Page 14 of Dance With Death

“Not happening.” I take the phone. “What do I do now?”

With a sigh, Leif leans over and takes hold, swiftly navigating through the app. “I sent a follow request from you to Holly. Type her a message here. I expect whoever is impersonating Holly will respond to both.”

“Very well.”

I type and send:

This is Violet. Who are you? You are not Holly. I will find you, and you will regret your actions.

“Hmm. Subtle,” says Rowan with a sigh.

“And now?” I ask.

“Now we wait,” says Leif and takes the phone back from me.

“How long for?” I demand.

“However long this person decides to leave you in suspense,” says Rowan cautiously.

I stand, violently scraping back the chair, and people’s heads turn in alarm at the noise. “I am wasting time.”

“Shush,” says Rowan. “Don’t say anything people can hear.”

My teeth grind. “I need to go over my notes and plan my next move. I’m not waiting for Viktor or whoever to contact me.”

Grayson straightens and Leif stands too. “You need a break to get your head straight. Violet, you’ve done nothing but gather information since yesterday. I bet you didn’t sleep.”

With an exasperated noise, I stomp from the café, and Leif catches up with me. “I need to get out there and find Holly!”

“Violet.” He motions his hand to quieten me. “I’ll ask around about the brooches, okay? You look over everything you’ve discovered so far, and then follow Grayson’s advice. Take a break.”

I nod, and Leif swipes a hand across the top of his head, his brow lowering as a thought flickers across his face. “Are you okay?” I ask.

He smiles weakly. “Yeah. Still worried about that Viktor thing.”

“Oh. We should talk about that too,” I suggest. “Dorian promised to update me about a solution later, although he’s still mad that I won’t return to Scotland until we find Holly.”

“Sure.” He wrinkles his nose. “I’d like to get away from all this shit for a while too, Violet, but that won’t happen.”

He holds my head and presses a kiss to my forehead then pokes my nose. “I’ll ask about the brooches, and if you’re really lucky, I’ll bring you one as a gift later.”

“Thank you, Leif,” I say quietly.

Leif is not coping, and I’d lost sight of that with Holly’s disappearance dominating my mind. Leif needs my help, too. I’ve asked Dorian to counter the spell Viktor used, or to find somebody who can, and he’s bringing witches in. But part of the old Violet lingers in my thoughts—what if there’re clues in Leif’s mind that would disappear once the spell does?

5

VIOLET

I waited on tenterhooks for contact from Dorian yesterday evening, only to fall into disappointment when he finally does. Dorian hasn’t found Viktor, nor proof that he ever existed.

Dorian continues to question and investigate Cornelius Whitegrove, but the Circle bind tight around their leader, so how can we make our way past their secrets and lies? At least Dorian is looking for Viktor, now he understands that the tiara mystery clearly connects to those plotting against him.

Cornelius once claimed Dorian’s leadership of the supernatural world assists in his business activities, and that the Circle leader doesn’t want instability. However, Cornelius supported the ruling Confederacy back in the day—the Confederacy that Dorian took down. But even if Cornelius isn’t involved in any planned move against Dorian, he surely has knowledge about his son. Viktor Whitegrove did not disappear from existence without significant help.

Is Josef connected to Viktor? At Kai’s birthday, Josef revealed that people involved in this insurrection are those who desire the old world regime. They hark back to a time before the Confederacy fell, when supes remained hidden from humans. Dorian’s opposition once supported the ruling Confederacy and has a wide network woven tightly over hundreds of years. As a man who was once a fugitive from the supernatural world, Dorian had no network in the past, and the only influence he holds now is as leader over current, recent supporters.

I often wondered how Dorian achieved the top position considering his past crimes, and Josef Petrescu’s comments must’ve hit my father with some truths. Dorian seized power by stepping into a void left by the fall of both the Confederacy and the rival Dominion—something he was instrumental in. However, his unmatched power and charisma give Dorian the ability to successfully handle the human authorities, something important to supernaturals in this shaky new world.

---