I could count on one hand how many times in my life I’d heard Gran sound as worried as she did now. Most of them were in relation to my dad and his excessive drinking, his disability, and his broken heart over my mom leaving us. Never had I heard her sound so heart stricken about someone else in the pack.

The ajar door to Violet’s bedroom swung open, and Gran stepped out. Her eyes locked with mine, and I saw exactly how worried she was for Violet before she could put up her walls.

“Mina,” she breathed as her hand flew to her chest. “You startled me. I didn’t know the two of you were here yet.”

“We just got here. We wanted to visit Violet.” The words slipped from my mouth before any question surging through my mind could.

Gran closed the door behind her. “I’m not sure Violet is up for visitors today.”

“We have questions about what happened, about the abduction,” Eli insisted from where he stood behind me. His chest brushed against me as he moved closer.

“I don’t think that’s a good idea. She needs more time to recover.” Gran folded her arms over her chest and flashed us a stern look, one I knew well. It meant there would be no negotiating with her. She’d made up her mind. No one was visiting Violet today to ask her any questions about what happened.

“This is pack business, and I’m sorry, but you don’t have a say in the matter.” Eli’s voice was filled with authority. It had goose bumps prickling across my skin.

Gran unfolded her arms. Her chin lifted, and for a moment, I thought she was going to tell Eli where he could go for using that tone with her, but she didn’t. Instead she stepped aside and swung the door open for us without a word.

“Thank you,” Eli said as he squeezed past both of us and into Violet’s room.

“Gran, I—”

“Don’t.” She held up a hand to stop my flow of words. “I don’t need any apology from you. I don’t need excuses or reasoning. I’ve told you Violet isn’t up to taking visitors today. She’s not well, but you’ve insisted on carrying out whatever pack business you’re on. I’ll be at home, making a few tinctures that hopefully will help heal Violet’s mind, body, and soul sometime soon.”

Gran started down the hall without another word. I remained mute and frozen. Never had I seen her so upset with me before. When she was out of sight, I stepped into Violet’s room. No matter how much Gran wanted me not to bother Violet today, we needed to. I had questions only she could answer.

Violet sat on her bed. Her foot was propped up on a stack of pillows, and there was a goopy paste the color of baby poop smeared over her ankle. The aroma of herbs hung heavily in the air, but I couldn’t distinguish one from the other to determine what Gran had used. A steaming mug of tea was clasp between Violet’s hands as she gingerly sipped its contents. Silver jewelry adorned each of her fingers as well as her wrists. She reminded me of a boho princess. My gaze traveled up her arms. The bruises there had barely faded. Why? Was her werewolf healing not working? From the looks of her, it didn’t seem as though it was. She should have been healed by now, but she wasn’t.

This couldn’t be good.

“Hello, Mina. It’s nice of you to stop by,” Mrs. Marshall said as I stepped farther into the room. “I don’t think I’ll ever be able to thank you enough for helping to bring my little girl home.”

“You’re welcome,” I said with a small smile as I moved my attention from Violet to Mrs. Marshall. The woman didn’t look as though she’d slept in days. One would think she’d be sleeping better now that her daughter was home safe and sound; however, that didn’t seem to be the case. “I’m glad I was able to help.”

“I know this is a difficult time, and were this situation any less grave or severe I would give it more time before asking Violet questions, but unfortunately we don’t have that luxury,” Eli said in a soft, soothing voice.

Even though there was a part of me that didn’t appreciate the way he cut straight to it, I knew it was probably for the best. We needed information, and we needed it fast if we were going find Glenn or figure out who was behind all of this. I hoped Violet had heard a name during her time with Drew. Preferably of the one running the show.

“I know.” Mrs. Marshall nodded.

Eli shifted his attention to Violet. “Is there anything you can tell me about your time spent with the guy who abducted you?”

Violet sipped her tea. Her glassy eyes stared at the thin blanket spread across the upper portion of her legs. What had Gran given her? A sedative for anxiety? I knew she’d spoken since waking. Gracie said when she finally woke she’d babbled about all sorts of stuff. None of it had made sense, but at least we knew she could speak still.

“Anything at all. It doesn’t matter if it’s small or seemingly insignificant. Any information you can give would be better than nothing,” Eli pressed.

Violet remained unresponsive.

My skin tingled as the silence dragged on. Something was wrong with her. Shock? Or something worse? Had whatever Drew did to her broken her in some way? Or was this because of the drug he’d given her?

I stepped to where Eli stood and placed a hand on his shoulder, wanting him to step back and let me have a shot. He gave me some space, and I positioned myself on the edge of her bed. My hand reached out to cover hers. She was cold to the touch.

“I know what you went through was traumatic, but I want you to know the guy who did this can’t hurt you anymore. Eli and I made sure of that the night we rescued you.” My voice was soft as I leaned forward. I knew she needed to hear my words. Hell, her mom probably needed to hear them too. I hoped my words assuaged her fear. “You’re safe. He can’t hurt you anymore.” I repeated it because it felt necessary.

Violet blinked and her fingers twitched, clinking a couple rings against her mug. I assumed she was going to take another sip of tea, but instead, she shifted to look me in the eye. Her wide eyes glistened with unshed tears as her lips quivered.

My heart broke for her.

“It’s okay,” I whispered as I held her stare. “You’re home now. With your family. With your pack.”

“Mina is right. This is a safe place,” Eli insisted as he crouched down beside me. His hand gripped the edge of her bed, and my body became acutely aware of the mere inches separating my knee from the tips of his fingers. “Is there anything you can remember from that night we might be able to use to figure out who the person in charge was?”

Whispered words flowed past Violet’s lips. I could barely make out what she’d said, but when I focused hard enough, her words made my heart stop.

“He wanted you,” Violet repeated. “Not me. It wasn’t supposed to be me. It was supposed to be you.”

I knew this, but it still didn’t lessen the blow that came with hearing her words out loud. Of course Drew had wanted me. That was why Shane had been so smug that night. He thought it would be the last time he ever had to lay eyes on me.

“I saw him watching you. Pure evil in his eyes. He hates what we are. He hates us. I didn’t have to hear him say the words to know. I could feel it in the air around him. Hatred is a strong emotion when it’s deeply rooted inside a person,” Violet muttered as she placed the teacup to her lips. She took a small sip as the rest of us waited for her to continue. Her gaze drifted to me before she spoke again. “I should’ve listened to you. When I saw you in the woods I should have headed home, but I didn’t.”

“You were there?” Mrs. Marshall demanded. She’d remained silent until now, but I didn’t blame her for speaking up. “You saw her in the woods, running alone and shifted? You told her to go home? Why didn’t you say anything to me or my husband? To Callie?”

I didn’t know what to say. Awful didn’t do justice to describe how I felt.

“She was told not to,” Eli said. His words were firm but not harsh. I shifted to glance at him, wanting to thank him for sticking up for me, but his gaze was locked on Violet. “Do you know why you were taken instead of Mina? Did he say?”

“I was weaker,” she said matter-of-factly. I was surprised by how easily the words rolled off her tongue. “Mina is strong. She’s a fighter. The guy who abducted me knew this. He brought two tranquilizers for her. He only had to use one on me…”

I wanted to tell her she wasn’t weak, that the other tranquilizer had been used on Tate, but Eli flashed me a look that told me I should be quiet.

“Did he tell you what he intended to do with you?” Eli asked. I knew he was only asking to keep her talking, but I hated the way he’d worded the question.

When Violet’s eyes lifted to find mine again, anger flared within their color. The air seemed to grow thick as it became charged with her rage.

“He was going to sell me,” Violet insisted, her eyes never wavering from mine. “But he was going to do much worse to you. He watched you pretend to be normal, human, with his brother’s friend, and he didn’t like it.”

Eli tensed beside me as a shiver slipped up my spine. I hadn’t realized Drew held such hatred for me. Was that how Shane felt too?

Deep down, I knew the answer.

I forced my thoughts away. Drew was dead, and Shane didn’t matter right now. Violet did. We needed to figure out who was behind all of this. They needed to be stopped.

“Do you know who he planned to sell you to?” Eli asked, keeping us on track with gaining new information. “Did you hear anything pertaining to the person in charge?”

Violet took a sip from her tea. Her eyes glassed over again, and for a second time I wondered what herbs Gran had used in her drink. Whatever it was it must have been something good, because each time she took a sip, she looked as though she were high on something.

“No. I don’t know who he wanted to sell me to,” Violet insisted. “But I think there was more than one person involved.”

“What do you mean? Was he talking to more than one person on the phone? Or did more than one person stop by his house while you were being held there?” Eli asked.

Violet shook her head. “No. It was something he said. It sounded like he was double-crossing someone. He mentioned being afraid to have me at his place for long because they might find out. I can’t remember much. The tranquilizer he gave me was strong, but I know he said something along those lines when he left a message with someone on the phone.”

“There had to be a middleman to the whole operation then,” I said. “That must be who Drew was talking to.”

My mind raced with how big this situation might be. Eli and I might have bitten off more than we could chew.

“I never heard him say any names or places, though.” Violet shifted around on her bed. She winced from the movement, and I was reminded again that she wasn’t healing properly.

After I left here I planned to head home and talk with Gran. I wanted to know more about how Violet was doing health wise.

“I’m sorry but I don’t know anything more,” Violet insisted.

“Okay. If you think of anything, please let us know,” Eli said as he stood.

It didn’t go unnoticed the way he’d said us instead of me. We were in this together. I was glad he’d realized not including me was a deal breaker. I needed to see this all play out. I needed to know who was running it. I needed to help find Glenn.

“I will,” Violet insisted before she took another sip of tea.

“I’ll see you out,” Mrs. Marshall said as she motioned us toward the door. We stepped into the hallway, and she closed the door behind us. When she spun around to face us, a look of worry pinched her features. “Is the person who did this to my little girl really no longer a threat?” she whispered.

I should’ve known the question would come. It was one any mother would think to ask, but still I hadn’t been prepared for it. My tongue was like sandpaper against the roof of my mouth as I thought of how to answer.

“Yes, he truly is no longer a threat,” Eli answered for me.

Mrs. Marshall’s eyes zeroed in on him. A wild look flared within them that made unease prickle along my skin. “Did that dead Hopkins boy they found have anything to do with this?”

I couldn’t breathe. I should’ve known people in the pack would piece it together on their own. Drew’s death had been ruled an accident, which was exactly what we’d staged, but that didn’t mean everyone would believe it. Especially not when one of our own had been rescued days before someone in town turned up dead.

“I’m not at liberty to say,” Eli insisted. “Pack business. I’m sorry.”

Mrs. Marshall soaked in Eli’s reply. Her face shifted through a handful of emotions before settling on one—displeasure. Eli’s answer hadn’t been satisfying enough for her. She wanted a person to blame. A face and name. I understood, but I also felt it was better she didn’t know. Knowing the one responsible had been taken care of, that he was no longer a threat, should be enough to satisfy her.

For anyone normal it would have been, but Mrs. Marshall was different. She was a werewolf, and just like the others in the trailer park, when one of our own had been hurt, we wanted to hunt down the person responsible and take justice into our own hands.

Eli started down the hall and I followed.

Gracie was on the couch beside Callie when we stepped into the living room of their single wide trailer. Her eyes flicked to me. I could see questions for me building in them. She wanted to know if I knew what was wrong with Violet. She wanted to know if she was right in thinking something was wrong. I chewed my bottom lip and held her stare. Maybe it would be enough to get my answer across to her without using words.

Something was definitely wrong with Violet. She wasn’t healing like she should, and I wasn’t one hundred percent sure the glassy look in her eyes was all Gran’s tea either.

Violet looked lost. Broken.

I needed to speak with Gran. I needed to know what her thoughts were on this. Mainly because a part of me still felt responsible for what happened to Violet. Maybe a part of me always would.