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"It's empty," Heath's voice echoed in the almost barren cabin.

The cabin was not completely empty, however. There was a worn-out couch marked with stains that made my body recoil back, ready to accept the chilly air awaiting beyond the cabin walls. The cushions had been worn down to the point they looked more like pieces of paper than somewhere to sit.

On the opposite side of the couch was a kitchen – if you could even call it that. There was a fridge that seemed to be hanging by the seams, a woodburning stove, and a chipping sink that overlooked a frosted window. To the side of the kitchen was a bathtub laying out exposed, covered in layers of dirt and soot. One storage cabinet was placed oddly in almost the middle of the room, spider webs filling the see-through top cabinets.

While I usually would have been skeptical to enter such an establishment, my body did not allow me that choice, sinking down to the floor – Heath was sprawled all over the couch. Even if we did not choose the right path, I was thankful to be in some kind of shelter, no longer pushing my body to the limit.

I let out a well-reasoned sigh that morphed into an uncomfortable grunt.

"What?" Heath asked, his head popping up from the couch to look at me through slitted eyes.

"Do we have to walk all the way back down the mountain?" I asked, scrunching up my face. I was certain we would not be able to scale down the mountain in one piece; we had already run out of food and Mina, Heath, and Theo's abilities were blocked.

Maybe picking the wrong path would not have been a bad option. Surely, those who picked the wrong path did not have to go all the way back down the mountain. Or, if they did, hopefully, they were already under Vanessa's control so they would – hopefully – be numb to the whole experience.

Mina slouched down on the ground next to me. "I'd rather die."

"I can have that arranged," a foreign voice spoke as if out of thin air.

My head whipped around, looking for any signs of someone, and then I spotted her. Standing near the kitchen, a young woman, hands over her chest, was smiling deviously at the four of us, her pale purple eyes locking on Mina.

She was dressed more normally than I would have thought. She was not adorned in elaborate robes or hoods like the clairvoyant at the Pack's Fair. Instead, she had a long flowing dress. While her clothing did not make a statement, her accessories were more eye-catching: she had a rabbit's foot tied around her neck, and snake rings placed on her slender fingers.

"I'm surprised you all made it here in one piece," Vanessa – or who I assumed was Vanessa – said in a tone too chipper for me to comfortably stomach. "Especially with Mina tagging along."

Puzzled, I turned towards Mina. "Do you know her?"

"Oh, does she know me?" Vanessa answered for Mina with a rhetorical question of her own. "She only broke my little sister's heart."

"I wouldn't word it like that," Mina countered, crossing her arms over her chest.

Vanessa raised up one of her pointed eyebrows. "A blessing in disguise, truly. Imagine my horror when I learned my little sis was dating a Werewolf in the first place. You must relate, right?"

She turned towards me, her smile becoming crooked. I jolted back, hitting the wall, confused. "What do you mean?"

"As a Borderlander, you must be less than thrilled to have an Alpha as a mate," she looked at me and then Theo, who was standing near the door, looking unamused. "Or, that mark on your neck tells a different story."

"How do you–" I could not even finish my sentence before Vanessa jumped in to speak.

"You don't think I researched the four people who were the first group in six years to pick the right path? It was fun watching you all struggle your way up to the top. I will give you that," she said, her eyes bright and bulging.

"That doesn't explain how you would know I'm from the Borderlands, though," I inquired further.

"It's called magic, darling," she tilted her head, and I nudged Mina.

Leaning over to whisper, "that's not possible, right?"

Knowing I should have expected Vanessa to be the one to answer, I turned back towards her as she spoke. "It is. It is complicated, and I wouldn't have normally been poking my head where it doesn't belong, but imagine my surprise when I saw Theo carrying a helpless human along with him. I couldn't help but pry."

Theo let out an exasperated sigh while Vanessa continued. "You see, I've known Theo for a long time now, and I've never seen him interested in anything besides pack business this and pack business that. I was curious."

"This is why I fucking hate witches," Theo retorted.

Vanessa looked skeptically at Theo. "You did not seem to mind being surrounded by witches until you realized you'd never be smarter than one. Funny how that works, huh? Oh, pardon my manners. Welcome to my... humble home. Please, stay as long as you like; I do have to warn you: it does not have heat so you could possibly freeze to death if you stay, but – oh – I'm Vanessa, but everyone but Mina can call me Van."

Theo cleared his throat. "Van, we did not come all this way for you to tell us your life story."

"What a shame," she swatted her hand in Theo's direction. "I don't get many visitors, and it makes me quite sad. So sad, in fact, I might just become utterly useless."

When no one objected or said anything, she twirled around with a smirk, clapping her hands. "Glad we are all on the same page. Anyway, what brings you guys here? Would you like a cup of tea? I'm sure I could manage to brew a kettle if the rats haven't gotten into my stash again."

"No thanks," Theo answered for us.

"Pity. Caffeine is a hunger suppressant, and you all sound like you have zoo animals trapped inside your stomachs. I would offer you food, but again, the rats have probably eaten it, and I haven't been up here in six years so it has probably long since stopped being edible. Does your Gamma always look constipated? It's quite alarming. Anyway, please, humor me before I grow bored," she kicked her foot at the ground, looking us all over. "Anyone?"

Theo brought his hands together in a muted clap. "We –" he stopped for a second, "need your help."

Vanessa looked delighted as she bit down on her lips to try and suppress her smile. "I can't believe the day has finally come that Theo has finally come all this way to ask for help."

"I need your help," I spoke up, trying to sit up straighter.

"Ohhhhh," her face scrunched up in delight. "Do you have a lover back in the Borderlands you want help with killing? I don't usually act as a bounty hunter, but for a Borderlander, I must admit, I can't resist myself."

"No," I breathed, my mark flaring in a low burn. "I need help locating someone here on the Outside."

Her face twisted, sourly. "Oh, have you tried using Find My iPhone? Are they Android users? Better off not finding them if that is the case."

I stared at her blankly, not knowing what she was talking about. "No?"

"Ohh," her tone turned darker. "In that case, I don't know how much I can help with any personal problems between two mates, but I would recommend therapy."

"You really think we came all the way up here because we wanted you to give Theo and Sage relationship advice?" Mina did not look amused, her arms still tightly locked over her chest.

Vanessa glared at Mina. "You would be surprised by the reasons people try to come and find me. I always ask as it is a polite thing to do. I even ask when someone chooses the wrong path. It's always I messed up and need you to help me mess things up even more by forcing someone to love me. Or, some people think the world would be a little better if it was burning. Those ones are always tempting, but I pride myself on being strong in my resistance."

"I need help finding my Ma," I said, taking a deep breath in.

"Is she in the Borderlands? Do we need to make a trip to the Borderlands? My foremothers apparently knew of someone who knew the coven of witches who placed the Border spell – it's the most powerful spell ever cast." She stopped talking to stare directly into my soul.

"She's on the Outside," I offered up, meekly.

"She already told you that, Vanessa," Mina seemed annoyed, now picking at her fingers.

"I'm going to pretend I did not hear you say that, Mean-a, for the sake of your friends, here," Vanessa went back to glaring at Mina.

"Twelve years ago my Ma was dragged over –"

"–dragged? Is that even possible?" Vanessa asked.

"Uh, I'm not sure," I drew a blank, Levi's explanation fresh on my mind. "But, she was dragged over the Border twelve years ago, and there are no signs of her on the Outside. Theo used all his resources, but we've come back with nothing."

"She doesn't want to be found," Vanessa stated. "I feel inclined to keep it that way, unless..."

"Unless?"

"Unless," Vanessa leered at Mina. "Mean-a here does me a favor – well, does my sister a favor."

"No," Mina said without thinking — or it seemed like she had said without giving it a thought. No reasonable person would have been so defiant after almost dying on the journey up here

"Fine by me," Vanessa wiped her hands clean, turning around. "It's a shame you hiked all the way up here just to catch up with little ol me."

"Mina," Theo's voice was low and authoritative like he was trying to channel his Alpha authority.

"Want me to give you back your abilities so you can give her an Alpha's Order?" Vanessa's dress spun around with her, picking up dirt in the process.

"What is the favor?" Mina groaned like she was on her deathbed.

"I want you to apologize to my sister," Vanessa tilted her head. I had a feeling she knew Mina would not be so willing.

"I did nothing to apologize for."

"You broke her heart," Vanessa stated slowly.

"She cheated on me," Mina hissed out, trying to retreat back into the wall behind her.

"Hmm. She forgot to mention that detail. She's really not known for being honest," Vanessa twisted her lips. "But my offer remains the same."

"You don't have to mean it, Mina," Theo turned towards Mina, eyes glaring.

"Fine," Mina huffed about, crossing and recrossing her hands over her chest constantly.

"Splendid," Vanessa clapped her hands. "Now, I will have to gather some supplies before we can begin."

"Can you bring some food back?" Heath sat up as the mere mention of food caused drool to start to form in the corner of his lips.

"I will think about it," Vanessa retorted before she did a quick wave of her hand, disappearing in a cloud of smoke.