Page 108 of Last Witch Attempt
“One of whom is a warlock.”
“Greg,” I confirmed.
“What do we know about him?” The way Evan folded his arms over his chest reminded me of Chief Terry.
“Not much,” I replied. “We don’t have time to do a deep dive. She’s going after him.”
“Have you considered it might be better to let her kill him?”
I swallowed hard, then nodded. “I’m worried that she doesn’t have the power to kill him.”
“Because he killed the other naiad.” Evan cocked his head, working things out. “Maybe they were caught unaware and that’s how the warlock got the jump on them. He may not be all that powerful.”
“Or he’s really powerful and has been flying under the radar for a long time. I’m going to try to save Dustin. He might not have done what he did and killed the naiad—going so far as to torture her—without the warlock’s influence.”
“You’re suggesting a trade,” Evan realized. “You’re going to give her the warlock and save the human. Is that the message you want to send to the Feds?”
“Not particularly.” I grew uncomfortable under his unblinking gaze and tugged at the collar of my shirt. “That’s pretty much the opposite of the message I want to send.”
“But?”
“But…” I drew out the word. “The warlock created the situation. The warlock told them to kill the naiad. Even if the warlock didn’t know what he was facing, he knew they were paranormals. He didn’t have to kill the other naiad … and definitely not in such brutal fashion.”
“You think he could turn into a problem down the line,” Evan surmised.
I shrugged. “I’m surprised he hasn’t turned into a problem already. Maybe he knows who we are. Maybe he’s been watching us. Maybe he will be a problem for us in the future.”
“That’s a lot of maybes, Bay.”
“There are some things I know beyond a shadow of a doubt. I can’t kill that naiad. Not after what happened.”
“Because you would do the same in her shoes.”
I nodded. “If a group of individuals did that to Landon—or Clove and Thistle, for that matter—I wouldn’t stop.”
Evan briefly closed his eyes, then nodded. “You said you know several things.”
“I guess it’s two things. The second is that I can’t shove Millie back in a box. I don’t entirely know what Aunt Tillie did, but I can tell she regrets it. She had no idea Millie managed to mark the passage of time while being locked away. She thought she had no choice. She was wrong.”
Evan’s forehead screwed up in concentration. “This world isn’t big enough for two Tillies.”
“The other world might.”
“It’s an interesting idea,” he said.
“Nobody dies,” I agreed.
“Except for the warlock.”
I shrugged. “We don’t know he’s going to die. If I can save him, I will. If he’s sacrificed, it is what it is.”
“It feels like justice to you.”
“Yeah.”
He nodded. “What do you need me to do?”
“I have to deal with Steve. I need Scout to open that plane door so I can walk the naiad and Millie through it. If you can get Scout here, I’ll figure out a way to separate from Steve. Then we’ll just do it.”
