Especially since I healed the old wounds they inflicted on the Madame?
“Maybe we should talk in private,” I murmured.
But Crystal wasn’t going to let it go. “No, Matheson. If you won’t tell him, then I will. Everyone has the right to know.”
“Know what? What is this big secret?” Eric growled, getting agitated now.
My heart lurched, feeling sticky and anxious. My fingers tightened in Eric’s shirt. Crystal was going to air out this dark secret for everyone to hear, and I couldn’t stop her. I didn’t know if Ishouldstop her. She was there that night, and this was painful for her, too.
Was it simply naive of me to want to live peacefully, without all this bad blood?
I shot the Madame a sympathetic look, but her expression gave nothing away--at least not to a stranger. To someone who didn’t know her, she might have looked emotionless. But I knew beneath that exterior, she was hurting.
“I would never forget this woman’s face,” Crystal began, her voice edged like a blade.
“Wait,” I said quickly. “I’ll tell him.”
Eric frowned, regarding both Crystal and I with a wary look. My hands trembled as I backed away from Eric so as not to smother him with my closeness when I told him this secret.
“One of you, just say it, whatever it is,” Eric growled. “I’m a grown man and a pack leader--”
The Madame’s voice cut through the air. “I was the one who killed your parents.”
Dead, uncomfortable silence fell over the clearing. The words were out now, and there was no taking them back. The truth hung in the air like static before a storm. My heart was thick and slow in my chest, rocking my ribs with every beat.
The Madame still gripped her firearm. Crystal’s unblinking gaze were on her. Eric’s too, but they had gone dull, with only a dark glint of pain illuminating them.
“I would lay down my gun,” the Madame said after a moment, breaking the taut silence, “but I am afraid you will attack me, and I’ll lose the opportunity that Matheson gifted to me.”
Crystal’s glare was cutting and deep when she turned it on me. I winced. She wasn’t even trying to hide the open contempt in her expression.
Eric was harder to read. He didn’t seem fully there. That worried me even more.
“Eric?” I asked softly. I reached for him, wanting to be close, but he didn’t meet me halfway. He didn’t reach back for me at all. My heart ached for him.
What did he think of me? How did he feel? Was he angry with me? Betrayed? Or did he realize that there was more to this situation than what it appeared to be on the surface?
When Eric finally spoke, it was in a low, clipped tone. “You wanted their pelts. Do you still have them?”
“Yes,” the Madame said.
“Bring them to me.”
The Madame crooked a finger, summoning one of her own human guards closer. Her people had gathered around the crowd, not ready for a fight any longer, but still tense and very much on-edge. The guard went inside and brought the chest back out before setting it in between the Madame and Eric. She nodded to it, gesturing for Eric to take it.
Eric glanced down at the chest, his expression unreadable. Crystal was beside him shaking her head.
“Colton,” Eric said. “Would you mind?”
“Sure,” Colton replied softly. As he reached down to lift the two pelts from the chest, Eric did his best not to look at them. His expression was dark with grief. Crystal had turned away, scowling and seeming eager to leave.
Colton carefully rolled the large pelts and held them gingerly in his arms. His expression was solemn but calm. His eyes met mine with a flash of sympathy.
The air thrummed with tension, as if either side would break out into an attack at any moment. But nobody moved.
“Thank you for returning them,” Eric said quietly to the Madame.
She nodded without a word.
