Page 64 of Pack Kasen: Part 1

I listen to the sound of his footsteps. When I can no longer hear them, I shuffle to the side of the bed and turn my attention to the chain tying me to it.

I don’t know if I’m that weak or the silver chain is that strong, but no amount of struggling with it breaks it.

The door suddenly swings open, scaring the shit out of me.

I come face to face with the same little boy from the house who looks as guilty as I feel. He’s wearing gray sweatpants and a black T-shirt with a yellow truck on the front, and holding a large floppy lion in happy shades of yellow and red.

“Oh. I didn’t know anyone was here.”

“Uh, yeah. Well, there is.”

I don’t know how to talk to kids. Given this is the first time I’m talking to one, that must be why. Did they send a child in to keep watch over me?

I glare at the door. So much for the Wolf King’s talk of being civilized if he would send a kid in to someone they view as so dangerous they need to be locked up.

He walks over to the wall, letting the door swing shut as he sits down near the window on the other side of my bed, and starts playing with the lion. “I’m not s'posed to be here.”

I give up on my escape plans for now, at least until I can convince this kid to leave. My throat is still sore, and I’d rather not talk until it doesn’t hurt so much, but an opportunity just opened up to me. Here is a little boy in a room where he shouldn’t be and who seems friendly. Is it wrong to get information out of a friendly kid? Probably.

“Then why are you?”

He grins at me. “Cause it’s the best hiding place.”

“You were playing hide and seek at the house?”

He nods.

I watch him play for a second. “What’s your name?”

“Leo. I’m seven years old.”

“I’m Kat. Uh, I’m twenty-two.” As he continues playing with his friendly looking lion, my eyes drift to it. “What’s your lion’s name?”

“Rupert.”

I bite the inside of my cheek to hide my smile. “Rupert?”

Rupert the Lion. Right.

He looks at me, big blue eyes confused. “Yeah, why?”

I shake my head. “Nothing. Aren’t you going to get into trouble for being in here?”

“Only if you tell my mommy.”

“What makes you think I won’t?”

“You didn’t tell her in the big house and I won hide and seek.”

“But this isn’t the big house, and I’m sure your mom won’t be happy to find you in here with me.”

“She said you were dangerfus.”

I smile. “Dangerous,” I correct him, as I ask myself why I’m not busy escaping. But I’m learning that talking to kids, or at least this one, is kind of fun.

He glares at me. “That’s what I said.”

“And your dad? Does he have a problem with you being here?”

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