Page 74 of A Lady’s Guide to Werewolves

“I’m afraid so.”

“But why? And why now? He’s been using wolves in the fighting pits without such a spell for long enough.”

Adian scrubbed a hand over his bearded jaw. “I’ve tracked some of his witchery, but he’s got that shielded from us as well, so I can’t be sure of anything, really. But I think he’s stealing more wolves to fight in the pits, after he works a spell to ward the Cauldron from the Lycan, from the Order of the Iron Nail. From anyone who might be a threat.”

“And from the Red Cloak?”

His jaw clenched. “A fair assumption.” He frowned at the cut on her arm.

She frowned at it too. “You think he did this somehow?” The run from the Cauldron had been rather frantic. It was certainly possible.

“I do. I recognize his magical signature.” A growl rumbled in his chest. “Which would ordinarily be more than enough for me to track.”

“It could as easily have been from my dodging an ogre.”

“Maybe.” Definitely not, if his tone was anything to go by.

She rubbed at the cut, but it felt like any other cut. It wasn’t even as itchy as the scratches she’d sustained from all of those rose thorns at the solstice. Or from the kittens when they got bored and ganged up on her. She chose to take it as a favorable omen.

“I’ve tried to predict where the new Cauldron might pop up,” she told Aidan. “The spectators are only told that same night, through posters going up in pubs and alleyways. I’ve tried pendulums, and tarot cards, and even mugwort tea for farseeing dreams. None of them have worked.” She made a sound of frustration. “Nothing has.”

“Except for your paper birds,” he pointed out.

“Yes, but that’s after the fact, unfortunately.”

“And your regular birds can’t catch him either?”

She shook her head. “Regrettably, no.”

“That helps, actually.”

“It does? How? Do you enjoy being frustrated?”

“No, but it tells me his shields are even better than I thought.”

“How is that helpful?” she demanded.

“It means he’ll have need of other supplies. More magic. Which means more opportunities for tripping him up. Setting a new trap.”

“You’re counseling patience.” She made a face. “I don’t particularly care for patience.”

He nearly smiled. “I am aware.”

But it sounded like the Collector would be unstoppable with this new spell, and he was already far too powerful. Their weakness at the moment was their need to hide, to move about. Without that…

Sorcha felt sick to her stomach. Fury sometimes made her queasy. “How did you find out about the spell and the teeth?

“We had a spy in the ranks for a short time,” Aidan said tightly.

She was afraid to ask. “What happened to him?”

“The Collector killed him and made it look like a wolf kill.”

She sucked in her breath. “He really is targeting you.”

“Yes.”

“Do you know why?”