“I would have.” Johnny shrugged. “We need to know exactly what we’re dealing with. I can’t think of a more direct way to do that.”
“Sometimes the direct way isn’t the best way,” Holly said, looking at her feet.
Loch shifted, ever so slightly, and glanced at Holly from the corner of his eye.
Both of them knew something the others didn’t. Of that, Keller felt certain.
“What do you mean by that?” He watched Holly’s face intently.
When she looked up, panic glimmered in her eyes. “I mean, charging into a silver mine without backup or even a real plan isn’t the best way to do this,” she said.
“I think there’s more to it than that.”
Keller hated the idea of putting pressure on her, but if she knew something, she needed to say it.
“Leave her alone,” Loch snapped.
Again, Holly’s hand came up to touch his arm. “No.” She sighed. “He’s right. There are some things I haven’t told you guys.”
Garret stepped into the room, his confusion plain on his face. He took a seat at the table across from Johnny.
“Does Loch know?” Johnny asked, eyes narrowed.
“He knows because he was there with me.”
“So, both of you have kept things from us?” Garret asked slowly.
“I hated every minute of it,” Holly said. “But I hope you’ll give me the chance to explain once I tell you what I know.”
Johnny folded his arms across his chest. He stared at the same notch in the table Keller couldn’t look away from earlier.
Holly sucked in a breath. “First, Loch and I didn’t break out of our cells and make a run for it,” she said. “Someone helped us escape.”
Keller’s brows shot up. “Who?” he demanded.
Was someone else looking for Holly while they were tracking the witches?
“Her name is Elise,” Holly said. “She was in the silver mines with us.”
“Another prisoner?” Garret straightened in his seat. “Did she get away? Why wasn’t she in the woods with you?”
“She wasn’t a prisoner.” Holly shook her head. “She’s with the shifters who want to return to the dark ways.”
“I don’t understand. Why would she help you?”
“That’s what I’ve been trying to figure out. She’s not on the mural in the study even though she should be and—”
“Wait.” Keller raised a hand to stop her. “Why would she be on the mural? Is she from a Silver Spruce founding family?”
“Yes.” Holly nodded. “She’s a Charmain.”
“A Charmain?” Keller furrowed his brow. “I don’t recall ever meeting a Charmain.”
“I can’t find her in any books. I can’t find her anywhere,” Holly said. “I want one thing made clear, right now, before we go any further. If we ever come across her again, she will be offered protection in this house.”
“If she helped you escape, it’s the least we can do.” Keller nodded. “I wouldn’t put it past the dark shifters to kill someone who betrayed them.”
“I agree,” Garret echoed.
Johnny nodded as well.
“Good.” Holly clasped her hands in front of her chest. “Now, here’s the tricky part. I know who leads the dark shifters in the silver mine.”
“What?” Johnny blurted. “Why wouldn’t you tell us something like that? We could’ve ended this right then and there.”
“No, you couldn’t have,” Holly said. “You can’t harm the leader. He’s under protection.”
“Whose?”
“Mine.”
“Excuse me?” Johnny sputtered. “You’re protecting the man who ordered your kidnapping? Why would you do that?”
“Because he’s a firstborn. Trevor Charmain. Elise, the woman who helped us escape, is his sister.”
“What the fuck,” Johnny muttered. “How could you have kept this from us?”
“For this exact reason.” Holly pressed her fingertips to the bridge of her nose.
Keller didn’t know what to say. How could a firstborn son of Silver Spruce even think about supporting the return to the dark ways, let alone leave the faction? Try as he might, he couldn’t conjure any memories of Trevor.
“I didn’t want you three to go charging after him before I had a chance to figure everything out,” Holly continued.
“What’s to figure out?” Johnny asked. “Firstborn son or not, he’s the one we’re fighting against.”
“The Maiden spoke of him to me,” Holly said. “She told me he’s lost. I think it’s my responsibility to find him.”
“Find him?” Johnny sneered. “We know exactly where that bastard is, and we know exactly what needs to be done with him.”
“Johnny.” Holly bit down on her bottom lip.
Keller had never seen her look so pained before. He couldn’t imagine how this must’ve weighed on her all week. No wonder she was getting ready to lose it before Garret took her to town. Disappointment seeped into the forefront of Keller’s mind. He should’ve known better. He should’ve paid more attention.
“I think the Maiden wants me to help him,” she said. “He’s a firstborn son. He shouldn’t be on the path he’s on now. I think it’s my job to get him back on the right path.”
“If you’re right,” Keller spoke up before Johnny had the chance, “then how can we ever trust him? We’d be inviting your kidnapper, someone who supports shifters holding dominion over humans, into this house.”
“I don’t know,” Holly whispered. “I don’t know what I’m supposed to do. I just know that I have to follow my gut. My gut is telling me that we can’t charge into the silver mines to kill Trevor.”
“Let’s not kill him then.” Keller’s mind raced as he tried to come up with a solution, any solution, that would ease Holly’s mind. “There is one thing that we can all agree on. There are shifters who would return to the dark ways, and those shifters must be stopped. Right?”
Everyone either nodded or voiced their agreement.
A slight sense of relief washed over Keller. This was what
