Page 61 of The Order of the Bitter Hunt

I steal a glance at them from the corner of my eye. “I have proof that the Order is involved in the murders.”

“Are you going to share the proof?” Caldwell asks, looking unimpressed.

“I am.”

Tobey narrows their eyes. “Well…?”

It’s clear their patience is wearing thin with me, and I suppose I can understand why, but this is my moment. The others may not enjoy my gloating, but I certainly do.

“Amelia was joining the society.”

At last, they react as I expect, exchanging a wide-eyed look.

“I know.” I toss my hair over my shoulder. “If you were looking for proof of the order being tied to the murders, there it is. You’re welcome.”

Amelia, the one who killed Poppy, and the one who wanted to kill Tobey, too. Her being involved with the order, along with the message we received after her death, is all the confirmation I need that we’re going in the right direction…

Thanks to Jun. He’s been more helpful than I ever would have imagined, though I’d like to continue avoiding saying it to his face.

“How do you know?” Tobey asks.

“Jun told me, and Amelia told him. She tried to recruit him, so she must have been in deep. What if she was killingforthe Order? In fact, what if the Order left the message on that computer? It all adds up.”

“Wait,” Tobey says, the shock still apparent in their wide eyes.

“But that… would add up.” Caldwell presses his lips together.

“I know.” I hold my head higher, still holding back the gloating words begging to break free.

It’s easier to gloat and ignore what this twist means for my family. My father is involved. There is no way around it and no room for denial. I will have to acknowledge it eventually, but for now, I’ll stay on cloud nine and ignore reality.

“And you’re sure we can trust Jun?” Tobey asks. “I know he’s been helpful and all, but he and Amelia were very close. Like, they were so close I thought they were dating at one point.”

My stomach drops, and I look away from Tobey. I don’t know why the feeling comes up, but my ribs squeeze tight at the thought of Jun and Amelia together.

“Well… that’s because theyweredating.”

“Seriously?” Tobey’s lips part. “Amelia made it seem like they weren’t.”

“She was a killer. Not the most trustworthy source.”

“And you still want to trust him, even knowing he was dating her?”

“He has poor taste.” I shrug. “Who among us hasn’t dated the wrong person? I still think we can trust him. He gave us his blood for a ritual. There’s nothing more trustworthy than that.”

“If you say so…”

“I trust him, too,” Caldwell says, surprising me. “If he’s right, this is massive news. We may be moving down the right path. We can stop the murders… and soon.”

After a month of fumbling around aimlessly, itisreassuring to know what our next steps may look like. In a way, this is only confirming what we’ve already suspected, but it’s surprising how freeing the confirmation is.

“I know.” I walk ahead of them with an upbeat gait. “Everything is going as planned.”

There’s no reason for me to be so happy, considering the trials waiting for me and the secrets my family keeps from me. I keep those to myself, not wanting to dampen anyone’s spirit—or my own.

“This wasnotpart of the plan,” Tobey says.

But it doesn’t matter. They can’t bring me down today.