dress. It's a bit big on the top, but the accompanying shawl covered that up. For Roane, he brought a black suit and embroidered black masks for us.

"He said our names won't be on the list, but he'll be waiting at the gate when we arrive to smooth things over with the guards. During the ball, we're to go to the back corner of the library and pull away The History of Magic. We'll see a keyhole in the side panel. Once we unlock it, a door will slide open just between the shelves. We have to slip in quickly; the door only stays open for few seconds. The stairs there lead to the library inside of his room."

I nod, digesting this. Having a plan in place should make me feel better, yet running my hand along the black masks, my stomach tangles like the gold stitch vines on the fabric. Blowing out a breath, I set the mask aside and lie back.

Thinking back to Caleb, a knot fills my throat. Something between us has changed, only I don't know what. I still care for him, and he for me, but am I too late? Has darkness already taken everything away? Will I somehow lose Roane to this same darkness?

Roane paces the small room. It makes him appear so much bigger, but in no way threatening. Safe, yes. Threatening, never. He pauses by a bookcase and trails a hand along the wooden shelf, looking to the worn volumes there. The Mistress must have read them a hundred times.

I settle back and watch him pull one out. He flips through the pages with delicate strokes that speak so much of him. They ease me, just as he does by simply being here. For darkness to take him, a gentle soul, is an aching thought.

"You think it's possible to get something back after darkness has taken it away?" I ask him.

He slips the book back onto the shelf, thoughtfully. "It's hard, but I think it's possible."

I hum and roll over to the shadows that dance in the ceiling.

"But sometimes darkness never took it away," he adds. I turn my eyes to him. He meets my stare and seems to understand something I don't yet.

"Then what happened to it?"

He lowers his gaze to the candle on the dresser. "Sometimes a new light shines a little brighter. You see clearer, differently. What you thought was one way, isn't." He flicks a finger through the fire swaying on the wick. "It's changed, or you changed, and it just isn't what you want anymore." He's quiet for a moment, then looks back to me.

"You should get some rest." He leans in to blow out the candle. "Want me to leave it on?"

I shake my head. "I don't need it."

He blows out a breath. Darkness swallows the room. His footsteps resound and stop before me, where he sits down on the floor, facing the door. In complete and utter darkness, I close my eyes, not sure what to do with so much light.

Thank you for reading! Please remember to vote and comment if you enjoyed it! Also, I'm curious. Who do YOU see as the cast of Nether? Comment below and let me know. I'll be tweeting some pictures of who I picture them as so join me on Twitter and let me know your thoughts! Find me under MonicaBsanz