Katia nodded. “That is a tricky situation,” she ventured. “Probably especially tricky for Quinn. Are you certain that he loves you?”
“Yes,” I answered, surprised by the question.
“Then you know that if he could tell you, he would,” she said simply.
“True.”
She eyed me. “Do you think that can be enough for you?”
“I . . . struggle with it,” I confessed. Katia simply nodded, her eyes back on the road.
“What about you?” I asked, trying to keep my voice light. Katia hadn’t dated anyone in the year I’d known her. “Any prospects in Albuquerque?”
I couldn’t resist a quick sideways glance. My aunt looked surprised. “Me? No. There is . . . there was—someone of interest, but . . . no,” she sputtered.
Now it was my turn to raise an eyebrow at her. Katia was squirming in her seat, which was entertaining in itself. “Do not ask me, please,” she said. “I had an interest, but it was . . . unrequited. I believe that’s the word.”
“Okay,” I said, but my thoughts were engaged in this interesting new distraction. Katia had a crush? That was so . . . normal of her.
We spent the rest of the drive talking about Charlie and the rest of my Luther family. Katia adored Charlie, and although she found the Luthers a bit sheltered and naive—even for humans—she had enjoyed hanging out with my cousins in the past, and was interested in updates.
As I talked about the people I loved, I found myself really relaxing for the first time since the werewolves had shown up at my door, and I wondered if Katia was doing it on purpose. I decided not to ask.
Chapter 26
Maven owned an apartment building just off Longbow that featured several basement units, including the one where Simon lived. It had started out as sort of his private research lab, but he’d moved in a couple of years earlier, after breaking up with Tracy. I think it was just easier than going through the hassle of finding a new place.
I didn’t have my keys with me, but I saw Quinn’s sedan in the parking lot and knew he’d beaten us there. He buzzed us through the outer door, and I led Katia into the basement hallway, moving slowly. I didn’t expect trouble, but I still had my revolver, and had given Katia my silver knife, just in case.
I knocked gently on the door and Quinn answered it instantly, a smile on his face. The smile twitched a little when he saw me—he’d forgotten about the disguise. “Hey,” he said, and over my shoulder: “Hello, Katia. Thanks for helping Lex tonight.”
“Of course,” she said brusquely, moving past him into the apartment.
“I’ve got a surprise for you,” Quinn said as I followed my aunt into the apartment.
“Oh?”
Just then, I heard a crash from the kitchen, and my hand flew to my sidearm. Katia had her knife out just as quickly. “No, it’s just—” Quinn began, but then a familiar figure stepped into the doorway.
“Lily!” I cried.
“I dropped a plate,” my friend explained, looking back and forth between the three of us. I had automatically moved forward to hug her, but Lily took a step backward. “Who is this?” she asked Quinn, seeming bewildered.
He laughed.
“It’s me, dummy,” I said, reaching up and jerking the magnetic nose ring and putty off my face. “I’m in disguise for the witch meeting.”
“Oh, Lex!” Looking sheepish, she darted forward to embrace me. When she stepped back, she reached out to touch the tip of one of my pigtails. I made a face. “That is wild,” she marveled.
“Quinn could have warned you I was dressed like this,” I said, cutting my eyes to him.
“But then Quinn would have missed the stunned look on her face,” Quinn said, grinning.
Lily flung out an arm to smack him, but of course he was too fast for her.
Katia was standing with her hands in her jacket pockets. “Hello, Lily,” she said awkwardly. “It’s good to see you again.”
“Kat! Didn’t mean to be rude, I was just kind of thrown.” Lily went over and hugged her, too, which prompted a look of surprise from Katia. Lily was the only one who got away with calling her Kat. It hadn’t occurred to the rest of us to try.
When Lily pulled back, she touched the braid encircling Katia’s head. “I love your hair. Did you do it yourself? Can you teach me?”
Katia actually blushed, and Quinn and I exchanged an amused look. “Yes, and yes,” she mumbled.
“By the way,” Lily said to me, “Simon is pissed that you haven’t been answering the walkie-talkie.”
I actually smacked my head with the palm of one hand, like in a cartoon. I’d been so focused on the witches taking away Simon’s and Lily’s phones, it hadn’t occurred to me that I’d had a way of communicating with the Pellar farm all along. “I’m an idiot.” If I had taken one minute to think it through at any point in the last few days, it should have been obvious. “I’ll grab it next time I stop at the cabin for sure. I don’t suppose you have yours?”
She shook her head, a little embarrassed. “I left in such a hurry, I forgot too. I don’t even have my phone, since it was confiscated.”
“Yeah, about that . . . how are you here?” I asked, checking my watch. “I’m thrilled to see you, but I thought you were still under house arrest.”
Lily’s happy expression fell. “Come on, let’s sit. I just made tea.” She ushered us into the kitchen, where a steaming cup was waiting at her usual spot at the table. We all sat down. “After you called the farm, Simon and I had a talk with Mom.” A look of worry flashed over her face.
“How is Hazel holding up?” I asked.
“She’s putting on a good show of indignation and strength, but she’s my mother. I can tell this has devastated her.” Lily’s eyes filled with tears, which she swiped at distractedly. “Mom has dealt with a lot of shit, but the double blow of having her loyalty questioned and what Morgan’s done . . .” Lily trailed off, not knowing how to finish that thought.
“I’m sorry, Lil,” I said quietly. I couldn’t imagine how she must be feeling.
She gave me a quick nod and went on. “Anyway, Mom snuck me out. They’ll figure it out in the morning when I don’t show up to the meeting, but that’s part of the plan. Mom thought I should distance myself from the witch congress, as a . . . mmm . . .” She paused to take a sip of tea, thinking over the right word. “Well, a plan B, I guess. She’ll tell everyone that I didn’t feel well, but Si will get a rumor out there that I disagreed with how she’s handling this whole mess.”
“So if Morgan convinces everyone to turn against Hazel, they’ll have another option,” I said.
She gave me a tiny smile that held more sadness than mirth. “I don’t like looking like I’m betraying Mom—she hasn’t done anything wrong—but this at least gives us some room to maneuver.”
Her eyes shone with the tears she was fighting. I reached over and covered her hand with mine for a moment. “It was the right call,” I told her.
“That’s what I said,” Quinn added mildly.
Lily patted my hand absently, then raised her mug to her lips again, both hands clutching it like she needed the warmth.
“What is your mother going to say to the other clans tomorrow?” I asked.
“To stay the course, more or less. She’ll tell them the truth about Morgan and the weekend passes, for one thing, and Maven has agreed to restore their apex magic—if they’ll finish out the three years in peace.”
“Well, that’s something,” I said, my hopes lifting a little for the first time since the witches had found out about the weekend pass. It was smart of Maven to make a concession, but I didn’t know if Hazel would be able to convince the others to go for it, after everything that had happened already. “Did Quinn fill you in on everything else?”
Lily nodded, but her expression was troubled. “Yes.”
Something was bothering her, more than just the general situation. “What?” I asked.
She shook her head a little. “I just . . . I can’t believe my sister paid werewolves to kill witches. I know it’s silly to focus on that one small part, given the enormity of the situation, but . . . still.” Her face darkened. “After Dad, and all this baggage between us and the wolves . . . I just can’t believe she’s so far gone.”
“I’m sorry, Lil,” I said, feeling like a broken record. I meant it, though. Lily and I had talked about Morgan’s actions before. She’d been of the opinion that her sister was . . . well, maybe not redeemable, but Lily’d felt some sympathy for the combination of fear and rage that had driven Morgan to do what she did. This was something else. Hiring werewolves—probably even the same wolves who had helped Trask—to bring down the clan was well past a line she had never imagined Morgan would be capable of crossing.
“Anyway.” Lily made a quick swipe under her eyes and looked at me. “There’s something else you need to know. You’re thinking Morgan killed those werewolves?”
“Yes. She must have snuck into the state. Maybe an illusion spell?”
Lily was shaking her head. “That’s the thing, Lex. Morgan literally can’t come into Colorado. Tonight Mom told us that when we all got our apex magic back, she went to the four corners of the state and set up a ward, using her own blood. Morgan cannot break the circle.”
I gaped at her. I knew about protection circles, but only around single buildings. “That’s . . . that’s possible? A ward that big?”
My friend wrinkled her nose. “For me? No. Not yet, anyway,” she said wryly. “But my mom’s on another level. She goes back once a year to renew the wards. Remember her trip in September?”
“You said she was going on vacation.”
“Yeah, because that’s what she told Si and me. Mom didn’t want to tell us it was to keep Morgan away. I think . . .” Lily shrugged. “I think she was just too sad that it’s come to this.”
Quinn and I looked at each other. “Well, we know Morgan had at least three accomplices in Wyoming,” I offered. “Maybe she hired those same werewolves to tamper with the car.”
Quinn shook his head. “It’s possible, but I doubt it. When Maven kicked Trask’s people out of the state, she put the fear of God into them. Taking mercenary work in Wyoming is one thing, but I doubt even Trask’s old pack members would cross Maven just for a payday.”
“What about the Cheyenne pack?” Lily asked. “Could one of them have snuck into the state?”
“It’s possible,” I admitted. “I looked through the information she collected on the pack, but nothing really jumped out at me. That’s why Maven wants us to find Mary and Keith. Hopefully they’ll have a way to get in touch with the rest of the pack, and we can start eliminating suspects.”