Capturing Caroline by Anya Bast Page B

human world. Funny
how she thought of herself as less and less human these days.
    Apparently
being able to turn into a huge wolf on command did that to a
person.
    The streets
were smooth and made with some kind of dull gray stone. There were
large thoroughfares for horse drawn carriages. Walkways lined the
streets on either side for pedestrians. It reminded Caroline of a
mix of the Middle Ages and modern times, with a ounce of
Puritan.
    People seemed
not to laugh or talk all that much. In fact, the quiet on the
street was a little eerie. As they traveled past the buildings,
proper papers now procured, thanks to her unsettled stomach,
Caroline watched people barter for goods and walk in and out
shops.
    Jessa had told
them they would seek sanctuary in a safe house in the northern part
of Titan and Caroline couldn't wait to get there. Apparently the
magical trigger switch they needed to trip was somewhere near the
heart of this great Magica civilization.
    It was nearly
twilight before they arrived. The safe house was a smaller, narrow
building nestled in among much taller structures. It looked to
Caroline like a townhouse in some strange version of London. Logan
drew up the carriage in front and allowed them to unload their
packs. That accomplished, he traveled a short distance down the
street to stable the horses.
    "So," Caroline
said as they gathered their things and headed to the door. "If the
Magica are so advanced and all, why don't they have cars?"
    Jessa answered.
"Energy in the form you’re accustomed to is not compatible to our
magick. We have illumination, but it's not electricity, not in the
way you know it."
    They got all
their things through the front door and into a small foyer. A
hallway led to a downstairs sitting room, and there looked to be a
kitchen in the back. A stairway led to the second floor. That's
where they went with all their stuff. There were two bedrooms and a
bathroom up there. Everyone went downstairs to make dinner, but she
stayed upstairs to change her clothes and clean up a little.
    When she made
it back downstairs, it was dark outside and some of the
"illuminations" that Jessa had told her about flickered in sconces
on the walls. There hadn't been many of those in the jail where she
and Torrent had met.
    Jessa, Logan
and Torrent were all in the kitchen, a map spread out over a table
in the center of the room. Bowls and plates of food sat on a nearby
serving table and everyone was helping themselves. Suddenly
ravenous, she picked up a plate and helped herself to bread, cheese
and fruit.
    "Here is where
we need to go tomorrow," said Jessa, pointing at a small black dot
on the map. "I don't anticipate any problems getting there now that
we have the proper papers from the front gate."
    So, tomorrow
was the day. She set her plate down, suddenly not hungry even a
little. "What is this place and what will happen when we
arrive?"
    Jessa looked up
at her, but only for a moment. A glance. As if it was painful to
look her in the face. "We created this place for Torrent. It's
keyed to him and him alone. I’m not sure what to expect when he
enters, but I'm certain there will be fireworks...magically
speaking."
    "When I trip
it, what can we expect will be noticeable?" asked Torrent. "You
will be in the heart of this city when I trip that switch. Maybe it
will be like setting off a bomb. If you're noticed, it will be damn
hard to escape."
    "Impossible,"
answered Jessa with a small, sad smile.
    "Not
impossible,” answered Logan quickly. "We escaped the Magica
before."
    Jessa’s mouth
twisted in a wry smile. "Yes, and we're running out of miracles,
don't you think?"
    "It doesn't
matter," Caroline interjected. "It doesn't matter what happens to
any of us. It's clear that this is the only way to bring peace to
the Lycaon. It avoids war. It avoids fresh bloodshed and it ends a
time of fear and hatred. There is a bigger picture here. I am ready
to lay down my life for it."
    Jessa's eyes
went wet with tears. She