“As you said, he cannot have everything. Sometimes, I am not convinced he even knows what he does want. I can tell you, however, that I know nothing of these dead settlers. If my grandfather played any role in their deaths or the treatment of their bodies, I heard nothing about it.” She pauses. “I would add that I do not think he did, but you would expect me to say that, so you can put little weight in it.”
“Thank you anyway. I am sorry about the recent encounter with the hostiles. I’m glad no one was hurt.”
Confusion flickers over her face. It’s a millisecond long, followed by a millisecond of anger as she realizes she’s given something away. Then that vanishes, and she shakes her head. I can interpret that, too, a rueful acknowledgment that I played my hand well, and she cannot fault me for the trick.
“Your grandfather is waiting on the main path,” I say.
She murmurs a farewell to Sebastian, who has stood in silence. He leans in and whispers something before she goes and she nods, lips twitching in a wry smile.
Once she’s out of earshot, he says, “So, Edwin claims some of his people were attacked and they weren’t, because Felicity knows nothing about it. Right?”
“Uh-huh. I hate playing her against him but…”
“You gotta do what you gotta do. She understands that.”
“Speaking of unfairly playing people against each other, I don’t suppose she told you why they came.”
He shakes his head. “Nah. Just that Edwin needed to speak to you, and then he played some power game, and it pissed her off. He’s always telling her to hide her cards better, learn a few tricks of her own, and she doesn’t see the point.”
“She prefers blunt honesty.”
“Yep. She’s more like Sheriff Dalton. Her granddad’s more like you.”
I arch my brows.
“Hey, you just admitted to playing people against each other. The difference is that you aren’t an arrogant asshole about it. Edwin’s been in charge too long. Spent too long being the smartest person in the room. He only likes games when they’re rigged in his favor.”
“Speaking of the smartest person in the room…” I say, giving him a meaningful look.
He laughs. “Oh, I’m not the smartest.” He smiles. “Just the most dangerous.”
He winks at me, and then jogs off with a nod. I watch him go, and a thought flits through my head, but before I can pursue it, Phil appears, striding through town, and I jog to catch up.
TWENTY-ONE
“Phil?” I call.
He keeps walking, moving fast toward his house, and once he reaches it, he’ll be home free. I break into a run and swing into his path.
“Phil, please,” I say. “Five minutes.”
He stops, his jaw twitching as his gaze slides past me. “I do not have time—”
“Five minutes. That’s it. I swear.”
An abrupt nod, and he waves toward his house. We walk there in silence. Once we’re inside, he closes the door.
“I really am busy,” he says.
I nod and stay in the hallway. “We need to discuss how to handle things in the future.”
Cool blue eyes rest on me. “Do we? My position in this town tells you how to handle matters. I should have been apprised of the new information. You didn’t trust me not to run to the council with it.”
“It isn’t about trust—”
“Eric is in charge here. You and I support his efforts. That makes you a colleague, not an underling. However, it means I am not your underling either. I am management level. I need to know everything that affects the management of this town.”
“Do you?” I say.