Of course he didn’t want her dead; he wasn’t a complete monster.
Revel wasn’t the only one pissed off. I was annoyed that Hallow went back on their word. They told me I didn’t have to worry, then let her in anyway. I thought we had an understanding, but clearly our ringleader had other plans.
Still, I couldn’t help being a little impressed. Just a smidge. No one had ever let me throw dozens of knives at them while blindfolded, especially when I got close enough to cut them. That was probably what changed Hallow’s mind.
Arina was either brave or stupid—or both—and I wanted to find out which.
“Talk to Hallow if it’s that big of a deal,” I continued, jerking my thumb toward the dressing room door. There were only a few minutes before rehearsal started. If Revel wanted to go argue with the ringleader, now was his time.
He didn’t budge.
“That’s what I thought,” I mumbled. As if he’d get further with Hallow than I had. I fought back a laugh.
My eyes slid to Night. He was wearing his staple teal jacket, maroon top hat, and metal mask that concealed the lower half of his face. Ready for rehearsal, looking bored. I wondered why he’d even tagged along. To watch us argue? To see Revel whine? To learn more about our newest troupe member?
It wasn’t like he’d tell me if I asked, so I didn’t bother.
I twitched my mouth back and forth. My white face paint and red painted-on smile were almost completely dry. I’d chosen a striped jumpsuit and jester hat for tonight, my throwing knives lining my belt the way they did for every performance.
“Where is she now?” Revel asked with disgust, like talking about her physically pained him.
Oh, how I wanted to crack open his skull and pick apart his brain. I wanted to know why he was so bothered by the beta girl. What had she done to him? Or he to her?
But like inquiring why Night had tagged along, I knew asking was pointless. Revel wouldn’t tell me.
If he wanted me to know things, he’d say so without interrogation. He wasn’t offering up information, so I knew he planned to keep it locked up tight. Whatever. Bludgeoning him and trying to decipher his brain still didn’t sound like a bad idea.
“I saw her leave with Bobbitt.” I shrugged a single shoulder. “Not sure where they fucked off to.”
Revel hummed a reply, still thoroughly unamused. I pressed two fingers against my temple, fighting off the twinge of a headache forming.
Why was this stuntman such a pain in the ass?
“Listen, just because she got in doesn’t mean she’s here to stay,” I assured him, my gaze bouncing between him and Night. “But it’s going to take more than me talking to Hallow to get rid of her.”
Revel dropped his propped foot to the ground and leaned forward, folding his hands between his knees. His eyes locked on me.
“You have a plan?” he asked.
I shrugged again. Whispers of one, but nothing concrete. I’d been mulling it over in the hours since my knife throwing session with Arina ended. We might not be able to override the ringleader’s decision, but we could still change Arina’s mind.
This wasn’t over, not by a long shot.
“Something like that,” I said. “But it might take all of us. We can scare her off, but we might have to get a little more creative.”
“More creative than throwing knives at her face?”Night signed.
The fact that he was even bothering to communicate was a good sign. He would definitely be on board.
“Yes.” I nodded. “She has to be scared of something; we just have to figure out what her fears are. Between the three of us, it shouldn’t be difficult.”
“And if that doesn’t work?” Revel scoffed. “If we can’t scare her enough to leave? What then?”
I gritted my teeth so hard my jaw ached. “Then we make her life hell. We make her so miserable that she walks away, but we’ll have to do it without pissing Hallow off.”
I wasn’t willing to risk my place in the circus to humor Revel or scare off some beta woman. Nothing mattered to me more than one day inheriting this business from our ringleader, especially not keeping the stuntman happy. The circus was always my top priority.
“Unless one of you has a better plan,” I offered.
