Chapter 538: Glamour
Charlotte hissed softly at me as I mounted the last step and headed down the hall to my room. I was lost in thought, head down. Good thing one of us paid attention. Her hand on my arm, pulling me back as she eased around me, brought my head up as Charlotte put herself between me and the woman standing outside my door.
Sonja O'Dane met my gaze over Charlotte's shoulder, her hands clutching reflexively at the strap of her shoulder bag as she pushed off from where she leaned against the wall. I approached slowly, gesturing for Charlotte to stand down. My wereguard grunted softly, sniffing the air, but allowed me to gain the lead again, though I knew how fast she could react if Sonja meant me harm.
I almost hoped she did. It would be awesome to see Charlotte take the woman down.
Syd. Be nice. Liam's mom.
Grrr.
Sonja seemed hesitant, almost apologetic, as I finally reached her. She fidgeted, manicured nails scraping over the leather strap of her purse, lips twitching nervously as she forced a smile.
Bit of a change. The Sonja I'd originally met was a bitch. And even when she confessed to being blackmailed, she had more spine than this. I caught myself frowning and forced my forehead smooth as her smile faded.
"Hello, Syd," she said in a voice vibrating with anxiety, though she plastered on her fake happy again. "Can we talk?"
I had nothing to say to her, sneaking around behind my back, telling Liam who-knew-what. "Sure," I said, reaching for my door handle. "Come on in."
Contrary, yup. That was me all the way.
Charlotte rumbled unhappily as I entered my dorm room without looking back to see if Sonja was going to follow. Normally, my bodywere stayed out of my personal space, both at home and school. But I wasn't surprised to find the now brunette werewolf hovering at the door looking dangerous when I turned around to face Liam's mother.
Sonja threw a nervous glance at Charlotte who slowly, oh so slowly, closed the door with one hand, eyes shifting to wolf and back again.
"Okay," I said, ignoring Sonja's discomfort, knowing it was incredibly uncharitable of me, but unable to shake my irritation at the whole sneaky mess she and Liam created around Venner. "You wanted to talk? So talk."
Sonja sank into my desk chair, her perfectly styled flippy cut showing off blonde highlights in her dark auburn hair. She was the epitome of a stylist with her flawless makeup and manicure, hair a piece of art. She'd used her job to shuffle Liam from town to town his whole life, keeping him away from Wilding Springs after his father died. And away from his grandfather and the knowledge Liam was the next Gatekeeper.
While I guessed I could understand her motivation, the fact she caved to Venner in the end and was part of the scheme reducing Fergus to debilitating dementia did little to ingratiate me to her. While I got it, her lack of backbone really pissed me off for some reason.
Probably because I'd put my own butt on the line for those I loved time and time again. Weakness in others seemed to be a touchstone for my temper.
"I wanted to come in person," Sonja said while my mind spun around my annoyance and the realization I had serious judgment issues. "To apologize."
"For?" Man, way to be a real bitch, Syd.
Sonja looked down, eyes locked on her hands, white knuckled around the strap of her purse. What was she so afraid of? As long as she didn't put Liam in danger again...
Right. Venner. I was an idiot.
"Liam was worried you'd be upset if you knew we were in touch again." Sonja shifted, her high heels scraping over the wooden floor. "We didn't exactly part under the best of terms."
"And if you're still working for Venner," I said, tone so cold I swore I saw white mist escape my lips, "the terms haven't changed."
Her shoulders twitched. "He's different, now," she said as if she really believed it.
Funny. I didn't.
"I wanted to tell you about Lord Venemeth myself," Sonja said. I liked her better when she treated me like crap. At least her spine showed.
Oh, Syd.
"Let me guess." I crossed my arms over my chest. "He told you not to."
"Not His Lordship," Sonja said. "Liam. You were dealing with so much at the time... he worries about you constantly."
Grunt. It was really hard to stay angry with her when so much sadness crossed her face. And while empathy wasn't always my strongest suit with those who stabbed me in the back, I felt myself coming down from my high horse and actually feeling sorry for her.
"It's okay," I said. "Liam and I are just friends. And you're his mother. He didn't owe me an explanation." Although, hiding Venner was another thing all together.
She smiled at me, lips twitching in anxiety, but the horrible, heavy sorrow had left her face, at least. "I knew you'd understand," she said. "No matter what I've done, it was all for Liam."
Uh-huh. I sank to my bed to put her at ease. "So mind telling me what happened after the whole Gate debacle? I was worried Venner would hurt you for betraying him."
Sonja shook her head, but not to deny me my answers. "He was angry, yes," she said. "But failure took so much out of him, Syd. He softened, accepted who he was and his fate, finally." Tears welled in her eyes, her smile more genuine and less forced. "I'm Unseelie," she said. "And with Lord Venemeth's help, I've learned to embrace my heritage."
I wished I could believe her. Could set aside my usual suspicions and walk away from the whole worry thing. But I just couldn't bring myself to take what she told me at face value. My own hackles were still up. And it didn't help Shaylee spluttered and muttered and shrieked her disgust in my head while Sonja spoke.
Considering how many times I'd been right? Yeah, I'd take suspicious, thanks.
Shaylee didn't often talk to me, not because she couldn't. So when she did, I sat up and paid attention.
Glamour, she snarled. One word. But enough.
I was an idiot.
Before I could reach out and touch Sonja with my power, something I should have thought to do if I hadn't been so damned busy being a self-righteous Miss Judgy Pants, someone knocked heavily on the door. Charlotte let out a yip of unhappiness, spinning to jerk it open.
Hortense Spaft brushed past my bodywere as if Charlotte wasn't there, entering my room like she owned the place. A small smile devoid of anything humorous-or human, for that matter-pulled at the corners of her thin lips. Her endless black eyes glaring at me through her shining glasses, hair pulled back into her trademark bun, so tight her skin shone from the tension.
A shudder of absolute revulsion passed over me, but I forced myself to rise slowly as she came to a halt, trademark black wool suit and cream blouse making her look like the librarian at a haunted mansion.
"Miss Hayle." How I despised her voice. Those two simple words grabbed me by the throat and threw me back two years, to high school. Detention. Being forced to apologize over and over in a letter to her, polishing it to her liking before being allowed to leave. Hate I'd only felt in her presence rose in my heart and blacked out everything.
"Ms. Spaft." My shields vibrated around me, power bubbling in my core, just waiting for an excuse.
Any excuse.
Instead of prodding me, she approached Sonja, firmly pulling the woman to her feet with a tight grip of her thin, white hand. I imagined a bloated, albino spider locking itself around Sonja's flesh and couldn't control the lip curl of disgust.
If Ms. Spaft noticed or cared, she didn't say anything. "Sonja, dear," she said in her grating voice that would make even the gentlest person look for the means to defend themselves. "We really must be going."
Sonja bobbed her head, tears forgotten. "Of course," she said.
Puppet, Shaylee hissed.
But whose? "It was nice to see you, Sonja," I said. Loudly. Like a challenge.
She blinked and smiled at me. "You too, Syd," she said.
Totally thralled. But as much as I wanted to, I knew what Mom would say if I tried to interfere. This wasn't any of my business. And yet it was.
Wasn't it?
Even if it wasn't, when had I ever let something like a little jurisdiction issue stop me before?
Ms. Spaft didn't wait, comment, nothing. Maybe she knew I was on to the fact Sonja wasn't all there or maybe she was just following orders. But even as I started to formulate a plan to somehow free Sonja from the evil woman, Ms. Spaft steered Liam's mother out the door and they were gone.
***
