I burst out laughing. “I think I’ll refrain.” I was serious as I met his gaze. “We need to figure out a way to make this work. Steve needs to see, because then he can hopefully teach others.”
Landon nodded. “That’s what I want.”
“Good.” I kissed his cheek. “There’s just one other thing and then we can go to the inn and you can have your seven slices of bacon.”
He looked relieved that I wasn’t going to give him a fight about his new “step” plan. “What’s that?”
“I’m not killing that naiad.” I was firm. “I can’t do it, and I’m not going to pretend I can.”
Landon smiled. “I’d never force you to kill.”
“Steve needs a crash course in thinking outside the box, because we need to get that naiad to where she wants to go today. She can’t hang around here, getting more bloodthirsty.”
“You believe we should be more concerned about the warlock.”
“He’s dangerous,” I replied. “I think those men became dangerous together. This is no longer a naiad-versus-human thing. The warlock changes the picture.”
“How?”
“Warlocks can influence the way people react, and I have a sneaking suspicion this warlock was already creating a mob mentality before the naiad was killed. That’s how things went off the rails so quickly. “He’s high up on the construction team food chain. He has a vested interest in this going well. Maybe a bonus if the project is completed early.”
Realization dawned on Landon’s face. “They wanted to foster a feeling of camaraderie, but they went too far.”
I nodded. “The men started feeding off one another because of their fear. Then they took it too far.”
“The warlock is to blame.”
I hesitated. “Not entirely. If those men weren’t predisposed to go a dark route they wouldn’t have done it. The warlock is to blame, but the men aren’t completely innocent.”
Landon nodded in understanding. “We need a list of names for your mother and aunts to work through because they might recognize our warlock.”
“It’s all we’ve got,” I said. “I also need to talk to Scout about the plane door, but I will do that away from Steve and Spencer. I don’t want them around Scout.”
“We can work that out.” He grabbed my hand and dragged me toward the bathroom. “Now come on. We need a big breakfast.”
“This in no way has anything to do with you getting to your bacon?”
“I’m wounded, Bay. This is about the safety of our family and team.” He managed to keep a straight face.
“Good answer.” I smiled. “I’m not falling for it, but it was a good answer.”
“I figured you’d like it.”
“I do tend to fall for the schmaltz.”
“That’s one of the reasons I love you.”
“What’s the other reason?”
“If you want to play this game—the schmaltz game—we can do it on the way to the inn. We’ll multitask. Let’s not drag things out, Bay.”
I laughed. “Just as I thought. It is the bacon.”
“It’s shower time. Let’s get a move on.” With that, he hurried to the bathroom.
STEVE, CHIEF TERRY, SPENCER, AND AUNTTillie were in the dining room at The Overlook. Steve looked muchmore together than he had the previous evening, which was good for what I had to do. First, however, I focused on Aunt Tillie.
“Where was Millie keeping you?” I asked.
