Chapter 6: The Fake Death

"Before we start our plans, we make them think you're dead," Lyanna said.

They were in a cave two miles from the packhouse. Jasmina sat on the cold ground, her silver cuffs still burning. Theo leaned against the wall, exhausted from the tunnel escape and fought stress.

Lyanna paced, her wolves restless inside her.

"How?" Jasmina asked.

"Fire." Lyanna stopped pacing. "We stage a body in your cell. Make it look like you tried to escape through the ventilation shaft. The shaft leads directly to the old furnace room. You 'fall' into the furnace. The body burns beyond recognition."

"Whose body?" Theo asked carefully.

Lyanna's expression didn't change. "One of the prisoners in the lower cells. Someone already dying. Someone who won't last another week anyway."

Jasmina felt sick. "You want to kill someone…."

"I want to save your baby and stop a genocide." Lyanna crouched in front of her. "That prisoner dies either way. In a cell, alone, in three days. Or tonight, giving you a chance to survive. Which death has meaning?"

The cave went silent except for water dripping somewhere.

"I don't like it either," Lyanna continued quietly. "But Arlene has to believe you're dead, or she'll keep hunting you. And if she finds you before we break Damoew's spell, your baby dies and seventy percent of werewolves follow."

Jasmina pressed her hand against her stomach. The baby still wasn't moving.

"Who is the prisoner?" she asked finally.

"Darren Moltstrong. He got caught stealing pack funds. Jetstar sentenced him to slow silver poisoning. He's been dying for two weeks." Lyanna stood. "I can make it quick. Painless. He won't even know what happened."

Theo pushed off the wall. "And after we fake her death?"

"We have maybe six hours before Arlene realizes something's wrong." Lyanna started counting on her fingers. "She'll check the body. She'll verify it's burned enough that identification is impossible. Then she'll start accelerating her plans."

"What plans?" Jasmina asked.

"The transfer spell. She can't wait anymore if she thinks you're dead." Lyanna pulled out a worn journal from her coat. "I found this in the archives before they exiled me. It's from the Witch Queen's personal collection."

She opened it to a marked page. The handwriting was elegant but the words made Jasmina's blood run cold.

*"The child need not be born to be claimed. Blood calls to blood. A strong enough witch can pull an unborn soul from one vessel to another, given time and sacrifice."*

"How long does it take?" Theo asked.

"Three days for the transfer to complete fully. But she can start it anytime." Lyanna closed the journal. "Once she thinks you're dead, she'll try to grab the baby's soul before it dies with you."

"But I'm not dead," Jasmina said.

"Exactly. So when she tries the spell, it won't work properly. The baby's still connected to you." Lyanna's eyes gleamed. "She'll panic. She'll make mistakes. And that's when we move on the tomb."

"Why not move on it now?" Theo demanded.

"Because right now she's watching the tomb like a hawk. Four guards on rotation, wards on every entrance, tracking spells on Damoew's body." Lyanna shook her head. "But once she thinks Jasmina's dead and the transfer spell is failing? She'll pull resources away from the tomb to figure out what went wrong."

Jasmina saw the logic but hated it. "So I hide while she tries to steal my baby."

"You hide while we prepare to steal Damoew." Lyanna knelt beside her. "And I'll need to remove those silver cuffs. The magic preventing the transfer needs you at full strength."

"You can remove them?"

"I know a witch who owes me a favor. She lives three miles north in the Outcast Lands." Lyanna studied the cuffs. "But it'll cost something. Witches always want payment."

"I don't have anything," Jasmina said.

"You have plenty." Lyanna tapped her stomach gently. "You're carrying Lycan royal blood. Your baby's blood is valuable to witches. Just a few drops could fuel spells for months."

Horror crawled up Jasmina's throat. "Absolutely not."

"I'm not saying we give it to her. I'm saying we negotiate." Lyanna stood. "The witch's name is Meredith Ashborn. She's old, probably two hundred years if she's a day. She knew my grandmother."

"Can we trust her?" Theo asked.

"No. But she hates Arlene more than she hates werewolves." Lyanna walked toward the cave entrance. "Arlene's mother killed Meredith's entire coven during the purge. Meredith barely escaped."

"So she'll help us out of revenge," Jasmina said.

"She'll help us if we make it worth her time." Lyanna looked back. "And removing those cuffs is just the start. We'll need her for the tomb heist too."

"Why?"

"Because Damoew's coffin is sealed with death magic. Only a witch who understands necromancy can break it safely." Lyanna's expression darkened. "And there's something else. The person who cast the stasis spell on Damoew? They have to be present when we break it. Otherwise the spell backlash will kill him."

Theo straightened. "Who cast it?"

"I don't know yet. But I have suspicions." Lyanna turned away. "We'll deal with that later. First, the fake death. Then the witch. Then the tomb."

She whistled sharply. Three of her wolves emerged from the shadows.

"Guard her," Lyanna ordered, pointing at Jasmina. "If anyone except me or Theo approaches this cave, kill them."

The wolves sat, their yellow eyes fixed on the entrance.

"Where are you going?" Jasmina asked.

"To get Darren Moltstrong's body. And to plant evidence in your cell that makes the escape look real." Lyanna glanced at Theo. "You're coming with me. We need someone on the inside who can confirm the death when they find the body."

"They'll recognize me," Theo protested.

"Not if you're the one who discovers it. You were Jasmina's guard. You'll be devastated. Guilty. Blamed for not watching her closely enough." Lyanna smiled coldly. "Jetstar will probably demote you. Maybe even imprison you for negligence."

"That's the plan?" Theo said flatly.

"That's your cover. You stay inside the pack, keep feeding us information, and watch Arlene's movements." Lyanna headed for the exit. "Can you handle it?"

Theo looked at Jasmina. She saw the fear in his eyes but also the determination.

"I can handle it," he said.

They left together, disappearing into the darkness.

Jasmina sat alone with the wolves. Her wrists burned. Her baby wasn't moving. And somewhere above, Arlene was probably planning her next move.

She closed her eyes and tried to feel the mate bond. It had been severed, ripped apart during the rejection. But sometimes she thought she could still sense something. An echo. A ghost of what they'd been.

Damoew was up there in that tomb. Gray and cold and trapped in whatever spell held him.

Part of her wanted to let him stay that way. Let him suffer like she'd suffered.

But another part remembered who he'd been before. When they were young and the compulsion hadn't fully taken hold. When he'd smiled at her like she was the only person in the world.

"Hold on," she whispered to her baby. "Just hold on a little longer."

Outside the cave, something howled in the distance.

The wolves guarding her raised their heads, listening.

Then they settled back down, and the forest went quiet again.