"Ok, I'm done. Let's go back," Bri whined as we exited the plane and were greeted by the winter winds of New York.

"You're practically made of ice. You should be in your element. Literally," I laughed, pulling my scarf up over my nose.

"I like making other things icy, not becoming ice myself," she snipped in reply, but I swore I saw a twinkle in her blue eyes. Maybe she was beginning to thaw a bit.

Kent came down the stairs behind me, and the increasingly familiar weight of guilt settled on my shoulders. Last night's memorial hadn't felt like an appropriate time to call things off with him; however, from the way he'd avoided me, I was half expecting him to be the one to tell me he was no longer interested. But this morning, he'd pulled a one-eighty and returned to the attentive man I'd come to know over the last few months.

"Enough chitchat," Anna shouted, scurrying towards one of the four large black SUVs sitting on the tarmac. I didn't need any further prodding. I may have spent all my memorable years of life in this climate, but I preferred to enjoy the chilly weather in front of a fireplace.

I settled into the warmth of the car, lifting numb fingers to the hot air blowing from the backseat vent. Chloe, Kent, Lily, and Nelson piled in behind me. Anna fiddled with the heat in the front seat while Calum spoke to the pilot. Bri got into the car to the left side of ours, her arms wrapped around Jarod, who had only been cleared for this mission at the last minute. He'd taken a rather nasty hit the night of the battle and had been sleeping the morning Calum promoted us.

The driver door opened and Calum slipped into the seat. I could tell from the way his gloved hands gripped the steering wheel he was upset about something, but his voice gave nothing away when he asked, "Is everyone ready?"

We all nodded in affirmation and left the airport behind. We'd not been told much about where we were headed, but Anton's home was outside of Ithaca, so we couldn't be too far from the quaint, college town I'd enjoyed visiting in the short time before my refusal to sleep with the man had earned me a position as a servant and punching bag.

Christmas decorations offered bright spots of color amongst the white landscape, and while I knew our trip was not a holiday retreat, I found myself thankful to be back in time to experience the season. Singing carols by the sea in shorts just didn't produce the same feeling.

I must have nodded off or else someone could teleport. Between one blink and the next, we'd pulled up in front of a home that could have rivaled Anton's estate. Déjà vu threatened to steal my breath as I surveyed the manor, the windows beginning to glow orange as the sun surrendered to winter's early darkness. For a minute it wasn't Calum driving, but Anton, his green eyes jumping with excitement as he watched me take in his home for the first time.

Shaking off the image, I opened the door with a trembling hand, reminding myself that tomorrow I would be facing the actual demon. If a little trip down memory lane left me this rattled, I was going to be a liability to my team. I refused to lose anyone because of my ineptness.

"You okay?" Calum asked, his rich voice low so that only I could hear him while we walked towards the front door.

"I'm fine. It's just strange to be here," I deflected, unwilling to admit the terror tumbling through my being for fear that he would keep me away from the fight.

"He's not even going to know it's you."

"You're ridiculous," I growled, only slightly irritated that he'd seen through me so easily.

He flashed me one of his gorgeous grins and reached out to caress my cheek, dropping his hand awkwardly as it dawned on him we had an audience.

We waited for someone to let us in, our breath rising from our lips like fog, mingling together before fading out. "You know, I'd really like a useful Talent, like conjuring a personal heater." My teeth chattered as I spoke.

Chloe joined in and joked, "Or you know, maybe the person on the other side of this door could have super speed."

"I've always found patience to be an underrated Talent."

I jumped at the sound of another woman and realized that I'd missed the door opening. Voluptuous. That was absolutely the only word that could be used to describe this woman.

Hair the color of cherries cascaded down her back in soft waves, stopping just above her shapely hips. The short dark green dress she wore showed off mile long legs, and a black bustier cinched an already tiny waist into impossible proportions. I allowed my eyes to drift up, skipping over the cleavage that made me consider making a few adjustments to my decolletage.

Please have an ugly face. Please have an ugly face. I chanted as my perusal ended on a heart-shaped face. Large almond eyes framed by thick lashes watched me in amusement. Her lips formed a smirk, but I couldn't detect any malice behind it. A tiny mole rested above her top lip, adding interest to a face that was almost boringly perfect.

"If you're quite done, please come in. It's cold."

"Isolde, I was surprised to find out you were back."

Calum chatted with the woman while I pretended to look at the house. The dread that had filled me since we'd pulled up to the manor slowly filtered away as I realized the decor was nothing like Anton's home. His was all dark woods and colors. Elegant but certainly not a place one would want to live.

The walls in this house were painted a cool gray tone, and all the trim was white. A grand staircase was the centerpiece of the foyer. The banister was white and wrapped in pre lit garland, while the stairs were dark and distressed.

We followed Isolde down a hallway into the main living area. The floors were all the same distressed wood as the stairs, but here, plush rugs in neutral tones covered the floors. A twelve-foot Christmas tree, branches flocked and covered with burlap ribbon and ornaments in glittering aqua, pink, and gold, sat in front of a massive window, while a fire roared in a fireplace large enough for me to walk into.

"If you stopped by more often, you'd know that I'd moved here permanently several months ago," Isolde purred as she mixed drinks from a small wet bar. I accepted the beverage from her, surprised that it was warm. I could smell the rich aroma of coffee, but a timid sip revealed a generous splash of Irish cream.

"Heaven," Chloe murmured, wrapping elegant fingers around the stone mug and drinking deeply.

She lowered herself onto one couch, careful to avoid disrupting the artfully placed pillows and throws. Anna, on the other hand, plopped down and stretched out with a sigh. Her snow covered boots dripped slush onto the wood floors, but she only smiled when Isolde cast a disdainful look her way.

"We've had a lot going on at the island," Calum explained, taking the drink and the cheek kiss Isolde offered him. I took a bigger drink and diverted my attention to the gentle snow falling outside the picture window. I wouldn't be that girl.

"I've heard. I thought Fleur and Percy would be accompanying you."

"They'll arrive late this evening. Fleur wanted to do another round of healing, and Percy had to debrief Alex and Andre. They're capable, but have never held a leadership position like this before."

"That's wise, but you've always been so. That's wise, but you've always been prudent. You never jump into a new venture without ensuring that what you're leaving behind is taken care of.

"Oh, we're so very glad you approve," Anna said snidely.

"Anna, I'd like to say that I've missed you, but we both know I'd be lying."

My pink haired friend chuckled, and I caught the eye of my friends across the room. It comforted me to see that they looked as baffled as I felt. We'd only been told we were staying at the home of a former Guardian, but we'd been given no specifics about the red-headed devil.

"Who's this?"

I jumped when Isolde turned her attention to me, jade eyes invasive as they sized me up. As her jade eyes invaded me, sizing me up, I jumped and couldn't help but wonder if she knew what I was thinking. I had a few choice words prepared, but I held my tongue. Instead, I returned her stare for stare, daring her to continue to her rude perusal. Finally, she laughed.

"Excuse me?" I demanded, wondering what she found so damn funny.

"She's got claws, this one. I like her Calum."

Isolde cut off whatever else she was about to say as Calum jumped up and walked to stand near the fireplace. I tried to interpret the look that passed between them, but it passed too quickly, serving as yet another reminder of how little I knew about this man who made my heart race and body ache.

"Did you get the items we requested?" Anna asked. Gone was her lackadaisical attitude, replaced by the hard gaze of a soldier.

"My connection in the agency secured positions for Bri, Chloe, and Camille. Their outfits, if you can call them that, are upstairs."

I cringed. The uniforms were going to be horrendous. I'd been lucky enough to avoid arm candy detail while I lived with Anton, but only because he didn't like others looking at or touching what he considered to be his property. That's why he went through the Agency to hire entertainment for his crowds, and from time to time, he would choose a few models to add to his harem.

"So I get why we're here, but why is this man so important?" Nelson asked, the liquid courage in his coffee taking effect.

"We've been watching him for some time, but it wasn't until a few weeks ago that we had enough proof of his involvement to even consider using resources to investigate him further. He's part of Morgan LeFey's immediate circle, and he heads the initial experiments on the captured Children."

"Just how are we supposed to get our team out?" Kent demanded.

He'd moved closer to my side when Calum had rushed to the fireplace. He rested his hand against the small of my back, and Calum couldn't keep the glower from his face. I resisted the urge to stick out my tongue and ask him how he liked feeling jealous.

"Headquarters wants this to be a reconnaissance mission, nothing else. Unless we see the dagger. Then we have permission to engage. We need concrete proof of Anton's experiments on Children, and we need to tie him directly to LeFey Industries. Camille knows how to navigate his estate. Best-case scenario is that I can detach from the party and follow her, but you will all be equipped with cameras and flash drives," Calum explained, a hard edge tinging his voice.

"Why don't we just bring him in now? I know what he's done, and what he's capable of," I insisted, shocked that we were going through all of this effort just for a few pictures and files. "We definitely can't leave anyone behind."

"Leaving Anton in play is more valuable than bringing him to justice right now. If we gain intel through him, we can get the bigger prize."

"You told us on the island that this was a rescue mission," Bri spoke through clenched teeth.

"Orders change, girl," Isolde explained.

"How can we even consider this?" I was shouting now.

I set the mug of my now cold coffee on the end table. No one had given us a clear picture of what we were going to accomplish with this mission, but I had hoped for more. I needed more to risk going back into that prison. Running my hands over my arms, I could almost feel the raised edges of the scars I should have had. The places where he hit until my skin cracked and my bones broke.

"We are missing over fifteen students and three instructors. Those are our friends. Our colleagues. And you're okay with just leaving them to be treated like animals."

"Camille," Anna pleaded.

"Excuse me," I blurted and dashed out of the room.

My booted feet pounded on the wooden stairs as I climbed them, eyes hazy with tears latched onto the name cards attached to the doors in the hallway. Finding the one assigned to me, I barrelled into the room and collapsed on the floor. Arms wrapped around my knees, I rocked while my fingertips emitted purple sparks.