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He discovered her standing where he’d left her, gazing at the floor where her mother had died while her fingers traced the intricate design carved into the wooden box.
There was no need to read her mind, even if he could. She was deeply troubled by the strange magic that had destroyed the coven.
“Will you stay in Wyoming?” he asked, attempting to distract her dark thoughts.
“No.” Sucking in an unsteady breath, she lifted her head to meet his searching gaze. “Technically I suppose I’m my mother’s heir since it’s highly doubtful she bothered with a will, but I don’t want anything. I’ll make a call to have the livestock taken in by another rancher, but the rest of it can rot as far as I’m concerned.”
“I’m returning to New York. You can join me if you wish.” Valen kept his tone casual despite the fact he had no intention of leaving her behind.
Peri glanced toward the open door. “I rented the truck at the airport.”
“Gabriel will send someone to deal with it,” he smoothly insisted. “I have a helicopter waiting to take me back to the jet. You can be home before daybreak.”
Her jaw tightened, as if willing herself to say no. Thankfully, her obvious weariness overrode her preference to avoid his company.
“Yeah. Okay.”
Smart enough to hide his satisfaction, Valen led her out of the barn and through the gate that protected the ranch. They remained silent as they crossed the empty prairie to reach his waiting helicopter, Peri lost in her thoughts and Valen keeping a watchful eye for any hidden dangers.
Less than an hour later they were comfortably seated in his jet as they winged their way back to New York. Waving a hand toward the copper-haired fairy who waited at the front of the cabin, Valen waited for the servant to leave and close the door behind her before he swiveled his chair to study his companion.
Peri had her eyes closed as she relaxed into the soft leather seat, the box clutched tightly in her hands. If she was trying to pretend to be asleep, she was doing a terrible job. He could feel the anxiety vibrating around her.
“You’re worried.” He stated the obvious.
“Stay out of my mind,” she muttered.
Valen’s lips twisted. They both knew that he couldn’t force his way into a mage’s mind.
“I have no need to enter your thoughts, they’re leaking beyond your barriers.”
As he’d hoped, her eyes snapped open to glare at him in outrage. “Did you just say I’m leaking?”
He shrugged. “Seeping?”
“That’s worse.”
“Tell me why you’re frightened.”
Her annoyance faded at the abrupt question, her gaze lowering to the box in her arms.
“I’m not frightened, I’m furious.”
Valen was confused. “Furious your mother is dead?”
“Furious that she took her coven to hell with her,” she clarified. “I could have stopped her.”
“How?” he asked. “It’s obvious from your conversation with Destiny that you didn’t have any contact with the coven.”
“I knew,” she insisted.
“You weren’t aware of what she was doing.”
“No, but I had proof she was willing to sacrifice everything, including her own daughter, to gain power.”
Valen tapped his finger on the arm of his chair. It was a habit he’d developed to make himself appear more human. Peri was hiding something. The question was whether it was a private secret or one that might be a threat to Gabriel’s territory.
“It’s common for witches to fear true mages, and even to condemn them to death,” he pointed out. “Your mother wasn’t unique in her willingness to try to kill what she thought was a threat.”
