I took a slow bite, really thinking back. “Granny almost never talked about her side of things unless she was telling me what needed to change about a product. Even then, it wasn’t specific to the operation, only the product itself. Alexander was the one that leaked Granny’s business stuff. He liked to brag. I always heard it second hand.” I shook my head. “He did mention right before you guys came that they’d started getting fancy with how they packaged the product. Again, I heard this second hand, so I don’t know specifics. It was said in conjunction with being in the royal market. I’m not sure if it’s a new thing or he’s just now bragging about it. Either way, it sounded like it was very upscale, whatever they were doing. I suppose they did need to take it somewhere to have that done, though I can’t for the life of me remember him ever talking about it. It always sounded likethey were taking the productin. I thought ‘in’ meant to the city, I guess, where Granny kept her affairs.”
“Did you write that down in your journal?”
“No. I heard it the day after we, uh, met.” I looked away for a moment, a rush of heat coming over me. “We went looking for the Moonfire Lily that evening and then you guys showed up. I didn’t get a chance to write anything down.”
“Moonfire Lily?”
“It’s a glowing flower that has some amazing properties. It’s rare and hard to find. It’s easier at night because it glows.”
“Was that the flower you had in your workhouse?”
“Of course you combed through the work shed.” I hunched over my bowl. “Yes, it was. I picked that flower a couple months ago and though the stalk has withered, the petals are miraculously still perfect.”
“Granny’s product is purple and black. The packaging, I mean. Does that ring a bell?”
I looked over at Weston for a long moment. “Only because purple reminds me of fairies, and purple and black is my favorite color combination.”
His eyelids fluttered and then blinked twice in quick succession. This time he didn’t turn into stone, unlike when he was trying to keep the knowledge of my magic from me.
“Yes,” he said, his tone deep and thick. “You had purple accents running through your cottage. Your bedroom was purple, your furniture black.”
“And you scoped out my bedroom. Fantastic,” I said sarcastically.
“Obviously. It’s where I found your journals. You didn’t help Granny with the design?”
“No. I would’ve, but she never asked.”
“Was she ever in your cottage?”
“Of course. She bought it for me and visited from time to time. I was the only person she called on for tea. It was another thing that made me feel special. Not work special, but that we had a—a connection.”
He nodded slowly. “Did you ever show her your art?”
My gut tightened. I needed to look away, suddenly wishing I hadn’t sat down with him. “No. The art was just for me. I didn’t show that to anyone. She respected my privacy, getting me what I needed without asking why.”
“You were the enemy, Aurelia. The drug maker. I needed to see what you had stored in your house.”
“And now?”
“And now...” He cleared his throat. “Now you’re the prisoner.”
“You like to dive right into the fire, I see.” Hadriel sat down next to me, forming a line rather than a circle, Weston on my other side. “This chili is fucking divine, my love. My asshole is puckering with how good it is.”
“That’s not—” I giggled helplessly. “That’s not normal, I don’t think?”
“It’s certainly a strange compliment,” Weston murmured, sitting forward and taking my empty bowl. “I’ll leave you to your night. Hadriel, bring her to the tent when she’s ready. Don’t stay out too late. We have an early start.”
The crowd parted as he walked through, everyone going a little quiet and nodding at him respectfully. He placed the bowls down in the dirty dish area, said a couple things to those close by, and excused himself. He stopped by the tent, shed his clothes, shifted, and drifted off into the night, presumably to check in with the pack still working. Maybe to relieve some of them so they could eat.
“He doesn’t take time to relax?” I asked Hadriel.
“No. All work and no play makes Alpha a very dull boy.”
“Before I forget.” I pushed to one side and dug into my pocket, feeling what was there and choosing the item I was after. I put out my hand, the item cupped in my palm. “I swiped this for you last night. Don’t get caught.”
His brow knit as he took what I offered. Upon seeing it, a smile spread across his face and he slipped it into his pocket.
“It’s the hallucinogen,” I explained. “Yes, you’ll be fine. No, you won’t get addicted. You’ll see things, though. Take it with caution. If you get into trouble, curl into a small, dark space or just come find me, preferably without the alpha being present.”
