Her eyebrows lifted. “You were in on their scheme of tragic tales?”
“The witches paid a tribute to Mule’s Point, and we kept our hands off them and their business. We also profited from smuggler kickbacks and the feckless tourists who came to have their fortunes revealed. The one and only redeeming quality of the Gemini Witches,” he growled, “was that they were the real deal, and I don’t give a shit’s ass if their predictions affected you.”
“Not the way I heard it. In fact, I think you took their predictions so hard to heart that you came after me, and anyone close to me, including Leo. I haven’t forgotten about the men from Alpen showing up in the photos I took, chasing me out of Seattle. Inept goons sent by you. Or the dead wolves in Leo’s house. The fact he nearly died in that accident you orchestrated. Then there’s Levi—should I go on?”
The Alpen’s canines flashed. “You realize, I hope, that because he’s standing beside you, you aren’t actually safe?”
My growl rumbled low in my throat, but what the Alpen was saying was also entirely possible. I couldn’t guarantee her safety, no matter how hard I tried or where we were—a truth that ate into me.
Noa curled her fingers. She was going to syphon, and I closed my hand around hers. “We came to buy honey and find some coffee, so if you aren’t selling…”
“Fuck me to tomorrow,” Lec Rus sneered, a sick grin working its way across his mouth. “If I wasn’t seeing it, I’d never believe it.”
I swung around. Pushed Noa behind me.
“You need to say something, Rus?”
The Alpen gloated. “Bitch-whipped is what you are. Does your pack know?”
“Fuck off.”
“You mean nothing to the Alpen, probably not to the Carmag. Be careful, dread lord. You might face Amal’s army with no fighters at your back.”
My body was loose and ready. “Save it for the Gathering, Rus.”
But Noa was fuming. She reached around me, zapped the Alpen with a little bee sting of energy. Snow exploded at his feet. I dragged her toward the Farmer’s Market, blending in with the crowd in case the Mule wanted to take it further. At least I’d find a place for Noa to hide while I handled things.
“I’m sorry.” She was trembling.
Bedisa… he’s a dangerous enemy.
He’s an ass, and he called you bitch-whipped.
I leaned in and whispered, “A compliment.”
“Liar.”
“But now, no one will question why you’re not at the Gathering tomorrow.”
Shudders continued to run through her. I squeezed her hand, waiting until she squeezed back. Teamwork. We were getting good at it.
CHAPTER 25
Noa
In the morning, Grayson rose when I did, but disappeared into the guest bathroom and showered by himself. I found him an hour later, standing in the kitchen, adding coffee grounds to the automatic like he’d been working in a coffee kiosk for years. He’d dressed in black jeans and a long-sleeved black shirt, with his hair still damp and curling.
He handed me a steaming mug with a perfect layer of foam, and said, “I added enough cream to turn it into warm milk.”
I frowned, sampled. The coffee was the way I liked it. “I don’t guilt you over food choices.”
“Coffee isn’t food.”
Outside, the sun was glittery, and snow melted like sugar in water as an unexpected warm front moved through. I glanced down at the hiking boots I wore. The jeans and sweater might be overkill for the changing weather, which was milder in Sentinel Falls territory, thanks to the strange energies affecting Carmag.
Did Westvale cross over a ley line? That might explain it.
“What are your plans today?” he asked mildly.
