Chapter 175

Amber’s POV

I felt better once the test was performed, but waiting for the results was anxiety-inducing. I knew it could take a while to see if I had been injected with the wolfsbane, to have been made to forget the night before.

It could have been a longshot. Maybe I could have just fallen asleep. But, at this point, with a poisoner still out there, I didn’t think anything was outside the realm of possibility. I needed to be sure, for everyone’s sake, that I hadn’t been attacked last night.

My worry of what might have occurred made me want to be near Gloria, to help protect her or to alert Julian if something went wrong. I knew I could have just watched the camera, but with it missing two hours from last night, I no longer felt that it was reliable.

I could trust nothing but my own two eyes. So I left the video feed with the supervisor and I moved out to spend time with Alice, Julian, and his family. Alice was happy to see me. She had been spending most of her time with Penny today. Aunt Kathy was noticeably absent today, but I supposed after finding out her husband was a poisoner, she had a lot of soul-searching to do.

I made a mental note to reach out to her in some way later, to make sure she was alright. There wasn’t exactly an appropriate greeting card for this situation, but perhaps a call would do.

Like a hawk, I kept my eyes on the door to Gloria’s room. All of the family took turns going in there to sit with her and spend time with her. Even though Gloria was unconscious, I was sure she appreciated the care and concern of her family.

They were dysfunctional, certainly, but they did seem to truly care for her and each other.

Seeing this, I started to relax. It almost worked, until a familiar face walked into the room.

Tony.

My entire body seized up with dread.

Julian noticed and glanced over at me. He asked me wordlessly, with his eyes only, what the problem was. I wished I had an answer that made sense. I only knew that seeing Tony here and now shook me down to my core. Even my typically quiet wolf was starting to growl at his presence.

Without a definitive answer, I couldn’t tell Julian about my fears and concerns. Tony was still his cousin and it wasn’t right to accuse family of something… especially when you couldn’t even put a name to what that something was.

So I lightly shook my head, bottling up this unpleasant emotion and burying it deep within me.

It wasn’t deep enough, apparently, because when Tony spotted us and started to come over, every nerve in my body prickled with fresh alertness and alarm.

I didn’t want to be sitting when he came over. That felt too defenseless, so I pushed myself up to standing.

Julian glanced at me again, confusion in his features, but he too stood then beside me.

It pleased me that we were united in everything, even this, even something he didn’t understand at all. Even something I didn’t understand either.

Tony walked over to us. His gaze drifted over Julian to land primarily on me. He waited a moment, watching me, but when nothing happened, he started to smile. “Hello Julian, Amber. Good morning. Nice to see you.”

I grumbled a greeting, while Julian said more clearly, “Good morning, Tony. Was there something you needed?”

“Actually, yes,” Tony said. He gestured over to the corner. “It’s a private matter, if you will indulge me.”

“Of course,” Julian said. He glanced at me as if to say goodbye, but I reached out and snatched his arm with both of mine. If he thought he was going anywhere with Tony without me he was sorely mistaken.

Together, the three of us walked to the corner, out of immediate earshot of the rest of the family. Alice was still with Penny, but I kept an eye on her. Julian did too, I could tell, from the way he continued to glance back at her.

The rest of the family could still hear us, if they strained to, but we would surely notice them. A quick glance told me, they were respecting our need for privacy.

“What is it?” Julian asked.

“I’ve been doing some research about Alice’s condition, and stretching out my contacts. I think I might have found something. A new necklace, very much like the one she has now, but stronger,” Tony replied.

“That’s great news,” Julian said, but remained somewhat guarded. Looking at Tony, I could see why. Tony wasn’t nearly as excitable about this as he tended to be with most things. In fact, his smirk was somewhat shaky. “What’s the problem?”

“The person who has it is somewhat shady,” Tony said. “Honestly, I’m not sure how reliable he is. He might be lying outright. This could be dangerous.”

“I don’t like this,” I said at once.

Julian looked at me. “For Alice, we need to do whatever we can.” He returned his attention to Tony. “I’ll go with you.”

A fresh wave of dread washed over me, and I tightened my grip on Julian’s arm, vice-like. I didn’t want him going anywhere with this man, regardless of circumstances.

But… for Alice…

“I could go also,” I said.

“You are needed here,” Julian said. “If something happens with Mom, there’s no one I trust more than you.”

The words were flattering, but that didn’t make me feel entirely better. I still didn’t want him to walk into the lion’s den with a man who neither of us could really trust.

To Tony, Julian said, “Give me a moment to talk to Amber about this.”

“Take the minute if you need it,” Tony said. “But the sooner we go, the sooner we can return, maybe with something to help Alice. We could leave right now. The contact gave me an address.”

Julian tugged me away a few feet. Over his shoulder, I saw Tony glancing at us curiously.

“I don’t like this,” I said. “Not even a little bit. But if it could help Alice…”

“I’m not some weakling pushover,” Julian reminded me. “I’m an Alpha Werewolf. I can handle just about anything and anyone who might want to hurt me. And for Alice, it’s worth any chance. What worries me… is you.”

“Me?”

“I don’t really want to leave you alone while you are in this state, Amber,” he said. “I don’t know what happened last night, but it is definitely suspicious. If I leave and something happens…”

I was more worried about something happening with him, but his concern for me did warm me, as did his acceptance that something happened last night without me having any proof.

We truly could lean on each other, couldn’t we?

As much as I wanted Julian to stay with me, to keep him away from Tony, I couldn’t force him – not if his going could ultimately help our daughter.

“Please,” I said. “Be careful. Alice needs you more than she needs a necklace.”

I needed him too, but I didn’t say that.

He seemed to know though, and leaning in, pressed his forehead to mine.

“I will return to you both,” he said, making it sound like a promise.

He turned then and started to walk off with Tony.

Watching them go, my stomach twisted into knots. I had a really bad feeling about this.

About all of this.

But there wasn’t anything I could do about it but watch it all unfold.