Wednesday rolls around and I still have not had a decent night's sleep.

I have to admit I'm becoming quite a grumpy cow. I even snapped at Naomi when she offered me her special eye cream that would 'help get rid of the black circles because I look like death warmed up.'

Ok maybe the snapping was slightly justified.

But my sour mood is not only because of my lack of sleep. Tonight's the night that I am seeing Henry again and to be honest I am still unsure of what the actual plan is.

I have seen Caleb and Zach once since Sunday, and received two texts, one from each of them giving me their number. The only time I did see them; they were busy planning strategies and barely included me in the conversation. Which made me wonder if they could take their discussion somewhere else and let me have a nap.

All I know, is that I am supposed to go on a date with Henry tonight and 'act natural' and 'the less I know the better'. But if that's the case, why did they involve me in the first place?

Bloody men.

At least with me being so irritable, it doesn't leave too much room for panic. That's one way of looking at the bright side.

This time, when I am in the kitchen making coffee, I hear Caleb and Zach come in through the window. I'm not even surprised when I hear Caleb's voice behind me.

"Yes please."

I pull out two more mugs. "You know. I do have a front door you can use, instead of climbing through my lounge window like a couple of petty thieves."

"I'm impressed that you heard us this time." He leans against the kitchen doorway, a grin stretched across his face.

I shrug and pass him his and Zach's coffee to carry through. Zach is once again on my couch, looking way too comfortable for my liking. He sees my mug and raises his eyebrows. "How many coffees have you had today?"

"I don't know," I respond, grouchy as hell. "Like a zillion. What do you care?"

"Zillion's not a real number," Caleb chuckles, but stops when he sees the look on my face. "Did someone not get enough sleep last night?"

"Actually, for the past few nights. It doesn't help my mood when two dudes basically break in to my apartment and demand endless cups of coffee." I take a long sip of mine and slowly start to feel a bit better.

"Are you going to be like this all day?" Zach asks. "Because we have a job to do, and I would prefer it if you weren't so grumpy."

I open my mouth to retort, but Caleb jumps in, "let's all just take a deep breath. Jennings, tonight it will all be over and you can have a good rest. And next time we visit, not only will we use the front door, we will also bring you a jar of coffee. Fair?"

"Fine," I sulk. Normally I'm not so petty, but today I am in the mood to be difficult.

"Right," Zach begins. "So here's the plan. Peyton, tonight you are going out on your date with Henry, we will be following you and will ambush him when he least expects it."

I sit expectantly, waiting to hear the rest of the plan. When Zach doesn't continue speaking, realization dawns like a slap in the face. "Is that it? That's your whole plan?" I ask in disbelief.

The two of them exchange a look, which makes me think that no, that is definitely not the whole plan. They have got something else prepared, something they don't want to share with me. The fact that they are keeping things from me makes me even more irritated than I already was.

"Are you two mind readers?" I snap.

"What?" Caleb looks confused.

"Well you two are always exchanging looks," I point out. "It's like each of you can tell what the other is thinking."

They do it again, and this time I lose my temper. To be fair, it was hanging by a thread anyway.

"That's it!" I explode and have the satisfaction of watching both of them jump in surprise. "I've had enough! You two have come into my world and turned it upside down with your talk of vampires and Lideri and wandigos! The least you can do, is tell me what the hell is going on!"

"Windigos," Caleb mutters, ignoring the murderous glance I shoot him.

Zach sighs as though he's fed up of dealing with me and places his cup down on the table. "Peyton, if I may say something without you yelling at me," he pauses to see my reaction. "Part of the plan tonight is that you don't know anything so that you can act natural around Henry and he doesn't get suspicious. Also, so that if anything should fail, you do not look guilty in front of him, and therefore can still be utilized in another attempt. Do you understand?"

I nod meekly, already feeling guilty about my outburst.

"I am not sure about your acting talents, and if they are up to scratch. But I would rather not test them when all our lives are hanging in the balance. As for us, how did you put it?" He uses two fingers to make air quotes. "'Turning your world upside down', I believe is the phrase you used, did you not want to become a hunter after this is over? I distinctly remember that being your condition to helping us getting Henry."

"Well-,"

"So then what exactly is your reason for yelling at us?" he queries, his left eyebrow raised.

"I'm sorry," I murmur, feeling shame-faced for my hissy fit and firmly put in my place.

He nods once. "As you should be."

"I think," Caleb says, "maybe this might all be a little bit too much for you, Jennings? It is a lot to take in. Maybe once we see how tonight goes, you can reassess whether this is really what you want to do with your life?"

"No." I want to help people, save them from monsters like Henry, that much I am clear on. "No, I think I just need to get tonight over with. Killing someone, even if they aren't really human, is completely new to me, I just need to keep reminding myself why I am doing it."

¤

A few hours later, I busy myself getting ready for my date with Henry. Zach and Caleb have long since left, probably to stock up on weapons or energy bars or whatever they do before a fight.

I've pulled out all the stops tonight, going as far as borrowing a dress from Naomi's closet. She's basically been living with Calvin the past couple of days so I hope she won't notice. It's short and black, low cut at the front with a lace back. It's gorgeous but not something I would usually wear. I complete the look with my only pair of high heels, worn once before to a wedding.

I have even gone as far as trying to add some curls into my hair, but they only lasted about five minutes before they started sagging and it went back to being boring. I've lined my eyes with black and put on mascara, and I'm wearing deep red lipstick which was also borrowed from Naomi. I look in the mirror and hardly recognize myself. But that may have less to do with my appearance than the fact that I have indeed become a different person in the last few days.

I'm supposed to be a distraction or 'bait' as Zach called it, but I can hardly walk in these shoes so I might break an ankle before we even get there.

I'm just finishing up when there's a knock at the door and I look at the time and frown. Henry's early, and he's never been before, he's usually exactly on time. I walk to open it, my progress slower than usual due to the death traps on my feet.

Caleb's on the other side, looking as though he's dressed for battle in his outfit and boots. His black jacket looks like it's made from that same bullet-proof material that Zach was so offended about before.

"Jennings, you look," he clears his throat, "good, you look good. Is that what you're wearing tonight?"

"What's wrong with it?" I glance down at the dress, thinking that maybe I have overdone it a bit.

"Nothing," he says quickly. "You look amazing. But, is it the right thing to wear to battle?"

"Well according to you, I'm supposed to serve as a distraction," I point out.

"You're going to distract me," he mutters and his cheeks flame red with mine immediately following suit. He looks away from me and stares at the floor, while I do my best to look over his shoulder as an awkward silence settles over us.

Finally he clears his throat again and asks, "Aren't you going to invite me in?"

I step back and gesture my hand to the lounge. I can feel face still radiating heat from his comment. "Where's Zach? I thought you two were joined at the hip?"

"I need to talk to you about something. I know Zach wouldn't approve so I came alone." He shuffles awkwardly from foot to foot, twisting his hands together.

"Okay." I settle myself on the couch. "You have about twenty minutes, what's up?"

"Peyton." It's the first time he's referred to me by my actual name and to be honest I find that slightly worrying. I had gotten so used to him calling me by my surname. "There's something you should know. Lideri doesn't plan for you to join our ranks."

"What?"

"He only said yes so you would help with Henry," he continues. "He plans on placing you under protection after all this is over. He's had Zach and me watching over you since we left headquarters. He doesn't believe you have what it takes to become a Hunter. I disagree; I think you could become a great asset."

"And Zach?" Though Zach can be uptight, he doesn't strike me as the kind of person that would go back on his word.

"Zach disagrees with Lideri in principle; he doesn't like lying to people. But the truth is, he would never actually go against his wishes. Zach views him as a sort of father figure." He takes a deep breath. "Also, you should know, Zach is next in line to be Lideri after this one steps down. Lideri has been grooming him for it since day one."

That explains a lot about him.

I'm suddenly filled with so many questions. Shouldn't Caleb be first in line if he has literally grown up in this world? What would make a Lideri step down? Most importantly, when did Lideri change his mind about me?

I had been so happy that he was giving me a chance. I guess I was wrong.

"Why are you telling me all of this Calloway?" It seems almost like a betrayal for him to reveal Lideri's plans.

"Because I believe we can get Lideri to change his mind. Depending on how tonight goes; I would like to start training you tomorrow."

"Thank you," I nod.

"I better get going, Jennings. I don't want to be here when Henry arrives," he gets up and starts walking to the door, pausing halfway there and turning back to me. "You do look really great by the way."

And with that he leaves, closing the door softly behind him.