Page 69 of A Silent Prodigy for the Lycan Princess

“Not at all,” I say.

“Alright,” he says, to my surprise. “You are the first ones in ages who are interested in Meg. If this helps you find her, do as you please.”

Mr. Simon leaves us alone for a while, and Leila and I take a moment to exchange a few thoughts. “It sounds like she was a lively girl,” Leila says. “Communicative, extroverted, kind.”

“Yes, but isn’t it about the blood?” I ask. “She fulfilled the criteria.”

“That’s true. I just wonder if she was kidnapped for a different reason, you know?” Leila muses. “I think Arden is right, and she is the first victim. She is also the youngest that we know of, and if that’s true, then she is the most important. I don’t think whoever took her is keeping her around for her blood. He keeps her around for who she is or what she means to him.” She pauses, swallowing thickly. “That is if she is still alive.”

“Then, they must have a connection,” I say. “Or do we really think she was chosen randomly?”

“There can be a spontaneous trigger,” Leila says. “But seeing how many of the boxes she checks, I’d say she was in one way or another acquainted with the culprit. Maybe she didn’t even know that herself.”

“Hm, you are right. He could have been the guy she walked past every day on her way to school,” I say. “To her, just a random person. Mr. Simon says she was abducted here, from home, so someone must have spied on her, in a way.”

“I believe that, too,” Leila says.

“Are we sure that it’s a man?”

“Arden says statistically speaking it’s more likely it’s a man, but we don’t know for sure.”

“What if she indeed triggered something in him?” I say. “Let’s say you are right, and he knew her in one way or another. Maybe he kidnapped the other girl to distract from Meg.”

“That would mean he still has her. He kidnapped her to keep her,” Leila says quietly. “Do we really believe that?”

“I don’t know,” I say. “But it’s a possibility.”

“If it’s true, what does it mean for Meg? She was abducted when she was twelve. It’s been seven or eight years now. What did these years do to her?”

Leila is right. Mr. Simon described a lively and confident little girl, but years in captivity must have taken a toll on her.

At a loss for words, Leila and I browse through the archive. She calls Eric to tell him about our progress and that we can take the documents with us. Mr. Simon returns with a box of Meg’s belongings, handing it to us, with our promise to return it to Meg once we find her. We promise him once more we’ll do anything in our power to find her, and Leila even gives him her contact information.

When Emilien picks us up, he handles a few details with the orphanage, setting up a contract that we are only borrowing the material and will return it. When he drives us back, I make sure to call my father, filling him in on everything and asking him to spread the news, subtly.

Then my thoughts return to Meg and to the little girl she once was. I hope the adult she has become is still alive, and I hope we will find her, and more than anything, I hope that we can still save her.

Chapter twenty-two

Criminal Energy x 2

*AURELIA*

Arden, Gustave, and Zoé claim it will take them a whole day to sort through everything Leila and I collected. They sounded disappointed in themselves, while I think it’s insane that they are able to do it that fast! And I know the fact that it’s only a day is thanks to Arden’s photographic memory, his ability to sort through everything fast and decide what’s important and what’s disposable, for now. They want to digitize everything so that we have it all easily accessible.

The rest of us linger around for a bit, still indecisive about how we can make ourselves useful, while the other three are working.

“Say, everyone,” I say into the silence. I hate to interrupt them and am well aware they need the silence to work efficiently. “Do you think her father might be involved?”

“Whose?” Gustave asks.

“I mean Meg’s.”

For a moment, everyone pauses while Leila turns to look at me. “Right,” she mutters. “Mr. Simon said Meg’s mom was on the run.”

“We don’t know if she ran from her husband or mate,” I say. “But she refused to say a name.”

“She was definitely hiding Meg from someone,” Emilien agrees.