Davis sat back in the cage and tried to think of ways to get out. He had been caught before, so this wasn't anything new. He had always managed to use his luck and his brains to get out problems. Granted, he had the little problem of trying to get his light back. That was new.

He couldn't hurt her, do anything she told him not to, or take his light back from her. Sure he would get more power. That one little wish had put more charge in his blood than he could remember. He could feel it surging through him, wanting to be used. The fuzzy new hair on his head was longer than it had been in a long time. Soon his scalp would start to itch from it. Then the itch would spread over all of his skin. Davis could never figure out how some of the others managed to hold onto the power.

He wouldn't be able to use it unless she made him though. His only chance to get rid of it was to get her to give his light back to him. That might have worked if the old guide hadn't warned her not to trust him. Davis wasn't sure what he was up to yet or why he would imply that Davis was somehow more dangerous than she was.

The girl that had come with them was watching him from the door. Her hair was still long. The invader, Miriam, seemed fond enough of her and she had helped him back in the tower with Prendre. It occurred to Davis that she might be able to help him get his light back as well.

"Hi," he said, giving her a little wave.

She gave a tiny surprised squeak and ducked back behind the door. Then she slowly brought her head back into view. She was a strange little thing. He smiled at her but she just narrowed her eyes at him.

"Where's your friend?" he asked as casually as he could manage.

"Sleeping," said the girl.

They had the same voice as well, Davis noted.

"Oh. I thought she just got up," Davis said. The last thing he needed was to be attached to something that needed to sleep most of the time. He didn't know much about the habits or customs of foreigners. "Does she sleep often?"

"No," said the girl.

"Come away from there Echo," came the same voice from somewhere out of sight. "He's not your friend."

"Not a friend," said the girl glaring at him before running off.

"Bye then," said Davis miserably.

_______________________________

Miriam had heard Echo and Davis through the open door of the bedroom. Echo bounced away from him and went back to chasing a lantern, which had been hanging nearby waiting for her to move. Miriam leant in the doorway and regarded Davis.

"Don't be mean to her," she told him, watching the girl zip away.

"How was I being mean? I said hi and asked where you were. Total monster behaviour."

"I can't stay here," she said suddenly.

Davis looked at her with an expression close to pity, etched on his face.

"You should," he said, "It's dangerous outside."

"It can be dangerous everywhere. One of those potted plants could fall on me and break my neck. I have things to do."

"Things?"

"I have to get home. My family is waiting for me."

"I only have one person waiting for me," Davis said. "But I don't intend to keep them waiting."

"So how about a deal?" asked Miriam. She watched his face very carefully as she spoke. He wasn't very good at lying. His forced expression of indifference twitched open when she spoke.

"A deal?" he asked with a strained, would-be casual tone.

"I'll help you find your brother if you help me get home."

"How is that going to work out?"

"We'll head towards the palace and see what we can learn about those circles on the way. When we get to a point where we both agree that we've both done our fair share, I give you back your light."

"What circles? What are you talking about?" he asked. He had stiffened as she spoke.

"Those papers you were looking at back in the ruins. I'm guessing they have something to do with your brother."

Davis pulled out a piece of paper from his pocket. He held it out between the bars.

"What does this say?" he asked. Miriam didn't know why he would want to test her but she took the paper.

"'The worms will come into the ruins, but not very far and only in open areas,'" she read. "'This is encouraging- for the documents I discovered that say they feel vibrations through their skin. They use this as a hunting mechanism instead of sight. The layout of the areas they avoid are all smaller places where the echoing sounds may interrupt their natural instincts.' Is that enough?"

Davis was watching her with his mouth slightly open. He was clutching his hands under his chin and was watching her with a shining face that was deeply disturbing.

"You can read?" he asked as though she had just starting turned into a rabbit and back.

"Well, of course."

"Tell me about the circles," he said quickly. "What did the papers say? How long ago was he in the ruins? Did he stay for long? Did Jace say where he was going?"

Miriam felt a tug of guilt. She could almost feel his hope surging through the earring. She didn't like the idea of using someone's emotions to her own gain, but how else was she supposed to get home? She had promised Aaren that they would see each other again.

"Do we have a deal?" she asked.

Jacob had warned her not to trust him, but he shouldn't trust her either. It would be best for them to be clear and honest with each other from the start. The hope faded from his face and the light at the side of her face dimmed. Then he perked up a bit again, but not as much as he had before.

"You'll help me find Jace and keep him safe if I help you get somewhat close to the Queen so you can go home. We travel for a bit, you read anything I can find on Jace and I show you how to avoid getting killed?" he said.

"Yes."

"That doesn't sound too hard. We can go soon. No need to tell the old man or the cat," he said lightly, and a jolt of fear passed through her.

Davis didn't think she knew about shifts and that they would need a guide. Then she pushed it aside. He couldn't hurt her so long as she didn't rely on him to protect her. She just had to make sure to take her safety into her own hands.

"I'll need either the old man or the cat to get through the shifts," she said.

He squirmed under her gaze.

"Let me be clear about something," she said. "We aren't friends. I don't like you. I don't even need you, Davis. I would leave you here if I could be sure that Jacob would keep you locked up."

He did not like hearing that. He rubbed the back of his neck and looked away from her.

"Instead he would leave you out as soon as I was far enough away. Then you might come after me. I'm not looking for you to look after me. I can do that just fine. All I want from you is to have you where I can keep an eye on you. In return, I'll help you find your brother. That's it. That's the deal. Take it or leave it."

He nodded, but it was a tight, awkward movement that expressed his scepticism rather than agreement with her.

"I'll leave you to think about it," said Miriam.

He said nothing as she left. Her heart was racing, all she wanted to do was run away from him. Already he had tried to betray her. She didn't even know why. She had proved that she could help him. Maybe Jacob was right. Maybe it was in his nature.

_____________________________

Davis could have cut out his own tongue as she left. He had hoped, stupidly, that he could get her to leave with him. It was true that he had no idea how to get to the palace. It was a shame someone had told her about the shifts.

He could have taken her to all the sights he knew Jace had been, had her read those papers and just lied and told her they were headed towards the palace. With her, he could find Jace far easier.

He would have helped her after they found Jace. They could have all gone together to the palace. She could have gone home and Jace would be safe. It would just have taken a little longer.

She had talked about leaving him there. He couldn't let her go off on her own with his light. She wouldn't go alone with him now. She'd want the old man to go. Convincing him would be hard. Until she did, Davis was stuck in a cage and Jace was out there alone.

A black face hit into his and brought him out of his own thoughts. He laughed as the black cat began rubbing her back all over him, claiming him as her own. He started rubbing her back by way of arguing.

"I'm not yours," he said playfully. "You're mine."

Then something happened.

________________________________

"MIRIAM!"

Miriam was half way back to her room when Davis yelled for her. The black cat ran between her feet. Echo turned a corner so fast she nearly fell and grabbed Miriam by the hand.

"Bad!" she said in an attempt to stop Miriam from finding out what was wrong with him.

"Mir! Come here! And bring that damn cat."

Miriam looked into the room. He was smiling manically.

"Which cat?" she asked, wondering where the hell the smile had come from.

"The rude one. Go get him. We're getting a guide!"

The ginger cat, Caleb, came without Miriam having to fetch him.

"What are you yelling about, boy?" he asked.

"There you are. You're going to be our guide. You're going to lead me to Jace and Miriam to the palace."

"Why would I do something so stupid?" asked the cat.

"Because she's going to ask you and you swore. Through any danger, through death itself, if that is what your lady wished."

The black cat sat next to Miriam and meowed loudly. The ginger looked at her horrified.

"Ebb, my love," he said crawling to her on his belly. "You don't want this. I would have to leave you."

Ebb hissed at him and rubbed Miriam's leg lovingly. Davis smiled and Miriam found that she was smiling too. Jacob clasped a hand on her shoulder.

"So it's decided," he said, a little too happily. " You'll all go. Caleb will lead you away and then, maybe, come back."

Miriam smiled back uncertainly at him. She didn't know if she should be happy or not but leaving this place seemed like a really good idea. She followed Jacob back to a room with a glass roof that was, just like most rooms, overflowing with plants.

She could hear Caleb yowling his displeasure and Davis trying, and failing, to ask him questions about circles. Jacob hummed as he went from plant to plant.

"You helped me with the children," he said. "Daisy would like you. I'll give you a gift."

He took a little paper parcel out of a cupboard and handed it to her. She unwrapped it gently and found three acorns, lovingly polished. Miriam touched one of them with the very tip of her index finger.

"They're just babies," Jacob said gently. "Tiny and cute. But I haven't room to let them grow. You come from a place where there is room, right?"

Miriam couldn't see how she would fit three large oak trees in her aunt's garden but she nodded anyway and smiled gratefully at Jacob. His plants meaning so much to him, it was like he had actually given her one of his children to take care of.

"Now let's get you packed," he said, dragging a large backpack out of the cupboard. It took a long time for her to convince him that she didn't need to take a watering can with her. They filled the pack with steal bottles of water, food and a few extra clothes from the closet.

Then Echo had grabbed the pack and emptied it, replacing everything with things in the agency that had caught her interest, like spoons. She cried when Miriam found out and tried to take it all out.

Jacob had been extremely angry to find out that she had tried to rob some of his flowers. Miriam had to wait until she was busy trying to catch a lantern to stealthily remove the useless things without her knowing. It took much longer than it should have. Miriam took the small knife and the tooth from her pockets and put them into the bag.

Echo found her own pack and managed to sneak some of the things Jacob hadn't locked away into it. They packed another bag for Davis, going into the room with the cell if there was anything he wanted them to put in. He needed rope, bandages, dry wood for kindling and something that would spark.

Then Caleb had announced he wasn't leaving and poured the contents of Echo's bags onto the floor. Jacob chased him, cursing at him and brandishing an empty pot.

When they were finally done getting ready, Miriam fell into her bed. Echo was already asleep. When she had checked in on Davis he had told her to get a good night's sleep as it would be a long time before she got to sleep in a bed again.

She dreamt of Aaren.

He was in his tiny student apartment waiting for her to email him back when the phone rang. He was wearing the t-shirt she had bought him last year, but the jeans were new.

Miriam was a ghost in the dream, watching him from the corner she couldn't see when they video-called. She was looking through a mirror.

"Hey, Jackie. You ringing to yell at me again?"

He was smiling. Miriam's mum and Aaren had disagreed on loads of things. They couldn't be in the same room without starting on one another. They never fought though, it was always a friendly, teasing debate. It used to drive Miriam insane.

They would start over food, in the shopping centre, in the middle of a movie and even on the bus. She was always determinedly 'out' of the conversation, despite them constantly trying to drag her into it. It didn't surprise her that her mother and Aaren had spoken since they left, but it hurt a little that neither of them had thought to mention it to her.

Her mum was telling him. Miriam couldn't hear what was being said but she had to watch his joking, open smile slide away as Aaren began to grasp the situation.

Aaren had his hand over his mouth and wasn't saying anything. He sat down and listened to her mother crying over the phone. Miriam could hear some of it.

Her father was out looking everywhere. The police had been called. All the teachers were out patrolling around with her picture.

Miriam had been gone for two days.

"She's not here," he said, as though he couldn't quite believe it. "Are you sure she ran away? That doesn't sound like her."

It did sound like her and they both knew it. Miriam watched him, tears falling from his perfect eyes. He looked in her direction but not at her.

"I didn't know," he said with the same heartbroken voice. "She sounded happy in her emails. But she didn't reply to the last one. I didn't think...I'm coming to you. I'll get there as soon as I can. Don't worry, Jackie. We'll find her."

His mention of the email brought the hurt she had felt while reading it back. Now that she could see him and not just think of his memory as she read it made her feel worse.

He always enjoyed the beach and here it was warm enough for him to go every day. The result was a healthy tan and his hair was sun-kissed to a lighter shade of brown. She had been able to boast that she had kissed every one of his freckles before. Now the sun had brought up new ones that she had never seen and would never kiss.

He bent over the table, writing a note to his roommate Emma. The girl he had fallen for. The girl he had told her about in his email.

Miriam wondered if he had asked her out, if they went to a gig and if he kissed her on the spot on her neck under her left ear. He grabbed his wallet, jacket and keys and left the apartment without glancing at the mirror she had her hands pressed against.

_________________________________

She woke up to find the Echo had fallen asleep next to her.

Miriam's hand had slipped into the other's girl's pack. It was a strange sensation like her hand was submerged in jelly that hadn't quite set yet. After watching what Echo had tried to put into it earlier, Miriam wouldn't have been surprised. Miriam wiped the tears from her eyes and tried to go back to sleep.

The next day they were set to leave. Jacob made her and Echo a big breakfast with six types of bread and four kinds of cereal. There wasn't any milk but Echo enjoyed the crunching noises. Davis was given porridge.

Caleb was resigned to going but was determined to make the whole trip miserable. He announced this at breakfast.

When the cage was opened, Jacob held onto a sweeping brush in case Davis decided to try and attack all five of them. He stepped out gladly to accept his pack and thanked Jacob for the breakfast.

Then they opened the door and stepped out onto the sands. Instantly Miriam felt colder but the clothes Jacob had given her did a good job of keeping in the heat, if not so good a job of keeping out the sand.

Seeing her face, Jacob put a hand on her shoulder.

"Caleb's a guide. He always finds what he's looking for," he said reassuringly.

"Well, bye then," said Miriam. Echo repeated her.

"Bye!" said Jacob with delight before slamming the door in their faces.

As soon as he did the building disappeared and Caleb yowled painfully. Davis laughed at her shocked expression.

"Time to go," he said cheerfully, "And Mir, remember that if you talk, we could all die."