Page 132 of The Midnight Order
I ponder every dark thought swirling through my mind. I’ll need to cull it later in the basement and take a long sip from my crystal glass.
“Tell me,” he whispers.
“The drugs were in the pumpkin syrup in the shop.”
“So Lowell said.” He turns on me in his chair, his red eyes seeming darker tonight.
I bite my cheek. “We don’t know how long it was there.”
Jasper stares at me for a long moment before closing his eyes and growling. “We don’t know how long she’s been under the influence, but that is what you’re getting at.”
“Yes.”
“Fuck!” Standing, he tosses his drink into the fire. The shatter shouldn’t shock me, but I still stiffen at the sound.
“So everything with each of us… all that’s happened…”
“I could be wrong, Jasper. But we have to consider the possibility that she could’ve been drugged this entire time. We’d be doing us and her a disservice. You know she loves that fucking pumpkin latte Karen makes. We’ve all tasted it in her blood.”
He turns on me. “So, we could all have been dosed as well?”
Shit. I hadn’t considered that.
I nod.
“We have to start the entire process over. Get me Corvin. I want all of our blood tested for traces of drugs before we begin.”
“On it.” I stand and head for the door. Turning back, I take a deep breath. “It could all be real. Don’t get discouraged.”
“Get Corvin. And Ash,”
“Yeah?”
“Watch Lowell like a hawk. He won’t let this go until whoever did this is hanging from the town clock tower. You know that as well as I do. Don’t let this eat him alive.”
I sigh. “I’ll handle it.”
Walking out of his office, I realize that’s easier said than done. Even after all these years together, none of us possesses the ability to keep Lowell out of his own way.
If he can’t find out who did this to Silver, he’s going to self-destruct.
When I walk in,Corvin is poring over paperwork at his desk in the room's corner. I try to do so as laid back as possible, so he doesn’t get alerted too soon to the distress building in my chest.
“What’s wrong?” he asks, standing immediately.
Shaking my head, I round his desk and kiss the tip of his nose. “Good evening to you, too.”
“Something’s wrong. Your energy’s off. What’s happened? Is it Silver? Is she alright?”
He tries to push past me, but I catch his wrist, turning to look at him. His eyes are frantic, and his heart rate races through my ears as if it’s mine.
He truly cares for her.
That’s if he’s not still drunk on her blood.
“Sit,” I tell him softly.
“Ash, if it’s something bad, just tell me. Please, don’t drag this out.”
