For the sake of Markus' apparent desire for him to read it, Max continued leafing through the pages, reading the passages that seemed the most relevant. Much of it handled what Markus had already mentioned, just in more detail. It was a bit of a relief to know she'd tried to pull back, but it seemed she’d been in too deep. Getting out might have been impossible, whatever she’d done, or she'd tipped her hand before even making a choice.
Honestly, Max wouldn't be surprised if he learnt the cult she'd been dealing with had planned for potential betrayals and this was just all according to plan once she bottled it. He knew from experience that people who did rituals knew it inside out, so he could only assume they had to have gotten to her some other way, unless they'd sent a cultist to get blown up with her. Maybe she’d got something designed to fail, but what could that have been? A mistranslated rune? A vial of tainted blood? A volatile component?
It all boiled down to one thing, though. If she was having second thoughts, why hadn't she reached out to anyone? At all? Max knew he wouldn't have been her first stop. He trusted that she'd known he'd help, but he also figured she'd not think he could help in that situation. She hadn't known what he was, but even then, what could a werewolf have done? They'd never talked about the Exchange, but he couldn't imagine her having missed them, not unless she was living under a rock. They would've helped her, protected her, like they'd helped Juney and all the others in tough spots who went to Lethe Hostel or the Exchange directly.
In the end, Vicky hadn’t been smarter than the guys she was up against. In the wake of that, the Exchange was left piecing together clues, tracking down random werewolves a year after he'd had anything to do with it. There were a lot of what if's, but now Max wasn't sure what Markus' point was. He’d got a measure more of peace of mind, but ultimately it didn't matter.
“What're you looking for, man?” Max gestured with the journal again, still open near the last few pages. His tone wasn't unsympathetic, just a little puzzled. “It's good to know she wasn't swallowing the bullshit hook line, and sinker, but I'm not sure what you think I can give you.”
Honestly, Max wouldn't be surprised if he learnt the cult she'd been dealing with had planned for potential betrayals and this was just all according to plan once she bottled it. He knew from experience that people who did rituals knew it inside out, so he could only assume they had to have gotten to her some other way, unless they'd sent a cultist to get blown up with her. Maybe she’d got something designed to fail, but what could that have been? A mistranslated rune? A vial of tainted blood? A volatile component?
It all boiled down to one thing, though. If she was having second thoughts, why hadn't she reached out to anyone? At all? Max knew he wouldn't have been her first stop. He trusted that she'd known he'd help, but he also figured she'd not think he could help in that situation. She hadn't known what he was, but even then, what could a werewolf have done? They'd never talked about the Exchange, but he couldn't imagine her having missed them, not unless she was living under a rock. They would've helped her, protected her, like they'd helped Juney and all the others in tough spots who went to Lethe Hostel or the Exchange directly.
In the end, Vicky hadn’t been smarter than the guys she was up against. In the wake of that, the Exchange was left piecing together clues, tracking down random werewolves a year after he'd had anything to do with it. There were a lot of what if's, but now Max wasn't sure what Markus' point was. He’d got a measure more of peace of mind, but ultimately it didn't matter.
“What're you looking for, man?” Max gestured with the journal again, still open near the last few pages. His tone wasn't unsympathetic, just a little puzzled. “It's good to know she wasn't swallowing the bullshit hook line, and sinker, but I'm not sure what you think I can give you.”