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Now it was my mouth that dropped open. I loved Amber, but I often thought what I didn’t know about my reserved friend could fill a whole grimoire. As I closed my mouth, I wondered if raising the whole circus thing with her would get me into trouble. Probably so:secretcircuses wouldn’t stay that way if I blabbed about them. I wondered what other secrets Amber was withholding from me.
Farrier continued. ‘It was Amber DeLea’s mum who healed me and sent me here. It’s my job now to look out for those who are lost.’
I realised that he was a good man, and God knows I needed more of them in my life. ‘Come back with me,’ I said impulsively. ‘We’ll protect you. Come back, Farrier, and be a werewolf.’
He sat back and closed his eyes. ‘You don’t know how tempted I am,’ he whispered. ‘I would love nothing better than to come with you, but my time here isn’t done. The next ringmaster isn’t ready.’
‘You’ve got your eye on someone?’ Greg asked.
‘An ogre, actually. He’s a good man but he’s only been here a couple of years. He’s not ready to take over. Not yet.’
‘And you’re not ready to leave,’ I asserted.
‘An astute observation, my Queen. I’m like a prisoner, too used to the walls around me.’ He patted the caravan’s flimsy walls. ‘I’m institutionalised.’ His smile was bitter.
‘The offer stands,’ I said finally. ‘When you’re ready.’
He nodded but his eyes told me he didn’t think he’d ever be ready. ‘Let me tell you about the Domini and then you’d best be on your way. I have a show starting soon.’
‘Of course.’
‘Do you have any suspects?’ he asked. ‘I’m just asking out of curiosity.’
‘Larsden and Ramsay – and maybe Aitken,’ Greg listed.
‘I’d say you’re on the nose with Larsden and Ramsay.’ Farrier looked impressed. ‘They were on my suspects’ list. But as far as I know, Aitken is just an ordinary asshole. I don’t doubt he’d accept an invitation if one landed on his door, but to my knowledge he isn’t one of them. He’s a garden-variety twat.’
‘So who else?’ I asked, praying that Larsden and Ramsay weren’t the only ones he knew about.
‘Look to key positionsof power,’ he suggested. ‘For example, the one I know for sure – the man who tried to kill me – was Kearns.’
Kearns, the speaker of the werewolf Council? I groaned. ‘Oh, come on. Not Kearns. He’s theoneguy that likes me.’
‘I imagine he’s practising a bit of “keep your friends close, keep your enemies closer”,’ Farrier observed.
‘Quite possibly,’ I conceded. I stood, for a moment I wanted to hold my hand out to Farrier before I remembered that wasn’t the done thing. Instead, I pressed a hand to my heart. ‘Thank you for your help. My honour to meet you.’
He stood, and returned the gesture, giving me a deeper bow than I would have expected. ‘You’re welcome. I wish you the best of luck.’
I squelched down the urge to say, ‘We’d need it’.
Farrier watched us leave, eyes cooly assessing as we climbed out of his caravan.
‘Kearns told Abberdon to challenge you,’ Greg pointed out grimly.
‘Yes, but he said it was because Abberdon was a threat to me and he hoped I would eliminate him,’ I said weakly. Dammit: it did sound implausible now that I said it out loud.
‘Kearns is in our home,’ Greg growled.
We should destroyhim,Esme agreed.
I grimaced. ‘This isn’t the best timing, but I’m as itchy as hell. I need to go to Common to recharge.’
Greg swore, clearly torn between heading home to deal with Kearns or staying and protecting me whilst I was in the Common realm.
I licked my lips. ‘Kearns thinks he’s flying under the radar. As far as he knows, he and Debbie are our honoured guests. Besides, we need to find some way of stopping him from killing himself before he’s questioned properly.’
‘Bastion,’ Greg grunted. ‘We get Bastion there while we question Kearns and he can coax the bastard not to kill himself.’
