Confidentiality

Chapter 41

“So, you think that salt is the key to defeating the Dragon Witch?” Logan asked him, crossing his arms and raising a brow. “I think I’m going to need a bit more explanation than that.” 

Janus had rushed into Logan’s lab the second his idea began to form, but now that he was actually presenting it? Well, he was more than a little nervous that his idea would be so mind blowingly stupid, that he would be tossed back to the villains without a second thought. 

“I had never thought about the suits much.” Janus began, doing his best to exude confidence. “My mother gave them to us, their weakness is salt, whatever, right?” He took a break. “But I never thought about why their weakness is salt.” 

Logan furrowed his brow, standing up a bit straighter. “That is…a good point.” 

“Because, originally, you guys weren’t going to be given suits.” Janus ran a hand through his hair, encouraged by Logan’s interest. “It was just going to be me, and if I was going to join the villains eventually, why give me a weakness?” 

Logan hummed at that. “Well, it could--”

“--could be because she wanted to give me a weakness if I ever defected, right?” Janus finished for him. “That’s what I thought too. But, that doesn’t make sense either, because she knew I would eventually find out about the weakness.”

After all, she had assumed he already knew the weakness when they had captured Remus. She had assumed that from both of them.

Logan glanced away thoughtfully, then looked back at him. “So, what do you think is her reasoning?”

“That’s the thing,” Janus shook his head, “I don’t think she had any reason.” 

Logan paused, frowning. “Explain.”

“In my entire time with the villains,” Janus narrowed his eyes, “I have not seen my mother even touch salt.” 

Logan’s eyes widened. “I think I understand what you’re trying to say.” He murmured, before sharply turning and grabbing the salt shaker that had been on his desk since they were testing the suits. “Salt. Of course! I didn’t even think about the implications of the one weakness of the suits being salt.” 

Salt was the suits’ weaknesses.

So, what if it was his mother’s weakness too?

“We need to test this immediately.” Logan turned to him, a smile on his face that resembled the time before Remus’ death. “This could be it, Janus!” 

“But how?” Janus asked, a bit giddy that he was able to put that expression on the hero’s face. 

Logan paused and glanced away, seeming to be thinking, before an uneasy expression crossed over his face. “Well,” He began, meeting Janus’ eyes. The second he did, though, he immediately shook his head and looked away again, “no, nevermind.”

“What?” Janus furrowed his brow. “What is it?”

Logan just continued shaking his head. “Forget it, it’s a bad idea.” 

Janus rolled his eyes. “In case you haven’t noticed, Lo, we’re pretty short on good ideas.”

Logan glanced at him again. “I just had a thought that, well, since you’re the son of the Dragon Witch, perhaps you would also have this weakness. But it doesn’t make sense, I’ve seen you handle salt, plus it could also run the risk of hurting you.” 

Janus paused, the cogs in his brain turning as he processed Logan’s words. “Oh. I, um, I’m not…” He laughed slightly, though he didn’t find anything funny. “I’m not related to her by blood.”