First Moon : A Reverse Harem Tale (Lovin' the Coven Book 1)

by Jacquelyn Faye

  He blinked and coughed blood, wheezing. The one in his upper chest must have hit a lung. The other was lower, down by his stomach. Luckily, whoever shot him hadn't gotten him in the heart or head. He wasn't dead.

  "Dot," he croaked out, not quite being able to say my name.

  "Shush. Don't talk."

  I pulled my cell out of my sweater and dialed 911. I shouted at the operator to get me an ambulance, my friend had been shot. I spouted out my address and set the phone down. My healing skills sucked, but they were better than nothing.

  I put my hands over his wounds to stop the bleeding and cast my spell. My first aid skills were abysmal. I knew with a lung wound I was supposed to do something with plastic bags and tape, but I had no clue what. I concentrated on my power and sent it into my hands. "Tarraing an miotail as an fhoirceannadh," I canted as I sent tendrils of it down into his wounds. I could feel the flesh heating up as I poured the power in. Then I felt them. My power wrapped around the tiny bits of metal embedded in his flesh and pulled. I felt like a magnet.

  Jimmy writhed in pain as the bullets made their way back through their respective entry points. An eternity later, I felt them touch my palms. I slowly pulled my hands away, pulling them free. He gasped, as much as he could, in relief. I tossed the bits of metal to the floor and concentrated on healing him from the inside out.

  "Leigheas an comhlacht, é a dhéanamh go hiomlán." I poured every bit of power I had into him to heal his wounds. I knew it wouldn't be enough, but it would buy him the precious time he needed. He would survive even if it killed me.

  Jimmy, you shit, don't you fucking die on me.

  I felt consciousness slip away from me and I blacked out, falling forward onto Jimmy.

  A siren brought me back. I blinked, my face pressed wetly against Jimmy's shirt. I sat up and looked at him.

  His face was a healthier color and he was breathing normally, if a bit raggedly. The gasping wheeze was gone. I sighed in relief and lifted his shirt. I expected two gaping wounds, but they were closed, new pink flesh was the only indication he had been wounded at all. I blinked in surprise. Healing never worked that well before for me in the past. Then again, I'd never been that desperate to save someone's life before.

  Chief came in through the open door with his weapon drawn. "Where?"

  "Gone. I was in the bathroom and Jimmy opened the door. I heard two gunshots and found him on the ground."

  "EMTs are on their way."

  "They can transport him to the hospital. I managed to get the bullets out and get him moderately healed. I don't know how well I did on the inside, though."

  He holstered his weapon and knelt down, checking out the wounds. "That's going to be a little difficult to explain to the paramedics…"

  "Better than a dead friend."

  "Very true. Well hopefully he comes to quickly and we can find out who shot him. His pulse seems good." He let go of Jimmy's wrist. I hadn't realized he'd been checking.

  "And the wheezing stopped. I freaked out when I saw it was a lung wound."

  "You did a pretty amazing job healing him."

  "I just don't know why they were targeting him or how they knew he'd be here."

  "Either they recognized his truck in the yard, or the bullets were meant for you."

  "At least they didn't blow up my new car."

  "I'll check it for spells. And collect the bullets. Congrats, your house is now a crime scene."

  "Joy. Don't get dust everywhere."

  The sirens and screeching tires on the street out front announced the arrival of the paramedics. Chief walked over to the doorway and motioned for them to come in.

  "Is that how they know there isn't a crazy gunman in here?"

  "Yeah. But, there's no signal for crazy witch."

  "We need to figure this out quickly. I don't want to lose anybody else."

  "Me neither. I'm glad you were here to save him."

  "It was my fault he was here to begin with. Chief, it's got to be somebody in our coven. They're targeting me now."

  "It could be somebody targeting witches in general."

  "But they're using spells."

  "Well, we need to continue with the interviews. Maybe we'll get somewhere. We should call a coven meeting."

  "Do it."

  "Yes, Lady."

  The paramedics wheeled the stretcher in the house, basically pushing us out of the way. I watched them check his vitals and the wounds and then focus their questioning stares at Chief. He pointed at me. "She used to be a nurse."

  They focused their stares at me. I just shrugged. Their imaginations could fill in the gaps better than I ever could. I waited patiently as they loaded my still unconscious lover on the stretcher.

  "Follow him to the hospital," Chief said behind me. "I'll get your official statement later."

  "Thanks, Chief."

  "You want me to call Jason?"

  I thought about it for a moment. Jimmy, if he even regained consciousness, would be in the hospital for a few days at least. I could check on him before and possibly after my date. "No. But do call Dennis. Let him know what happened and to meet me at the hospital. Tell Jason to be here at seven."

  "Yes, Lady." His formality was really starting to creep me out. I didn't know what was behind it and I didn't like it. Subservient men weren't my thing.

  "You okay, Chief?"

  "No. But we'll discuss it later when your friend hasn't been shot. Just don't like feeling helpless."

  "I feel you. No more calling me Lady, though."

  He shrugged. "You know, that works both ways, right?"

  I sighed. He had me there. "Thank you, Bill."

  He nodded and I followed the EMTs out the door, following them all the way to the hospital and trying very hard not to cry.

  ∞ ∞ ∞

  "What happened?"

  I found myself getting tired of the question. A little normalcy would be nice. Or at least not having to explain who died, who blew up, or who got shot. It was getting tedious.

  Dennis had skidded to a stop in front of Jimmy's bed in the emergency room. I was sitting next to the bed, just holding his hand. He hadn't woken up yet.

  "He was at my house and answered my door. Somebody shot him twice before taking off."

  He stepped in the cordoned off area and leaned a little closer to me. "So, they gave up on the spells and went straight to guns?"

  "Yes."

  "What happened to your face?"

  "They spelled my car to explode."

  "That was you?"

  I nodded. Apparently, if you wanted to avoid the town gossip, one only had to pull a few shifts at the firehouse.

  "Jesus, Dot. I'm glad you're okay. How's Jimmy?"

  "I got the bullets out and healed him as much as I could before the medics showed up. Doc said, and I quote, it's almost as if he hadn't been shot at all."

  "Then why is he not awake?"

  "I have a theory, but I'm not really certain."

  "What?"

  "Shock and energy. He went into shock from the amount of damage he took. He went into shock from having the damage repaired in a few minutes. And while I poured all of my power into him, he still had to use all of his own to actually heal. It was a team effort. I normally suck at healing."

  "If the doc says he couldn't even tell he was shot, I would say you need to rethink your opinion on your skills."

  "I couldn't do it again. I've never dumped so much power into anything. I just really didn't want him to die." And just like that all the raw emotion I'd been pushing away to keep myself together flooded through me. My chest tightened as the tears fell.

  He smiled. "You fell for him, didn't you?"

  "Maybe. A little. He has a certain charm."

  Dennis chuckled and pulled the other chair a little closer to me before sitting down. I leaned against him with a weary sigh. He pulled me close and just comforted me.

  It was when the tears hit my leggings that I realized how much I alrea
dy cared about Jimmy. He'd become an integral part of my life, a life I couldn't imagine without him in. I may have already fallen in love with the bastard.

  "Shh. He's going to be okay."

  "I know."

  "Then why are you crying?"

  "Because I almost lost him."

  "Luckily, whoever shot him had terrible aim."

  "Or they were surprised it wasn't me."

  "I'm starting to think they're just trying to take out the whole coven."

  I sat up straighter. "Why?"

  "Who knows. Maybe it's a witch hunter or something."

  "Who uses magic?"

  "Hmm. Maybe not."

  "Dennis, it has to be somebody in the coven. Can you think of anything that Richie, Dane, and Chief's wife have in common?"

  "Other than being in the coven? No."

  Something wasn't sitting right. There had to be a connection. My mother's words floated back to me. Ask people outside the coven. One place to start popped into my head. "Tell-a-Marge."

  "What?"

  "Nothing. You gonna be here a while?"

  "Yeah. I'm off duty now."

  "Sweet. When he wakes up, call me. Please?"

  "Sure thing. Where you heading?"

  "A date and some investigative work."

  "A date?"

  "Yeah. Jason."

  "Huh. I wouldn't have been shocked if you'd said the chief…"

  "We have a date on Friday." I chuckled at the absurdity of it all.

  "Who?"

  "Chief and I."

  He cocked an eyebrow.

  "Don't look at me like that. They all know."

  "I didn't say anything," he said with a mischievous grin.

  "No, but I don't like the tone of your thoughts." I winked and patted him on the shoulder. "Seriously, call me when he wakes up."

  "Will do. Have fun with…Jason."

  "He's not that bad."

  "No. Just angry at the world."

  "I know. It's why I asked him out."

  Chapter 19

  "You sure you want to do this tonight?"

  I nodded, starting the car and putting my seatbelt on. "Jimmy's going to be fine. I already postponed on you once and felt horrible."

  "Um, getting blown up is a perfectly acceptable excuse."

  "I know. But I was really looking forward to our date."

  "Why?" He cocked and eyebrow, and with his angular face it made him look more Vulcan than human. He just needed some pointed ears.

  I put the car in reverse but didn't take my foot off the brake. I didn't know why I'd been looking forward to our date. I really didn't. I shrugged. "I don't know. Don't get me wrong, you're a gorgeous guy, but it was something else."

  "Well, I think we can rule out my charming personality."

  "Honestly, I think that was it."

  "Huh?"

  "Once I sat down to really talk to you, you were someone else. Someone hurt, someone shy, but actually quite alluring. Don't sell yourself short, Jason. You might have been angry at the world, but once you drop all that, I don't know. I'm rambling. Feel free to stop me."

  "No." He chuckled.

  "Okay. Well let's hear about you. Tell me what there is to know about the alluring Jason." I backed out of the driveway and pointed us toward the diner.

  "Not much to tell. I was always Rebecca's little brother. We had the same mother, but different fathers. We couldn't be more different if we hadn't been siblings."

  "Were your parents all witches?"

  "No. Becca's father was. Mine was human."

  "Is your mom still around?"

  "Alive, yes. In town, no. Once I turned eighteen, she moved to New England."

  "How long ago was that?"

  "Twenty years or so."

  "How old was your sister when she died?"

  "Fifty-something."

  "Everybody in this coven is so young. I guess that's a hazard of the humans around you not knowing what you are." I felt a little out of place.

  "Not Dwight. He's over three-hundred."

  "He's young compared to my mother."

  "Wow. Really?"

  "Yeah. Mother moved to this country in the early 1800s. Ireland for more than a few centuries before that. She's seen some shit."

  "How old are you?"

  "I'll be a hundred next year."

  "Wow."

  "You're not earning any points."

  He chuckled. "You're way older than Bill but act so young. Most of the time," he added thoughtfully.

  "Yeah, yeah. I don't wanna grow up." I found a parking space right in front of the Diner.

  "Huh. Haven't been here in ages."

  "They have really good food."

  "I remember."

  "You don't eat out much?"

  "I don't go out much. Work and home."

  "You should consider burning that place. Buy a house in town while the market sucks."

  "I was planning on it. Once I saved enough."

  "Thinking ahead. I like that."

  I opened my door and we headed inside. The place was busier than usual. "Dot!"

  Margie practically ran across the floor of the diner as fast as her older frame could carry her. It looked more like a shuffle than a run. She threw her arms around me. The patrons of the diner glanced up in confusion. "Heard about the shooting. Is Jimmy okay?"

  I was a little surprised she knew him, but then again, I doubted there was a soul living in Cedar Falls that she didn't know. "He's going to be fine."

  "If it weren't for bad luck, girl, you wouldn't have any at all."

  "There's more truth to that than you know. Thanks, Marge."

  "Sit. Coke?"

  "Yes, please."

  "And for you? Jason? Is that you?"

  He nodded shyly.

  "You haven't aged a–" She stopped saying what she was going to say. "What would you like to drink, kiddo?"

  Jason chuckled. "I'll have a Coke, too, please."

  She shuffled off and since my usual booth was taken, we sat down at one of the tables. Jason took the seat closest to me instead of on the other side.

  "She knows," Jason chuckled softly.

  "Yeah. Her husband is the coroner. I'm sure he's seen all sorts of weird shit."

  "Especially since you came to town. Things have gotten interesting."

  "Wonder why that is?"

  "You did bring the coven back together. We'd hardly seen each other in two years?"

  "Huh. I hadn't thought of that. But why kill me?"

  "Because you're too beautiful? Maybe it's a jealous woman."

  "Uh huh. Sure."

  "Ask any one. You are probably one of the most gorgeous women I've ever seen." He said it while perusing the menu. Almost as an afterthought.

  It didn't stop me from blushing.

  We ordered and ate. Talked and laughed. By the time we were done, we were some of the last people in the dinner. Marge finally brought our check. I grabbed it before Jason could. "You're saving for a house," I said, leaving little room for argument. "Besides, I asked you out."

  "Fine. Pushy and beautiful."

  "You have no idea."

  Marge came to pick up the check. "Hey, Marge, got a minute?"

  "Sure, sweetie. What's up?"

  "Sit."

  She pulled out one of the chairs and parked herself. "Whatcha need?"

  "Just a question or two. Did you know Richie? The fireman who died in the truck last week?"

  "Yeah. Sad. He was good friends with the fellow who got shot, right?"

  I nodded. "Did you know Dane, the policeman who was murdered?"

  "Yes. He came in here for Chief all the time. Picking up food. He ate here quite often, too."

  "What about Jason's sister?"

  "Her and Chief ate here more than you."

  "Can you think of anything the three of them had in common?"

  She leaned forward across the table. "Other than being like you two?"

  I nodded, stifling a gig
gle.

  "No. Not a thing. The two boys I saw with the same woman, but Rebecca was always with the chief."

  "Which woman?"

  "Don't know her name, but she was always dressed to the nines and real pretty."

  "If you remember her name, let me know?"

  "Sure thing. This about the murders?"

  "Just trying to figure out why someone is doing these horrible things."

  "Sad. You all might be a little different, and Herb always warned me not to pry, but good people are good people."

  I was a little surprised. Marge had a gossip problem. How she wasn't blabbing about us to the entire town would remain a mystery. I'm surprised there weren't headlines in the paper. "Thanks, Marge."

  She nodded and took the check up to the register.

  "Well, that wasn't exactly helpful. Nothing in common with the three of them. Or you."

  "Well. I might just be an added target, since I did bring the coven back. Maybe they liked things the way they were."

  "Why not just leave the coven?"

  "Who knows. I'd believe anything at this point. You, just make sure you stay safe. Okay?"

  "Yes, Ma'am."

  I let the ma'am part go. "Come on. Let's get out of here. I want to go check on Jimmy before the night is over."

  He slid his chair back and offered me a hand. I let him help me up. It had been a long couple of days. "Is it bad that I like it that you're worried about me?" He gave me a small smile.

  "Nope."

  "This was… This was more fun than I've had in years. Would you mind doing this with me again sometime? But you have to let me buy next time."

  "I'd love to."

  He took my hand in his and brought it to his lips, giving me a gentle kiss on the back of the hand. I squeezed his. He was really a nice kid. I was glad he had given up his anger toward me.

  We drove back to my house in relative silence. I shut off the engine and got out. "I'm going to head home," he said softly.

  "Okay. I'm going to see if Josie is home and then head to the hospital before visiting hours are over." I looked at his rusted car. "Call me…if you break down."

  "Bessie is a beast. She wouldn't do that to me."

  "Uh huh. Good night, Jason," I said sweetly and walked over to him, giving him a soft kiss on his cheek.

  "Night, Dot. Thanks again."

  He headed to his car and I headed toward my door. A bad feeling washed over me as I spun, just as he started it. The engine rumbled to life and he put it in gear, pulling away quite loudly. I let go of the breath I'd been holding, keeping my eyes on him until he made it around the corner. I needed to start playing it safer. Especially with my people.