Gypsy Moon (All The Pretty Monsters #4)(63)

“She thinks to protect us. Even fucking Arion. Presumably, that’s why she called for him after she was certain Blue wasn’t following and she leapt out of a window.”

Blue scratches his hideous, saggy neck, as if he’s happy he heard his name and is getting frisky about that itch.

“Why’d she call for him at all?” I decide to ask, since Vance clearly learned a lot about her in that two-day stint he hoarded her like the selfish bastard he is.

“Violet leapt out a window on top of a mountainside and was plummeting very damn fast,” he says, simply staring at me like I’m the rusty tool in the shed that gets kicked out of the way for a reason.

“But why did she call for Arion, tosser? That was my question.”

“She wanted it over as fast as possible,” Vance states like it should have been a rhetorical point. “She literally said so herself.”

I can’t believe I’m the only one being asked to play nice with this lot, and I sent her off with Arion like I had some divine right. I’m never going to be out of trouble.

“She had something important to tell me. I think I was fucking out of trouble, and I never even got to hear it before I’m back in trouble.”

His lips twitch with wry amusement as he looks away.

“She turned over her wrist because she wanted the suspicion over as quickly as possible too,” he says like he’s so bloody insightful, petting that disgusting thing once again.

I want to kick him in the bollocks just to make him cry, but I don’t think Blue would like me too much afterwards, since he’s apparently Vance’s new pet.

Damn dog is starved for affection. Makes sense. I’ve been a thousand years without much of it too, and I’m just as starved.

A sobering thought hits me, and the jealousy flits away like thin shards of glass, as the true reality of it all finally crashes down on me.

“How did Violet know which room was Caroline’s? Nothing in this place has remained intact enough to show ownership, aside from Idun’s many things,” I state quietly. “I’m positive she was Violet. There are some things that simply can’t be faked, because no one even knows all the ways Violet does things differently, including Violet.”

“Violet hints at secrets, wanting you to tell her the answers to questions she’s not sure if she should ask,” Vance answers, lips thinning. “She keeps her questions limited to related topics, in most cases. On occasion, she’ll swing a random question your way, and you’ll wonder why she even asked. It’s not the question to pay attention to. It’s the answer. Only Violet knows the real question in those cases.”

“Something specific on your mind, Van Helsing?” I ask as we move through the woods at a slow pace, smelling Emit in the far distance.

Just a little blood tinges the air, as can be expected amongst alpha wolves in the same areas, so we take our time as we press on.

“She asked about the first time Arion fed. She knew which room was Caroline’s. She never once mentioned the portraits of Idun. She flew out a window instead of fainting because we were near, and she trusted Arion could catch her. She’s a contradiction, because she’s figuring out the answers on her own without the deliberate questioning, all because we never gave her the answers she sought when she tried asking directly. She changes and adapts so quickly to her surroundings that it’s jarring by the time you catch on. I have a lot of specifics on my mind. Pick one, Damien,” he answers like he’s getting annoyed with me.

Lately, I sincerely find myself fantasizing about punching his face more than I ever have in these many long centuries.

“Why’d she ask about the first time Arion fed?”

“She had a dream,” he answers absently. “I filled in the blanks as to why she was curious, not listening to her, and she went with it because it saved her the trouble of telling me something that would likely be a vague truth.”

“Now you’re going to make me revisit every single conversation I’ve bloody had with her, and I’m already in enough trouble. I don’t want to know if I’m in even more trouble,” I say too loudly.

Arrows stab the ground in front of our feet, and we both cut an exhausted look in the direction of the wolves moving this way—some on two legs, some on four.

Emit’s naked as he lowers his bow, streaking toward us with a cocky grin on his face. That grin falls when he sniffs the air a little harder, and his eyes narrow.

“Where’s Violet?” he asks.

I toss a thumb in Vance’s direction. “He told Arion he could take her without even asking Violet’s opinion on the matter.”

Vance glares over at me. “That’s not—”

“It’s true enough. Maybe Violet will roll with it,” I say with a fantastically enthused smile, loving my new plan.

Fake it until I make it.

Vance rolls his eyes, muttering something about me being dumber than a wolf, which causes the dumb mutts to all growl.

I just grin more.

“Probably best not to insult wolves in wolf territory,” Emit says with a dark grin. “It’s also probably best Arion’s not here—”

Growls break out all around in agreement.

Emit continues on. “We have a lot to discuss with the regional alphas, unfortunately. The threat is too close—”