Lucas held the black dress out for Zoe to take, but she stared blankly at it as if she had no idea what he wanted her to do with it.

"It's your dress for tomorrow, Zoe. Greta said for you to try it on,

" he gestured with the dress, trying again to have her take it from him.

She reluctantly got up from the lounge chair on the deck where she had been spending most of her time staring at the trees. She didn't have anything interesting here to read or research, but she was used to that from sitting in the cell for the last few weeks anyway. Being so close to the trees and watching all of the life forms that flitted and flew by was captivating enough in itself.

In the pack house, she was only able to watch all of this through glass. It was why Andreas had created that wing of hers to be so bright with all of the windows facing the woods—he never intended to let her enjoy being in the outdoors. Instead he kept her sequestered away from anyone who would question her identity. As a concession, she had those huge windows to give her the sense of openness.

It was a cage. He kept her highly active brain entertained with the alyko files, the map, the equipment and research and objectives and challenges, but when it really came down to it, it was a cage all the same.

Zoe walked forward to take the dress from Lucas, inspecting the fabric, running it through her fingers.

"I've never worn anything like this before,

" she whispered.

"I've never even seen the majority of the people who live here. And tomorrow… I will see them all. And they'll all be looking at me. They'll all be hating me like you all do.

"

It was rare to see Zoe subdued like this. Usually there was something to make her overly active curiosity fire like crazy, but Lucas watched as she became morose similar to how she was after being thrown off the deck by Greta.

There was something about Zoe, perhaps her innocence and the ill way she had been treated, that tugged on a soft spot within Lucas. It was an uncomfortable feeling. It made him squirm, particularly with the new knowledge that she was something other than lycan. She was mysterious and unknown and unpredictable. But he still felt drawn to her—perhaps for that reason.

After Zoe stood staring at the fabric for several silent moments, Lucas cleared his throat and shifted in the doorway.

"Why don't you try it on? If it doesn't fit, we will need to find something else,

" he suggested, relaying Greta's message.

Why Greta couldn't just come in and deal with female stuff herself… well he knew why. She may be tempted to throw Zoe out of the treehouse again. But still, he didn't know anything about how to help this emotionally-challenged and severely sheltered charge of his.

"Right,

" Zoe nodded and headed through the house to the bathroom.

Lucas sighed and pulled out his phone to turn on some music. He had found a wireless speaker in the bedroom the day prior and set his phone to shuffle stations in order to pass time and try to lighten the awkward, tense mood.

Zoe had already grilled him about August's visible glow to all pack members, and she was fascinated—emotionally detached from the significance and hope it held for Lucas personally—but fascinated all the same.

That conversation took up most of the previous night, along with Zoe's bemoaning that she was unable to view it with her own eyes. She kept asking for more metaphors, more details, more comparisons that would help illuminate August's appearance to him in her mind, and finally Lucas fell asleep on the couch as she paced, talking to herself excitedly in the living room.

"I like this music,

" the soft voice of Zoe, which was so uncharacteristic of her, called as she made her way back to the living room.

"Does it fit?

" Lucas turned to see her enter the doorway. She looked so much older in the gown, and he smiled appreciatively.

"It looks nice, Zoe.

"

"Really?

" a shy smile spread over her face, and she looked down at herself.

"Yes, you look good.

"

After a moment, her eyes peered back up at him while her head remained tilted down, making her look like a child working out some kind of devious prank in her mind. It was yet another eerie expression that she was capable of, and his eyebrows pinched together wondering what she was planning.

"Lucas…

" she said, batting her lashes rapidly, which he had come to realize was a sign of impending manipulation.

"What?

" he asked warily.

"There's something I have always wondered about,

" she fisted the skirt of her dress and began stalking toward him. Would it be a huge blow to her self-esteem if he backed away?

But Lucas stood his ground, and Zoe came to stand right in front of him, toe-to-toe.

"I am old by human and lycan standards,

" she said.

"And I have never kissed or been intimate with anyone.

"

'Oh **,' Lucas groaned internally. How was he going to get out of this one?

"How old are you?

" he asked, attempting to divert the direction of this topic.

A beat of uncertainty passed in her dark eyes like she was debating whether or not to answer.

"Sixty-three,

" came her soft answer.

Lucas' eyes bulged in surprise; he couldn't help it. She was old enough to be his grandmother.

"Precisely,

" she replied to his unspoken reaction.

"It has always been a matter of at least scientific curiosity for me…

"

"That's not old by vampire standards,

" he interrupted.

"Right? You're still a baby.

"

She snorted at the joke.

"I guess I wouldn't know. I have never met one.

"

"How is that possible?

"

She shrugged.

"I don't recall ever meeting one.

"

"Then what do you recall about your life before here?

" he asked, easing away from her as casually as he could.

"It was dark. And cold. Like the dungeon,

" her expression cleaved, and she became lost in a memory.

Minutes passed as she remained distant and unmoving, as if she was reliving something in her mind, unaware of how much time was passing in her current surroundings. Lucas watched patiently, curious as to whether this was a peculiar trait of every vampire who must experience time in a much different way.

Finally she sighed deeply, awaking from her reverie.

"I'm going to change.

" Her melancholy had returned like a dark cloud.

Lucas watched as she walked away, her scientific curiosity forgotten.

******

Dear readers, I'm not sure we're going to make our goal of avg. power stones a day for the 8 chapter mass release at the end of the month. So I'm adding a second way to gain it!

For every 25 Golden Tickets the book gets between now and February 25th, 1 chapter will be added to the February 28th daily update (with a total of 10 chapters possible)! I'll also be adding privilege chapters next month, which makes it possible to read 20 brand new chapters within 2 days time. Say whaaat?

We're coming up fast on V2. Can't wait to share the next arc in this story with you all! <3