His lips part, and his eyes darken. “Shit.”
“So, you do know why that topic in particular would have bothered her?”
His jaw clenches. “Yeah, I can imagine. But—” He shakes his head. “I’m sorry. I should have warned you. She didn’t—you’re okay, right?”
“I’m fine. But why didn’t you tell me she’s got a connection to your land? She’s the second most powerful supernatural, outside of Jarron. Who else do you think I’d have approached to try to help you?”
“I don’t know.” His lashes flutter. “What did she say, though?”
I take in a deep breath. “She called me ignorant and called you a manipulator. Said I should be careful around you.”
“I’m starting to think she’s right about that,” Lola says, buzzing over and hovering between us.
Thompson looks down at his feet. “I know I haven’t always been upfront about my motives. But I swear I’ve never intended to make anything worse for anyone else. That stuff with the dryads is old news. For us, at least. It’s not something we talk about a whole lot. And while I knew she didn’t like me, I didn’t really think it all through. Or maybe—” He presses his lips together.
“Maybe what?”
He sighs. “It’s going to sound bad.”
“If it’s truth, it’s truth. We’ll deal with it,” I bite the words out, already preparing my heart for whatever damning thing he’s going to tell me now.
“Maybe part of me wanted you to ask her.”
The room falls silent in the moments after that statement. I don’t know how to take it.
“What does that mean?” Janet asks, more softly than I would have.
“I mean, she has a good relationship with Jarron. I know she’s not going to harm you, so if anyone could approach her about this, you could. I never anticipated needing help from the dryads, but it makes so much sense. It could really, really, make a big difference.”
I lift a brow, not exactly thrilled with that answer. But perhaps not as angry as he expected me to be.
“So, you sent her off to talk to possibly the most dangerous student at this school for your gain without even knowing what she was getting into?” Lola says, darting forward and buzzing in front of his nose.
He sinks into the seat and holds up his hand in surrender. “I didn’t know she was going to talk to her. If I did, I would have told her.”
“You knew,” Janet says. “If you allowed yourself to think it through, you’d have known.”
“I knew it was a possibility.”
“Plausible deniability,” I say, then heave a deep breath. I tap my knee as I try to think it through even more.
“She wasn’t too mad, was she? I mean, she gave me a real good glare on my way in here, but she’s not like ready to attack us, is she?”
“Us?” Lola asks. “Do you meanus?” She points to me. “Or do you mean your pack?”
He frowns. “I mean, me and Candice.”
Awkward silence stretches between us. Thompson runs his fingers through his hair.
“I’m sorry,” he huffs finally. “It was a cruel thing to do. I should have mentioned the history. It’s probably not as bad as she made it sound either.”
I lean back in the chair. “I think she was mostly pissed on principle. A wolf asking a dryad to help keep land they once stole from the dryad people…”
“We didn’t steal anything. I mean, we took advantage, maybe, but…” He stares off past my shoulder. “All this happened several generations ago, long before I was born. But the story goes that there was this big battle—the last one between wolves and dryads, I think. It was over this massive section of land that held some sacred places among their people. The dryads were defeated and driven away for thousands of miles. My ancestors were not part of the battle, but they were some of the first to arrive in the aftermath and claimed the land.”
“Your pack may not be responsible for driving them out,” I say, “but I’m not sure it would have made much of a difference. Any wolf asking a dryad for help keeping what wolves stole…”
He sighs. “I know we’re still wolves, but my pack is also witches. We even have some dryad blood. It’s weak, but of all the packs, we’re the least close to their enemies. I wish they’d see it that way, but I guess they wouldn’t.”
