Page 72 of A Pack of Pumpkins
"It isn’t. The Lovers reversed doesn’t mean lovers, it means disharmony. One-sided."
He sneers. "I can read. It says ‘Lovers’."
I open my mouth to argue further, but he snaps, "Next," and his eyes promise danger.
Flipping the next card, my heart sinks further. Justice, reversed. It represents an inability to be held accountable, or, in this case, I’d interpret it as straight-up delusion. I voice none of this as Henry twists it into his own meaning.
"I am owed justice for what that pack has tried to steal from me,” he says. “I plan to tackle it very soon."
The next card is theSeven of Swords, deception and dishonor. After that,The Towerin the future position.
"What is that?" he asks.
"It’s destruction. Your downfall. Everything you’re doing leads to disastrous, even deadly consequences," I warn.
He laughs, a soulless, frightening sound, before slamming his fist down on the table, scattering the deck and forcing a yelp from my lips.
"You cannot—!" His yelling is cut off when a pair of tattooed hands grabs him by the scruff and hauls him bodily out of the tent.
I follow, stumbling in my skirts.
Victor throws Henry out onto the lawn in front of the tent. There aren’t many people left milling about, but enough to draw a few gasps.
"Call the Sheriff! This man’s assaulting a police officer," Henry calls, and it certainly looks that way. Victor, the town mystery, pushing around the Deputy.
Victor snarls in his face. "I told you not to ever come near my omega again."
He starts to prowl forward, but I grab his arm. "Please don’t. He didn’t do anything, just startled me."
"That is something. And it’s enough for me to rip his throat out."
"Please. As a gift for our courting date. Don’t." Not for Henry but because I don't want anything to happen to Victor.
His jaw works, a muscle ticking, but he nods.
A pair of headlights pulls up to the edge of the festival, blue lights running. The Sheriff.
Victor tenses, but I take his hand. Henry sneers at us, and we ignore him.
"What seems to be the problem?" Sheriff Corbin asks, looking between us.
"He attacked me just for getting my tarot read, Sheriff. I was just about to arrest him," Henry says.
"That is most definitely not what happened," Bax and Cali emerge from the crowd.
"We heard Clara shout. Everyone did. We were coming to help. Victor just got there first," Cali says fiercely.
Sheriff Corbin looks to me. "What happened, Clara?"
I go over the entire thing. All of his erratic and frightening actions tonight. Henry sputters out denials, but the Sheriff shoots him a cutting glance that shuts him up.
The Sheriff nods. "Deputy Lowe, please meet me back at the station. We have things to discuss."
Henry shoots me a final, knee-shaking glare and leaves.
"Can we speak in your tent?" the Sheriff asks. The crowd disperses. Cali and Bax give me questioning looks, but I nod.
The Sheriff surveys the strewn cards and overturned chair, sighing. "He was belligerent but there's not a crime here.
