Total pages in book: 115
Estimated words: 109329 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 547(@200wpm)___ 437(@250wpm)___ 364(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 109329 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 547(@200wpm)___ 437(@250wpm)___ 364(@300wpm)
He swallowed, his eyes growing a little bigger. They flicked Armendale’s way, and then Austin’s before he closed down again. He was caught in the middle. What a horrible place to be after you lost someone.
I put a hand on his forearm even though that was kinda taboo, especially with shifters. But I’d already messed up so much, what was one more touch? Armendale could add it to the collection of my faux pas.
Speaking of.
I turned to him. “And why are you here, trying to be the loudest person in the room?”
His eyes narrowed, just slightly. “Can I talk now?” he said sarcastically.
“Do you not know how questions work?” I replied.
“I have to be here. Someone has to stand witness.”
“Yes, about that. I find that very interesting. How did you happen upon an out-of-the-way street shortly after the body was found, all clean and fresh and with your friends and your guys?”
The friends in question stiffened. Way to give yourself away. That helped.
“We found Calvin’s man,” Armendale lied easily.
“His brother-in-law,” I said. “They were close. Have a little respect. And how did you know he was missing when no one else did? His roommates said he went out last night. Didn’t come home. They thought he’d found a lady. They weren’t worried, which means they didn’t know he was missing. He was dressed like he was sneaking around—also curious. You weren’t out last night. We have eyewitnesses that say you were tucked in your rooms. Not all your people, though, right? They were dressed like they were sneaking around, too. Weird. What were they all up to?”
Tristan relayed that Niamh had enlisted Patty to help do a little digging. If Patty hadn’t known the neighbors before, she knew them now, and everything about their lives to boot. I didn’t know which alpha was which in here, though.
I pointed at Armendale and he tensed. Worry and aggression colored the bonds from Austin, and power swirled through the room.
I laughed. “You don’t get it, Armendale. A mage doesn’t need a knife to kill, and I neither do I. I can easily kill you where you stand. You would explode before you took two steps. Or maybe your intestines would get ripped out. It’s hard to know what horrible spell I’ll reach for when surprised. Did you get that unused vial back, by the way? Without a cork, it’s no good to us.”
“Here.” Niamh tossed it. The durable glass hit the bar and bounced off before tinkling across the ground.
“Ah, there we go.” I jerked my head at it. “Maybe learn how mages do things before you try to implicate them. Which is a pretty dumb thing to do, anyway. It would’ve only proven the very real danger that is out there. Too bad you’re too stupid to pull it off.”
He braced again, leaning on the balls of his feet. Power swirled. Most of the shifters tensed. Expectation crawled across my flesh. I’d given him a challenge.
“You don’t have proof of any of this,” Armendale growled. “So some of my people and Theo’s went out—so what? They came home. Calvin’s man stayed out and look what happened. His wounds didn’t come from a shifter.”
“His wounds didn’t come from an animal. Last I checked, you have opposable thumbs, just like mages. I wonder, if we searched your people’s rooms, would we find the knife?”
“Only if ye also find the enforcer with the mustache in Professor Plum’s pantry,” Niamh drawled, rolling her ice around in the glass. “Oh, weren’t we playing the easiest game of Clue in the history of board games?”
Nessa spat out a laugh.
Now I did stare, straight into his eyes. The bonds from Austin screamed at the danger, basically begging me to stop. He hated when I got challenged. He would’ve lost his mind if he’d seen me face off against the Elder.
I didn’t budge. I knew how this part of things worked. Maybe Armendale didn’t give the command. Maybe he only applauded the foresight of the one who did. That didn’t make him innocent. He felt no remorse that someone had died, and he’d been in here the whole time, trying to control the conversation. Trying to sow discord in this territory just so he could hang on to a few fanboys.
Did he think we were suckers?
“Get out,” I told him. “You don’t have to leave the territory—I’ll let that be Austin’s call—but you do need to leave my sight. I’ll have someone tailing you and your people twenty-four seven. I’ll know who you speak with, and I’ll know what happens after that. If there is any suspicious activity that might have originated from your camp, I will show up at your door personally, is that clear? And I can get a lot more colorful in my fighting than Austin. I will not tolerate your putting this territory—anyone in it—in danger.”