Cassandra was the one to answer me. “We play by the same rules, Ness, but I strongly discourage you from killin’ mycousin.”
“Why is that, Mrs.Morgan?”
“’Cause then this whole terrace would turn into a bloodbath, and we honest to goodness came inpeace.”
“But he killed myfather.”
“And Julian Matz killed mine!” Her voice rang out shrilly over the terrace. “Yet you don’t see me lungin’ for his neck. We’ve all lost people, Ness. Which is the reason I’m here. Because I think it’s time we unite instead of fight. But first, I’d really appreciate seein’ myson.”
“He’s indisposed tonight, but you’ll see him in the morning,” Liamsaid.
She glared at him a long moment. “He better be alive and well,Kolane.”
“He’s alive.” Liam said nothing about hiscondition.
She turned her attention to her cousin. “Aidan, you said there would befood.”
Aidan clapped, looking through the crowd until his gaze set on Lucy’s. He nodded to her, and she scurried inside. I didn’t have time to see her expression, see if she shared my shock in learning that the hunter was a wolf. Did anyone have suspicions about him, or had he really flown underneath every single Boulder and Pine’sradar?
44
Servers spilled onto the terrace,as well as music. I recognized Emmy and Skylar but not the others. They weaved through the mismatched crowd, platters bobbing from their fingertips. Had they heard anything that had been said? Did they know what we were? Emmy caught my eye, but then her gaze lowered to the tray of mini sandwiches in her hands, her face uncharacteristicallypale.
She’dheard.
Sheknew.
Would they tell more people? Or had Aidan Michaels somehow bought theirsilence?
“What a fucking fuck-fest,” Lucas muttered behindme.
“Couldn’t agree with you more, Mason,” Sarahsaid.
“You’reagreeing withme? Shit, can I get that inwriting?”
“Shut the hellup.”
Their banter unfortunately didn’t ease my stress. I wondered if it easedtheirs?
When Cassandra started toward me, I stood my ground even though I wanted to leap over the railing and run far away from the inn, from Boulder, from this woman who was a stranger, and yet whowasn’t.
But I wanted answers. And I sensed she had many ofthem.
Stay calm,Liam whispered through the mind link, making his way back to me.Whatever she says, staycalm.
That was easy for him to say, harder for me to do. She’dmanipulatedme. I liked being manipulated as much as I liked slicing my finger on a kitchenknife.
Suddenly, Cassandra was standing right in front of me. She was so tall that even in my heels I had to tip my head up. I hated having to tip my head up toher.
“I understand why your pack’s been going through such an upheaval since yourreturn.”
I disregarded her bizarre compliment. If that’s what it was. “Was it you who hacked myphone?”
“Not mepersonally.”
“But someone from yourpack?”
“We tried to warn Everest ourselves, but he didn’t believe us. We were just trying to helphim.”
