When Kimberly laughed at one of his stories, Haven’s gaze drifted over to Yvette, and he mouthed a silent “thank you” to her. It took all her mental strength not to fall apart. She reclined on the cot and closed her eyes, escaping into darkness. What the three of them had now was more than she ever would. And as much as they deserved this happiness, it made her even more aware of her own loneliness. More than ever, she was the outcast, the one person not belonging.

Trying not to wallow in her self-pity, she forced herself to breathe deeply and relax. They’d only been in captivity for about twelve hours, but she was certain that her colleagues were already working on finding her. However, while it was daylight outside, they wouldn’t be able to break her free, even if they’d already discovered her whereabouts. All she could do at this point was wait.

If the Scanguards crew didn’t show up by nightfall, she’d have to consider other avenues. And the fact that her three fellow captives were witches could come in handy. Despite the fact that they didn’t seem to know about their powers or how to use them, Yvette was sure they possessed them. Somehow they would be able to tap into them.

Then, of course there was the one thing Yvette had discovered about the witch. Bess had to be physically within the wards to hurt them or exercise her powers on them. As long as she stayed outside the wards—on the other side of the threshold—she couldn’t do anything to them. It gave her comfort. That meant, for now they were safe within these four walls.

Yvette allowed her tense muscles to relax for the first time since she’d taken on this assignment. Kimberly would be safe with her brothers, and she knew from Haven’s recent behavior that he wouldn’t stake her either if she napped for a short while. All she needed were a few minutes.

Kimberly’s constant chatter provided an easy background noise to drift off to. She couldn’t tell how long she was out, but it couldn’t have been long. Kimberly was still essentially telling the same story, or maybe it was a variation of it, when Yvette’s senses caught something else.

First, a grating noise reached her ears; it sounded like somebody was trying to pry an old door open, the rusted hinges providing the music fitting for a horror movie. The hairs on the back of her neck instantly stood sentry while she tried to get her bearings. Something was wrong about the sound. Disturbing.

Yvette sat up, her spine stiff and alert. A quick glance around the room confirmed that the three siblings were still where they’d been before: sitting on the two other cots, chatting. The sound wasn’t coming from them.

She trained her eyes on the door, but nothing moved there, and no sound came from it.

Crank!

There it was again. It came from the outside; that much was sure now.

Yvette yanked her head toward the window at the same time as a ray of sun burst into the room. She froze just long enough to feel a bite of pain from where the sun touched her arm.

“No!” Haven’s shout jerked her out of her trance as did another cranking sound. She finally realized what was happening: the fucking witch was prying away the plywood planks to let sunlight into the room, making good on her earlier threat!

“Shit!” Yvette yelled and jumped up, nearly colliding with Haven.

Panic struck her like a lightning strike, then she felt Haven’s hand grabbing her.

“Move!” Haven screamed and pulled her with him. She tumbled more than ran with him as he swung the bathroom door open and flung her inside ahead of him, the rays of the sun on their heels. She slammed against the sink before she heard the door close behind them with a loud thud.

Only a single light bulb hanging from the ceiling illuminated the tiny space which wasn’t any bigger than a six-person elevator.

Her heart raced and beat into her throat. Behind her, Haven’s breathing was just as erratic. When Yvette turned toward him, she didn’t even get a chance to thank him for his quick action, because his arms came around her instantly and pulled her tightly to his large chest. One hand on the back of her head, the other around her waist, he squeezed her against him.

“Oh, shit!” he gasped on an exhaled breath. “That bitch!”

Yvette swallowed hard, unable to form any words yet. The shock still sat too deeply in her bones. She’d frozen, even though it had only happened for an instant. She’d never frozen before.

Haven put his hands on her shoulders and pushed her away a few inches. “Are you okay? Did the sun get you anywhere?” His concerned eyes scanned her body, the slight tremble in this voice only underscoring his worry.

Yvette shook off his hands. Having had her face pressed against his naked chest had been temptation enough. She needed to sever her contact with him before it was too late. “I’m fine. Thanks.” She wasn’t, but she would be.