Violet opened her mouth to argue with me some more, but I cut her off.

“You can call your grandfather and check in. See how he is, and tell him you’ll see him tomorrow. But if you want my help, you’re staying here tonight. Capisce?”

Violet Fox might be a straight-A business student, but her resistance wilted under my cold stare. “All right,” she murmured. “I’ll call my grandfather.”

“Good,” I replied and pushed her bowl back over to her. “Now, eat some more cobbler.”

———

Violet Fox ate some more apricot bars and vanilla ice cream, while the rest of us plotted. Jo-Jo and Sophia agreed to keep an eye on her until Finn and I showed up tomorrow. The two of us would drive Violet back home, meet with Warren T. Fox, and see what we could do to get Tobias Dawson to back off.

Jo-Jo settled Violet in one of her upstairs bedrooms, while Finn sweet-talked Sophia into going out into the rain and seeing what she could do about the blood Violet had dripped all over the backseat of his precious Aston Martin. Once Jo-Jo finished with Violet, the dwarf took me into the salon, where she gave me a plastic tub. The dwarf ’s cloud rune decorated the top of the container. I traced my fingernail over the pale blue paint.

In addition to healing with their hands, Air elementals like Jo-Jo could also infuse their magic in various products, like the ointment she’d just handed me. The ointment wouldn’t work as well as Jo-Jo healing me herself, but it would keep me from keeling over until I could get to her. Jo-Jo also gave me a couple of smaller containers of the ointment, including one that looked like a makeup compact and another solid tube of it that resembled lipstick.

“Thanks,” I said. “I have a feeling I’m going to need these, if I’m getting mixed up with Tobias Dawson.”

Jo-Jo’s white eyes clouded over. “Maybe. Although I don’t think the tub will be much help. Not this time.”

Her voice was soft and distant, like she was somewhere far away instead of standing in front of me. In addition to her healing powers, Jo-Jo also had a bit of precognition.

Most Airs did. They could read vibrations and feelings in the wind just like I could in whatever stone was near me.

But where my element whispered to me of the past, theirs often hinted at the future. Another way the two elements opposed each other.

After a moment, Jo-Jo’s eyes cleared, and she stared at me. “So, are we ever going to talk about it?”

“Talk about what?” I asked, sliding the compact and lipstick tube into my jeans pocket.

“That folder I gave you. The one Fletcher spent so long working on.”