No problem. I like talking to our pretty girl.
What Lark showed you... Is someone in trouble? She's not hurt, is she?
No to both questions. She remembered how your stepfather got the wolfsbane, that's all. She showed us the supplier's face and shared his scent, and now the king, ah, wants a word with him. Since Sid knows the dude, he, um, volunteered to find him.
You're a terrible liar, waffle.
Hey, most of that was the truth!I said indignantly.
I get the feeling you left out some important details.
But baby—
We're here,Cole and Granite said together, then Wyatt added,We got her, Ash. We're taking her to Mase and the king right now.
Don't think this conversation is over, Ash,Posy scolded me.And don't let Sid get into trouble. I know he's on the hunt, not just volunteering for escort duty.
Can you blame him?Cole snapped.He's the man who supplied Kendall Briggs with enough wolfsbane to almost kill Lark! I wish I had my hands around his throat right now!
Keep it together, brother,Jay linked in,so you can take care of our girl.
He was silent for a moment, then Wyatt linked us an image of Cole hugging the life out of our mate, his face buried in her mate mark, and that made us smile despite our worry and anger.
As Sid ran fast and low with his nose to the ground, I linked Jay, knowing he was in the same situation I was. Our wolves weren't going to listen to us, never mind relinquish control any time soon, so we might as well have a little convo while we were along for the ride.
No better sedative, am I right? You should find a way to bottle Eau de Posy. How are you going to keep Q from killing Ikhlassi without her there to calm him down?
I'm not,he admitted. If the king wants him alive, he'll figure it out or unleash Onyx to stop him. Doubt that latter one, though. The reception's still going on, so he can't be out of sight for too long before tongues start wagging, and I'm sure he wants to keep this under wraps until he finds out the size of the hornets' nest Lark just kicked over.
True enough. He could send Gabbro or Pumice, though. Better yet, send both of them.
Other than his family, Quartz didn't let many others get close to him. Pretty much the only ones besides Onyx were Magnus' and Alfred's wolves. None of us knew why, but Mase thought it was because they were Onyx's father and grandfather, and Quartz loved Onyx like a brother. Whatever the reason, he had mad respect for both former kings and would listen to them.
Well, maybe.
Good idea,Jay said. I'll link Mase to see if that's possible. Otherwise, we're going to need a necromancer to ask him anything because our wolves are going to straight up slaughter this prick.
Facts,I smirked, then sobered up.So, um, do we tell Posy the whole story? I don't know how Lark blocked her so completely for so long, but she has no clue what her wolf endured.
I think,he said slowly,that there were times when Posy was so knocked out, Lark didn't have to block her so much as just not tell her what happened while she was unconscious.
So do we tell her?I repeated.I mean, it was her wolf that went through it. Shouldn't she know about it? But I don't want her to suffer anymore. I don't want this to be a step back when she's doing so well.
I hear you.He was silent for a moment. Finally, he said,Link Angelo and ask him what, if anything, he knows about Ikhlassi while I link Dr. York and get his opinion.
And what doyouthink?
I think that scenting Ikhlassitonight forced Lark's hand to tell us, but she's still protecting Posy from the knowledge. I don't think we should interfere. At least not yet.
Okay, but dude! I have so many questions!For someone who'd been worried he'd fall asleep driving back to the guest house, I was wide awake now.I mean, why and how did Ikhlassi get involved with Briggs?
I thought that was obvious. He all but admitted he was paid to go there and supply the wolfsbane. How did you miss that? Dude, you are as dense as the rock Sid's named after.
So he wanted an insult battle, did he? Good because I was all in! I didn't know if he initiated it for himself or me, but I welcomed anything to relieve some of the stress and tension that was stirring me up.
But who was that Calvin guy Briggs mentioned and how did he know about Posy?I demanded.And you need to wipe your mouth because you have some bullshit on your lips.
I bet a hundred that Calvin is Briggs' brother. The one the king mentioned who's now a guest at Hotel Torture. And if I wanted to hear from an asshole, I would have farted.