Skye
Ipreferred sleeping with my pack, but I was usually okay going to bed alone. I got tired earlier than everyone else, and the alphas and Benji came to bed later. Violet wasn’t allowed in the nest because Vinny thought she’d cave and let him mark her.
It was stupid.
Protective, maybe. Well-intentioned, even. But still stupid.
And it didn’t change the fact that most nights, Violet got so horny that it would wake me up, and we’d fuck, eat a snack, and fall asleep in her nest. She was a little weird, but I liked Violet well enough.
What I didn’t like was waking up in the middle of the night to see her looming over the foot of our nest.
The air was heavy with the scent of vanilla and whatever herb she’d been experimenting with that night. Her hair swayed in the breeze blowing in through the window, and her nightgown swished, leaving her looking like a Victorian ghost—and it scared the absolute fuck out of me.
The second she noticed my eyes were open, she waved. That only upped the creep factor.
“Vi—what are you doing?” I hissed, crawling onto my knees.
She lifted her hands into the silver moonlight and signed:I need help.
My brow furrowed, then I remembered her doctor’s appointment today. The one she refused to talk about. The one she’d locked herself in her room over the second Vinny tried to force her to go.
“Are you hurt?”
No.
“...Sick?”
No.
“Vi, it’s—” I patted around the nest until I found my phone and checked the time. “Three a.m. Nauseatingly early. Why aren’t you asleep?”
The corners of her lips turned down.Help me.
I groaned as I slipped out of bed, careful not to wake Benji or Serena. The second I stood, Violet grabbed a pair of sweatpants off the ground and tossed them at me.
You are a gentleman. Cover yourself.
I scrubbed my face and sighed into my palms. “Why are we even up?”
Benji snored louder than usual, and Violet nearly jumped out of her skin. I looked over my shoulder and saw him rolling over, snuggling closer to Vinny.
She hesitated, eyes flicking from the door to the window, then back to me. Finally, she reached into the pocket of her cardigan and pulled out a small pouch. It was soft and worn, the fabric faded from use. When she loosened the string, the smell hit me first, lavender, rosemary, salt.
Oh.
“You’re doing... that,” I whispered.
Witchcraft. Something completely fake and pointless, but Violet seemed to love it. I’d walked in on her doing different rituals before, always late, always when everyone else was asleep.
I thought she was too smart for stuff like this. But everyone needed a hobby, I guess.
She nodded.New spell. Protection.
I snorted, and Serena drew in a sharp breath behind me. That was enough to decide the bedroom was not the place for conversation.
Violet took me by the hand, and together we tiptoed into the hallway.
Once we were far enough away, she let go and turned to face me, her eyes serious now. My skin crawled at her expression. Violet may have been a teeny-tiny princess, but there was always something a little scary about her.