Her mother didn’t say anything, but Violet didn’t need her to. Not yet. She only needed answers.
“Broderick Reeve knew about the hunters, didn’t he?” Violet already knew this to be a fact, from her mother’s notes, but she wanted verbal confirmation.
“He did. He knew they were moving closer. The coven was certain they could not access the space, however, and reminded the pack that the land surrounding pack lands is always more fertile and teeming with life. Many hunters of the supernatural eventually become hunters of all nature. There were no signs, at that time, that any of these hunters had ever before taken a shifter’s life.”
“At that time?” Violet didn’t know what her mother meant by that...
“We now know that, up until the attack on the Reeve pack, that they had been attacking solitary shifters, those who had left their packs and roamed alone. Because the shifters were not being reported as dead, no one knew.”
“Broderick knew. That’s why he warned the coven. How did he know, and how did none of you listen?”
Mabel cleared her throat, and Violet knew without even being able to look at her mother that she was clenching her hands, flexing them, and interlocking her fingers.
“We... and by we I mean all witches but also the elders... have a tendency to disregard the opinions of shifters. They are overly cautious by nature, but—“
“But he was right. And the pack paid for it with their lives.”
“Yes, Violet. They did.”
Violet sat back in the chair and let out the deep breath she had been holding in. Some things she would never have the answer to, like how Mr. Reeve had known, and what could have been done to save everyone, but... No wonder her mother had run. No wonder her mother had been afraid.
She was to blame for the incident. Partially, at least.
“We also need to talk about what Broderick said about me.” Violet left her words open for a moment, knowing her mother was probably collecting herself. Did Violet now have the whole picture? Probably not. But she knew a lot more than her mother probably thought she did. “Let’s start with how he thought my magic lured Henrik in to corrupt the pack.”
“Violet, you know that isn’t—“
“I know it’s not true,” Violet confirmed, cutting her mother off. “And I agree with your own thoughts. My powers were influenced by Henrik’s connection. Not the other way around.”
It made sense, after all. Shifters were by far the most natural of connections to magic. They were in tune with it in a way that made no sense to anyone but shifters. They protected the land, the magic, the peace, all with their presence, and in turn, the magic gave them a protected space.
Witches were an afterthought. A human’s attempt at connecting with nature in a way they could never understand. A half-step into the paranormal. No matter what witches pretended, they were more human than paranormal.
“But the fact that the pack elders were split and arguing with their Alpha on my behalf... It’s no wonder he asked us to leave.”
And that... that hurt.
“Is that why you did the spell, creating distance between us? So that we could stay? So that Henrik could become old enough to make his own decisions?”
A deep sigh on the other end of the phone call confirmed Violet’s suspicions to be true. It was all done to give Broderick peace of mind, at least, for a while. To separate the pair of them, it was supposed to allow them to both grow without growing together. To try and stunt Violet’s abilities.
“And that’s why the spell went haywire, didn’t it. Because the town wasn’t just listening to you. It was also listening to him.”
Mabel was still quiet, but Violet could hear her breathing, to know that her mother was listening. The silence confirmed everything. So there it was. Her answers.
“Mom... I don’t know how to fix this, but I have to. I have to, because it’s getting worse. The abilities... it’s only fire. It’s all fire. And I don’t know if it’s because of my anger, or if it’s because the longing to be with him is getting worse, but—“
“Do you know why your connection to fire is the strongest?” Mabel asked her, cutting her off. “We’ve talked about it before, but I need to know if you believe it. If you truly understand why you are so connected to fire unlike the other elements?”
She had suspicions, but Violet wanted confirmation. This entire phone call, it was all about confirmation. Particularly now that she realized that, whatever she had always known and thought about magic, was not the full picture.
“Most witches connect to air or to water. Occasionally the earth, but we always keep movement and flow. But fire? Fire is... It burns. It takes too much of the other elements to put it out. Yes, you can put out fire with earth or wind or water, but if fire wants to roar, it will roar. That’s what scares the elders. What scared Broderick. What scares everyone else. And it’s why I tried to separate the pair of you. Why wolves and witches are dangerous together.”
Are dangerous together.As though this had happened before. As though she and Henrik were not the first.
“Wolves are connected to the earth in such a strong way, connected to the ground and nature and become like rocks, stubborn and hard. And what compliments fire better than earth? For water and fire will always try to overcome one another, while water and air soothe one another, and air can build fire up, but... but earth and fire together only grow stronger. Always. And as Henrik’s power grew, as he became a stronger wolf, you, his perfect match...”
Violet’s eyes closed as she breathed it in. She understood why everyone had done what they did. She knew why Mr. Reeve had worried. Knew why the coven worried. She understood how everyone had reached this point.