"Quack," Snow sighs. "I told you to stay away from the flowers. You're allergic to them."
"Jesus," I mutter under my breath, rising to my feet to go retrieve him before he sneezes himself to death. Her dogs are all insane. "I've got him, little one. You stay with Sloth."
"Sloth?" Jude asks.
"One of the dogs. She has seven of them."
"You're kidding me."
"Nope."
"Snow, seven dogs, and an evil stepmother." He laughs in disbelief. "You drank the water, didn't you?"
"I live in town," I growl, cutting across the grass to the small flower garden. "Of course I drank the fucking water. I bathe in it. Brush my teeth in it. Wash my face in it. I didn't know it brought goddamn fairytales to life. No one mentioned that."
"Yeah, this is a first." He chuckles again. "Guess it decided you needed a little extra magic, brother."
"Guess so." I bend down and scoop Quack up, tucking him up against my chest. He looks up at me through watery eyes and whines, then sneezes again. I shake my head at him, chuckle, and then scratch his chin. "She tried to warn you, man. You didn't listen."
"What time are you going to see Dillon tomorrow?" Jude asks.
"First thing. I want this shit over with. I want her safe."
"I'll meet you there." He hesitates. "I'll do whatever I can to help, but I can't make any promises, Dimitri. If she's been using company assets to traffic drugs into the country for a cartel, the FBI will freeze and seize until their investigation ends. I can ensure Snow isn't prosecuted for Delilah's actions, but it could take years to cut through the red tape to get the company assets released. By that time, there may be no point in saving it."
"Yeah, I know," I mutter. "We'll sort it out later. Right now, I just need the bitch behind bars before she has a chance to come after Snow again. She's already tried to kill her four times. I don't trust that she won't make a fifth attempt."
And if she does, I can't promise that I won't kill her for it.
Chapter Ten
Snow
"Are you sure you want to do this, Magic?" Dimitri asks, pausing at the gates of the compound to look over at me. "We can always wait a little while. You don't have to decide right now."
I reach across the console, slipping my hand into his. He's asked me the same question at least fifteen times since last night. As soon as I opened my eyes in his arms this morning, he pulled me closed, kissed me to within an inch of my life, and asked me if I was sure. My answer then was the same as it is now.
"I'm sure, Dimitri. I'm not hiding anymore."
He expels a heavy breath, dragging my hand to his lips to kiss my fingers. "Then let's go see the sheriff," he says reluctantly. I think he's more anxious than I am about this meeting. My decision is made, my course set. All that's left to do now is speak my truth and let the chips fall. I'm not alone now. It's not my word against hers anymore. Dimitri stands at my side, and Constantine at my back. They both know what she tried to do to me.
If the sheriff won't listen to me; he'll listen to them. Dimitri won't stop until he does. But he doesn't think it'll come to that. Dillon Armstrong is a good man, an honorable one. He only believes Delilah because he hasn't heard the truth yet. That's not his fault. It's mine for being too afraid to speak it. I was so afraid he'd send me back to her that I didn't go to him. I had no proof, no evidence, nothing but a story too awful for anyone to want to believe it.
I still don't want to believe this is my life. But it is. This is the hand I was dealt. This is the trial I had to face. I'm not afraid anymore. I won't run anymore. And I refuse to let her win when the only things that matter to me are the man sitting beside me and the seven dogs I left in the compound with Belle.
Dimitri pulls out onto the road, heading toward town.
"Do you think Bear will be okay with Belle and Dante?" I ask.
"He'll be fine. The damn dog likes them just fine," Dimitri complains.
I bite my lip to hide a smile. I think he's jealous. He's trying so hard to win Bear over, but Bear won't give him an inch. It's driving Dimitri nuts that he's taken to Dante and Belle. He even tolerates Constantine just fine. I'm almost certain Bear is only giving Dimitri a hard time at this point just because he knows it's driving him crazy. I think the wicked dog finds it funny.