You're the way in.

The words follow haunt as I duck beneath the water, scrubbing my skin of the grime and filth that's accumulated over the past day or so. I have no idea what time it is, no idea whether it's even day or night. All I know is that Killian led me here in the middle of the night and I've fallen asleep. I don't know for how long.

After Cas dropped the truth of why the deserters brought me here, we were abruptly interrupted. Trina wanted to see Casimir. He looked worried when he left, telling Jax to take me to the springs. I think of how nervous he'd been to tell me his mother's plan. Did someone know he'd told me? Will he be in trouble? On one hand, part of me is still reeling that Cas has lied to me the whole time I've known him. I understand why, but it still makes me feel unworthy. He knows every piece of me and a large piece of who he is has always been hidden for me. But I believe him when he says he loves me, when he says we're family. And yet that doesn't make it hurt less.

"Hurry up in there." Jax's voice, low and gruff, sounds closer.

"Don't come in," I say, frantic, eyes on my clothes discarded on the edge.

"I'm not." He's stationed outside the entrance. "Just hurry up."

The water is warm against my skin, bubbling from some underneath cavern. I pat myself dry with the garment Jax left with me, and quickly pull on the clothes from one of the drawers. They look like men's clothing, but the fit is different, like they've specifically been tailored to fit a woman's body. I feel uncomfortable with the way the pants hug my legs every inch down, grateful the tunic covers much of my lower half.

Jax is waiting right where I left him, that ever-present frown etched into his face.

"Took you long enough," he grumbles.

I squeeze the liquid from my hair, holding up my ruined dress. "What should I do with this?"

"I'll throw it away." He grabs it from me, wrinkling his nose as he holds it up. "Come on. It's mealtime."

I follow him through the dark passage. "Mealtime?" I ask. "Do you all eat together?"

"Whoever is around, yes."

"And how many people live down here?" He doesn't respond. "Have you lived here your whole life? Or are you an informant like Cas?"

"Your questions are very annoying."

"Not as annoying as your lack of answers."

"Look." He spins around, eyes angry. "Trina thinks we need you. That's the only reason you're here. Don't forget that. The second she realises we don't, you'll be out on the street."

"You think she'd let me go?" I ask. "Knowing I know your identities?"

He rethinks his statement. "You're right. She'll probably just kill you."

I shudder. But he's only trying to scare me, I know that. And if I show him it worked, he's won. "Cas would never let that happen."

"Casimir wouldn't have a choice." He turns, continuing forward. "Hurry up."

We reach the dining area. It's filled with people eating at tables, at least 50. I spy the room but can't spot Casimir anywhere, nor anyone familiar. Jax shoves a tray in my hands, a bread roll, and some soup on it. Dinner. At least a day must've passed. Has Cadence gone looking for me? She'd always visit my cabin when I called in sick, bringing warm soup.

Jax leaves me hovering alone in the door, taking a seat at one of the tables. I take a few moments to take in the room. There are at least 30 people in here, spread across four long tables, a fifth in the corner, empty. They appear to be a range of ages, congregating with others close to their age. I only spot one who looks below the age of 10. It's jarring seeing everyone there. When I imagined the deserters, I visualised them as dark, mysterious, faceless people. But they all wear normal clothes. Aside from the fact that the women wear trousers, they could be mistaken for any human village.

I clutch my tray as I start towards the tables, ignoring the stares and murmurs as I pass. Nobody tries to talk to me, so I take a seat at the edge of the empty table, keeping my eyes on my food. The soup is a pale green, but it's steaming hot, and my stomach is gurgling. I can't remember the last time I ate something. I take the spoon to my mouth, the soup bitter as it burns down my throat.

A tray clatters down opposite me. I raise my eyes as someone slides across from me, his tray filled exclusively with bread rolls. His black hair is buzzed to his scalp, charcoal eyes meeting mine as he slides across the bench. As soon as he's seated, he shoves a hand in my face.

"Elex," he says, a wide grin revealing rows of perfectly straight teeth.

I take his hand cautiously. It engulfs my own as he shakes it. "I'm Freya."

"I know."

It's unsettling, almost, being in the place I searched for nearly an entire year. And when I arrive, they already know who I am.

"Aren't you supposed to be wary of introducing yourself to me?" I ask. Jax had gotten angry with one of the other deserters for saying his name in front of me, and the whole reason Trina won't let me go is because I know the identities of Casimir and Killian. "You know, in case I expose your identity."

"That's only really a concern for the informants. If you went to your village and claimed Elex was a deserter, nobody would know who you were talking about."

"You live here, then?"

"Born and raised." He shoves a bread roll in his mouth. "Besides, I trust you."

"You don't even know me."

"Casimir never shuts up about you, and I trust him."

"You know Casimir?"

He smiles knowingly. "I should be offended that you have no idea who I am."

"I've never met you before."

"And yet Casimir told me all about you."

He doesn't sound bitter, but I feel the urge to defend Casimir anyway. "Well, I didn't even know he was a deserter."

"Which is exactly why I'm not offended."

The tension in my shoulders eases somewhat at his smile. It's warm, and it seems genuine, which is a far cry from the cold stares I've received from everyone else since I got here. I pick at one of my bread rolls, wondering how they've survived so long down here. Casimir said he was born here, and Elex was raised here.

I'm about to ask when the volume picks up from one of the other tables. Killian has strolled into the cavern. He's changed since I last saw him, his black shirt switched out for a lighter linen. His hair is slightly damp, pushed off his face. He's called over by one of the men on the crowded table. I follow his movements as he makes his way over to them, picking up a tray of food on the way.

It doesn't take me long to notice that I'm not the only one staring.

"You going to eat that bread roll?"

I watch as he talks to one of the men, sitting on the edge of the table. Unlike when I came in, people gravitate towards him like he's their sun.

"Freya?" Elex is staring at me expectantly. "Can I have your bread roll?"

"Oh, sure." I pass it over to him, sneaking one more glance at Killian.

"What're you looking at anyway?" Elex asks. Before I can look elsewhere, he turns around, following my gaze. My cheeks warm as Elex turns back to me, amusement in his gaze. "Ah."

"He's wearing a different shirt," I say, as if that's a good enough reason for blatantly following his every move with my eyes.

"I hadn't noticed."

My cheeks burn as I take a mouthful. "How long has he been here?"

"Killian? About a month. He hasn't spent much time down here though since being an informant, which is why the novelty hasn't worn off. You know, shiny new gem and all that."

It was the same in Veymaw. Killian arriving was the most interesting thing to happen in months. Though, he has the kind of face that stops you in your tracks no matter how many times you see it.

"Is the role of the informant an easy one to get?"

Elex shakes his head. "Killian was the informant at his last village. Trina had been looking to get another informant in Veymaw for a while, but you can't just throw someone into it, so Killian's arrival was timely. You need to be integrated into the village properly, or at least understand how they function."

"Like Casimir?"

He nods. "Casimir wasn't exactly happy about the new informant."

"Why?"

"Because then his little secret wouldn't be so secret anymore."

"Little secret meaning me?"

"Exactly."

Unlike the others, he doesn't seem annoyed by the fact that Casimir lied about me. "You said he's told you about me. Did you know who my brother was?"

"Not until Killian told us," he says. "Casimir never told me who your family was." His frown deepens.

Before I can say anything, Casimir shoves the sheet aside, expression clouded as he spots me in the corner and heads over. He slumps down next to Elex, casting a look between us.

"Yes, we've met," Elex says. "No thanks to you."

"Don't start, Elex. Trina's given me a headache already."

"No luck?"

Casimir shakes his head, looking at me, his jaw tightening. The amusement in Elex's expression shifts, and he puts a hand on Casimir's shoulder. And as Casimir turns his head and their gaze connects, a heavy feeling settles in my stomach. That look, it's the way Jakob and Raven always looked at Casimir—in longing.

Aside from fleeting school crushes, Casimir hasn't been interested in anyone from Veymaw, despite his striking looks and popularity amongst many. And as I look between the two of them, I wonder if this is the reason why. I avert my gaze before Casimir can see the expression across my face, because even though he lied about being a deserter, this is the moment that hurts the most. The people we love are a big part of who we are. And I didn't get to know Cas's.

"Were you talking to Trina about me?" I ask.

Casimir nods, looking back to me. "She wants to send you on the mission tonight."

I swallow the fear that works its way up my throat as I think of what Killian told me. "To prove my loyalty?" He nods. "You know I'd do anything to find Samu."

"It's dangerous, not to mention unnecessary."

I put my hand over his. "Whatever is, I'll be okay. You taught me to fight. I can protect myself."

"This isn't just some fight, Freya. There are shifters."

A chill runs down my spine as his words echo around my head. I've only seen a shifter once in my life—and it was when I was peeking through a gap in the wood of my father's wardrobe door, watching them drag their nails down his chest, drag my screaming brother out the door.

"Freya."

I hadn't noticed her come in, but Trina stands over Casimir's shoulder, a food tray in her hands. If she notices the way his body tenses at her arrival, she doesn't say anything, taking a seat beside him.

"I trust you've settled in well."

I glance at Elex. He's still eating, but his eyes are on Trina. "Yes, thanks."

"A moment, please," she says to Cas and Elex. Casimir glares at her, but Elex nudges him, and they both get up, moving away when I nod that it's okay. I turn back to Trina. To be honest, she terrifies me, she's nothing like Casimir. But we're in a room full of people, and I can see Casimir glaring at us from across the room, so I lift my spoon to my mouth as she watches me and pray my hand doesn't shake.

"I trust Casimir has told you about the mission tonight."

"He mentioned it."

"And?"

I meet her gaze, keeping my expression even. "You want me to face a shifter?"

"It's what we ask of all our new initiates," she says. "How am I to trust you when for all I know you could be a sympathiser?"

I look over her shoulder, to where Killian's sitting, either unaware or uncaring to the way people stare at him. As if he feels my gaze, his lifts, and our eyes meet.

Blackmail, he'd said.

"Casimir said I'm your way into the Elel Palace," I say eventually. She leans back, a satisfied smile crossing her lips. "What makes you think I can help you get in?"

"Your brother," she says.

"You're looking for him too?"

"The shifters taking your brother is... interesting, of course, but understanding why, and finding him, is not a priority of mine," she says. "Tell me, why did the shifters let you live that night?"

My stomach drops. "Excuse me?"

"They murdered your father, took your brother, but you were left unscathed," she says. "That tells me that you were either somewhere else, or they didn't know you were there."

From the look on her face, she knows exactly which one of those is true. "You think the shifters will take me like they took my brother?" I ask. "What good would that be to you?"

"The journey to the Palace is strenuous. The Elel mountains are unforgiving, many of our own have lost their lives trying to navigate them. When deserters have tried to follow the shifters when they return at the end of the Red Moon, we've been unable to handle the terrain." She stirs her spoon slowly around the bowl. "But it is not the only entrance. There is a passage underground. We know where the entrance is, and tried to navigate them, but it's a maze, and we only hit dead ends alone. We need somebody to follow. Someone to leave a trail."

"You mean me."

"You're human; you wouldn't survive the journey through the mountains. They'll have to take you through those tunnels. That's our in."

"That's if they care about who I am."

"They'll either take you like they did your brother, or they'll kill you like they did your father." She shrugs, careless. "I'm hoping for the former."

"And if they kill me?"

"It would be unfortunate. We'll have to find another way in." I gape at her. She waves a hand, as if she's talking about something as mindless as the weather and not my life. "Oh, don't look so offended."

"You're gambling with my life."

"Casimir may care for you, but I hold no shame in admitting that I don't care what happens to you, Freya. This is much bigger than you understand; the deserters have been planning things since before you were even born."

"I'm nothing more than a pawn in your game."

"Are you saying that I am more than that to you?" She raises an eyebrow. "Why did you want to join the deserters, Freya?"

"You know why."

"To find your brother." She sips her soup. "You and I do not have the same goal."

"You want to end the shifters rule, you hate them," I say. "So do I."

"But only because they took your brother and killed your father. Had they not done that, would you be here now?"

I wouldn't. Before the Red Moon last year, I was indifferent towards the shifters, just like Cadence and the rest of my friends. I never took issue with their leadership because it never directly impacted my life.

"You see we are not so different, you and I," she says. "You need me to find your brother, and I need you to get into the Palace. Let's not waste time by pretending either of us care about what happens to the other."

If Samu was still here, my father still alive, I would've continued to live like normal. And she's right; I sure as hell don't care about what happens to her.

"So, do you agree to go on this mission?"

I meet her gaze. "I'd do anything for Samu."

"I thought you'd say that."

Down the end of the table, Elex and Casimir are talking to one another, Casimir sending dark looks his mother's way. "He won't let me go," I say, turning back to Trina. "He thinks he can talk you out of it."

"I'll take care of Casimir."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"That isn't your concern." She reaches across the table and turns my hand over, moving to hold it. Before I can jerk away, she presses something cold in the centre of my palm. "After the meal, you will go back to your room. In the locked chest you will find black clothing. Change into it. Choose a weapon of your liking. Someone will come for you at midnight." She takes her hand away. I slide mine under the table, tucking the key into the pocket of my trousers. "Prove you can do this, and you may join us. If you fail, I will have no faith that you will be able to be reliable when the time comes."

She rises to her feet. "And remember, we are your only chance of ever finding your brother."

~

Do you think Casimir will be able to stop Freya from going on the mission?

How do you feel about Trina? Love her? Hate her? Don't care?

What do you think might happen next?