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There was no use hiding. Maddox looked the man in the eye. “And you know she is not evil. Because you started it with that stone.”
Brian raised a brow, faking innocence. “Stone?”
“The same one you gave to Silver…or was it a duplicate? Do you have a lot of those stones, Brian? Is it part of the smuggling business he warned you about?”
The mood deflated as Brian frowned, seeming to understand that Maddox wasn’t just grasping at straws. But he needed more.
“What was that stone? Was it a power stone? Did it give them the power they wanted just by keeping it?”
Brian considered his interest, not in a rush to go out yet. Then, as if deciding to humor Maddox, the man leaned in. “Silly, ignorant vampire. There is no such thing. If there was a power stone, then everyone would be witches and warlocks.”
“Then what was it?”
“Let’s just say our Fae folks like trickery, but they also like collecting potions that they can’t make themselves.” At Maddox’s silence, Brian rolled his eyes and sighed. “Again, you are ignorant. I’m talking about wishing stones and other wishing items: make a wish, watch them come true, and get corrupted. The last one’s the fun part. There are limitations, of course, because those without magic running in their veins can’t get it through wishes. I guess I got lucky with those two.”
“But I saw the magic. I saw her claim it.”
“You were with her while the wish came true. I heard she dove into the lake, which probably had a bit of an energy source. The wishing stone enhanced it. It gave her what she asked for. You were both ignorant and ate it up. So did Silver.”
“All because they wanted to correct what was wrong with what you were doing.”
“No, just Silver. There’s nothing wrong with me making a profit in Centro off of these things. But Ruby is being stubborn, asking too many questions and trying to maintain that he is innocent. All the Suttons are. They just can’t let their brother rest in peace and behave themselves here.”
It was sickening how the man was adamant that he was right, casually brushing off what he had done to Silver—what he had subjected the warlock to all these years. Maddox recalled the haunted look in Silver’s eyes and the desperation to protect Ruby from the hell he was in.
“I saw him, you know.”
The mood switched once more. The magic on his neck tightened, then went hard for his chest until the pressure was crushing. Maddox gasped for air, his mind growing fuzzy.
“Where?”
“He is alive,” Maddox croaked out. “And he will get out. They will make sure of it.”
Silence.
“You know what, maybe I will bring the council—after I kill you. I can tell them that you came here to murder me out of jealousy because you got influenced by evil, too. It will be a tragic love story for the books: a vampire and a witch falling in love, getting drunk in power, and eventually dying because of their greed. The three remaining sisters will grieve so much and will fall into disgrace, too.”
A chill went down Maddox’s spine as he realized this was Brian’s closing speech, and he only had seconds to spare. The hold on him made it hard to process anything, but as always, instinct came shouldering its way to the forefront. He coughed.
“I have—something—to say.”
Impatience flashed on Brian’s features, but the man inclined his head. “What? Some last-minute plea to release you?”
“You are—trash. You were jealous of him. That was another—another reason—”
“Louder. I can’t hear you,” Brian mocked.
“I am—”
“What? Dead soon?”
The warlock smirked, moving closer to spread the deadly energy. When his face was inches close, Maddox’s hand went up, slamming the potion forward. It crushed the vial and burned his hand. But it also burned Brian’s face, the pain enough to loosen the man’s hold.
Maddox threw his body forward, shoving the man to the ground. He slammed more potions in until Brian was writhing in pain, but Maddox understood there couldn’t be any leeway—not when a second of lowering his guard meant Brian could destroy multiple lives again. The man kept thrashing and threw insults in between his screams.
“You stupid vampire! You piece of trash!”
The last potion Maddox shoved in Brian’s mouth. It exploded and had the man choking while Maddox leaned in.
