On the other side of Albert was Braison. His red head rested against his knees. I was fairly certain he, too, was knocked out. I envied their ability to sleep. It’d been over a week since I’d gotten more than an hour or two. Easton sat on the sofa behind him, with Lily curled up in his lap. I envied them even more. What I wouldn’t give to hold Tegan like that for even ten minutes.
The front door opened, and bright rays of sunshine flashed in my eyes. I took a deep breath, preparing myself…but it was only Royce and Henley. They waved at my father who was still pacing in the kitchen, then squeezed onto the sofa next to Easton and Lily. I sighed and leaned my head back against the cool leather.
I needed a distraction from my own thoughts. If I wasn’t overanalyzing our quest to discover the Hierophant, then I was torturing myself over Tegan. I wasn’t sure which hurt worse. Tegan, because there was nothing I could do about it? Or the quest, because I couldn’t figure out the answer. Think, Tennessee. It’s in there.
I pulled my pendulum out of my pocket then propped my arm on my elbow. The purple mist I’d grown to find comforting swirled around the blueish crystal. I felt my Coven-mates’ eyes on me, and it was like a dozen heavy-duty spotlights turned to me at once. No pressure. I took a deep breath and tried to ignore them. George, can you help me?
The pendulum swung in a circle. Maybe.
I rolled my eyes. Smart ass. Is there any question I can ask you that will help us?
It stopped and turned in the opposite direction. I don’t know.
You’re 100 percent positive we already know this person?
Yes.
Is there some obvious line in the prophecy that we’re just missing?
YES.
I loved when my pendulum mocked me. I’d never used a sarcastic pendulum before. Are the Elders actually going to help us?
Maybe.
Translation: Rephrase the question. I frowned. Are the Elders going to come up with suggestions?
Yes.
The front door swung open again. When the sunshine hit the pendulum, the light reflected onto the white walls of my living room like a disco ball. The hardwood floors in the foyer creaked as our newest arrivals entered the house. I couldn’t see who it was, but there were only four people missing...and she wasn’t here yet.
George…is that Tegan?
YES.
Though I didn’t actually need to ask. In the middle of George’s answer, my glyph lit up like a bonfire, the way it always did when she came near. George, is my stupid glyph ever going to stop burning when she’s near me?
Yes.
I sighed in relief. There was hope in my future. Soon?
NO.
Devon was the first of them to enter the room. Her pale green eyes scanned the room once before she smiled and took one of the empty chairs Cooper dragged in. Hunter glanced in our direction but joined my father in the kitchen. I looked back at my pendulum.
Oh, God. There he is.
I froze as Tegan’s inner voice popped into my mind.
Damn it, he looks good. How am I gonna get through a meeting when he looks like that?
My pulse kicked into overdrive, and butterflies filled my stomach. Did she always think about me like that?
I forced myself to keep my eyes on my pendulum. George, does Tegan know she’s telepathic?
No.
I see he’s sticking to this game where he refuses to acknowledge my presence.
I sighed. If she only knew. My sanity depended on me keeping my eyes off of her. Tegan was the object of my desire, the cause of my nightmares and my dreams. Everywhere I went, I both hoped she’d be there and prayed she wouldn’t be. George, is she still looking at me?
No.
And now?
NO.
Without moving my head, or my hand, I looked over at her. She’d sat down on the carpet on the other side of the coffee table from me. Her hair was tied up in a messy bun on top of her head, and purple tips stuck out at weird angles. She had on ripped-up black skinny jeans. Her black combat boots looked worn in and dirty, exactly the way they should be.
Wait a second. I frowned and glanced down at myself. A smile I didn’t approve of pulled at the corners of my lips. Tegan and I were matching. Warmth spread through my body. I cursed.
“Okay, now that everyone is here,”—Kessler’s voice interrupted the thoughts I shouldn’t have been thinking— “let’s get started. Timothy, Constance, Kenneth, and Evaline are on conference call with us.”
A round of hellos were exchanged between those of us in the room and the four Elders on the phone. Hunter took the seat beside his wife while talking to Timothy, one of the Leaders of our Coven. I recalled my father telling me of Hunter’s close friendship with our Judgement Card. Not sure how to interpret that.
I’m never gonna get used to my dad being a witch, Tegan said into my mind.
“So, Tennessee Wildes, how’d that first guess go?” Timothy barked into the phone. “Go on, tell us, son.”
“No, he most certainly won’t, Timothy,” Devon snapped back. She arched one eyebrow and crossed her arms over her chest.
“Excuse me, is that you, Devon?” Timothy’s voice was extra gravelly.
Devon rolled her eyes, and she looked just like her daughter when she did. “You know damn well who this is. The majority of The Coven made an educated, logical guess. They are, after all, the ones who live here and interact with this community. From what I know of our Emperor, if Hunter, Kessler, or myself had properly explained the part of the timer to him in advance, he wouldn’t have made the presentation when he did.”
My jaw dropped. I had no words.
“For the record,” Constance jumped in, “Atley Carrier is a highly anticipated arrival at Edenburg. Mistakes were made in the presentation, yes, but we’re not on this conference call to lecture our own.”
I smiled. My father had given me quite the earful on my actions, and rightfully so. But having both Constance and Devon defend me against Timothy was a reward I wasn’t sure I deserved. I nodded my head at my soulmate’s mother in thanks. She smiled and winked. I had no idea what she knew of me. Whatever history there was between her and Timothy, I wanted to know.
Hunter reached out and laid his hand on Devon’s knee. His amber eyes flashed, and the lights in the room grew warmer and less intense. My pulse slowed back to its normal beat. The tremble in my fingers eased. I took a long, deep breath. What just happened?
Whoa, what was that? Tegan said in my head.
My father took the seat next to his brother and nodded his head. “Thanks,” he whispered.
Then it clicked. Hunter’s gift was emotional influence.
“The point of this call,” Kessler started then cleared his throat, “is to discuss who we think our two guesses might go to. Let us start with the prophecy.”
Tegan held the locket in her palm for everyone to see. “Present this thrice. It won’t play nice. I think that part is obvious.” Her voice was steady and calm.
“I believe the third line, To keep the secrets within our core, is also obvious.” Evaline’s soft voice was a welcome change to the aggression from a moment before. “It refers to the contents of the locket.”
“What about the other two lines?” Coop asked.
“Power in blood… I told you Tennessee needed to be tested,” Royce teased from his spot on the couch. His eyes were tired and his hair unstyled, but the grin was all him.
“Actually, I believe the line refers to family.”
Everyone jumped and stared at the phone.
“Kenneth,” I said as I leaned forward. “What do you mean?”
“Well.” Kenneth’s voice was softer and more refined with a slight accent. There was a crash, then Kenneth cursed. Knowing our Hermit, he’d probably knocked over a stack of books. “Pardon me. When I heard the line, my thoughts got caught on the words comes with a price, but then I learned of poor Elizabeth’s injury.”
“I’m not sure we’re following yo
u, Kenneth,” my father said, then sipped his coffee.
“Regrettably, I had my hands tied with a dire situation here—and no, do not worry yourselves over it. You have your own task.” Kenneth coughed and it echoed through the phone and around the room. “But when I heard Elizabeth was gravely injured, it clicked. Perhaps that is the price the prophecy speaks of.”
“Wait, I thought Libby was still alive?” Evaline’s voice rose an octave. “Have we lost two Cards?”
“No, Evaline, Libby is still with us,” Kessler assured her.
Libby. The comfort and calm Hunter had given me vanished at the mention of her name. She hadn’t gotten any better yet. No one knew for sure how to help her; they just kept trying everything they could think of. George vibrated in my palm, begging me to ask it the one question I refused.
“Um, excuse me?” Emersyn raised her hand. “Is he implying that Libby…that she must…”
“No, no, dear child.” Kenneth’s voice was soft and sincere. “The words don’t always have to be literal or extreme. A price could simply mean a serious injury. She is paying some kind of price as we speak, is she not?”
“Oh, that is true.” Emersyn sighed, like he’d just erased all her worries.
“There are only a few witch families who have more than one child. Libby’s would be the most logical since she’s the one hurt.” Devon stood and paced behind my father. “Who all is in her family again?”
“Edward and Monica Tarbell,” Kessler answered.
Devon frowned and leaned over the phone. “Eva, is that the same Monica we went to Edenburg with?”
“Yes, yes, it is.”
Tegan frowned and cocked her head to the side. “Is there something relevant about the Monica you went to school with?”
Devon turned sparkling eyes on her daughter and nodded. “Monica is famous for her spells.”
“And a tad infamous, if ya’ know what I mean,” Henley mumbled with a wicked grin.
“It’s got to be her, then.” Cooper knocked his fist on the table. “She’s Libby’s family and a well-known witch of power within the race. It makes the most sense.”
“What does everyone else think?” Hunter leaned back in his seat and looked around the room. “We need to be on the same page here, and unfortunately I don’t know this community well enough yet.”
The room fell into silence. The lights above our heads flickered. The television in my father’s office lost reception and turned to snow, then cleared up.
“My guess would be Monica Tarbell,” Kenneth said, breaking the silence. “I believe the second line refers to a price being paid within a family, and she is, as you mentioned, infamously talented.”
A chorus of agreement went around the group. One by one, they nodded and signed their approval on voting for Monica. I wasn’t sure why I wasn’t sold. Perhaps it was doubt, a byproduct of the Atley situation gone wrong? Or maybe it just seemed cruel of the Goddess to make the daughter suffer the price for the mother to be chosen? I wanted to voice these concerns, but they were only gut feelings. Everyone else had logic and sound reasoning.
Tennessee knows something is off too. I bet that’s what he’s thinking right now. Yet again, Tegan’s inner thoughts popped into my head.
“Tennessee? What are you thinking?” she asked aloud.
I needed to tell her she was telepathic, and soon. Not for my own benefit, but for hers.
“Tennessee? Son, Tegan asked you a question.”
I jumped and glanced around the room before settling my gaze on Tegan. I cleared my throat and rubbed my face with my hand. “It’s just…the last line is driving me nuts. Seek within generations before—how does that apply to Monica and Libby?”
“It’s saying to look at the generation before Libby, meaning Monica.” Lily sat up and uncurled herself from Easton’s hold. “Isn’t it?”
“Son, did you have someone else in mind?” My father leaned forward with his elbows on his knees. “We do have two guesses left.”
“What about Katherine?” That was the only other name that had come to mind. At least I could move forward without more regrets.
“Katherine? The Healer?” Tegan asked. She reached up and released her two-toned hair from its bun. The purple tips swayed around her arms, thoroughly distracting me. “Why her?”
Focus, Tennessee. Everyone is literally watching you. I shook my head to clear my thoughts of Tegan. “She’s a particularly gifted Healer, a lead Healer, at a significantly younger age than others.”
“She does come from a long line of amazing healers. Tennessee might have a point.” Evaline made a tapping sound, like she was clicking a pen. “I’ve worked with her here in Salem. I could see it.”
“My first guess would be Monica,” Kenneth added. “But Katherine also makes sense.”
“Excuse me,” Timothy jumped in for the first time since Devon chewed him out. Everyone froze, nervous for what he’d say next. “High Priestess, can you tell me how much time we have left?”
Tegan blushed and held up her left arm. Right under her II Mark, a ticking time bomb mocked us. 51:48:26. “It says fifty-one hours, forty-eight minutes, and twenty-six seconds.”
“All right, here’s the plan.” Constance paused. “Go present the locket to Monica now. If we’re wrong, we still have two days to present it to Katherine or someone else.”
Chapter Thirteen
Tegan
By the time we hung up with the Elders and walked the two blocks over to the Tarbell’s house, my arm read fifty-one hours even. I wished the Goddess had put the time clock on someone else’s arm and not mine. But there it remained, perfectly legible right under my II Mark. It was hard to relax for even a moment with a ticking time bomb on my skin. With every step I took, I found myself glancing down to check it. We walked up a brick pathway and stopped in front of a door.
50:59:46.
The Tarbell’s house was a pristine, off-white two-story home with a perfectly manicured front lawn and black-tiled roof. The dark mahogany wooden front door looked like something out of The Hobbit, and I made a mental note to ask my father why we didn’t have one.
My father. The witch. I glanced over my shoulder and spotted him standing at the back of the group with Devon by his side. Both of their eyes were calm and steady, their hands clasped in front of them like this wasn’t a big deal. The idea that my father was used to this blew my mind.
“Kessler?”
My body reacted to the sound of Tennessee’s voice faster than my mind registered what he’d said. He stood up at the front of the group, where he belonged. He shoved his hands into his front pockets, and the movement pulled his jeans down just enough to see the barest sliver of tan skin. We weren’t in ceremonial white this time around, and although seeing Tennessee in his white gown was a beautiful thing, the sight of him in black, ripped-up jeans did weird things to my insides. Weird, but good.
Hold up. Are we matching? I frowned and compared our outfits. We both had on black T-shirts, black, ripped-up jeans, and black combat boots that’d seen better days. His jeans had holes from fighting demons, whereas I bought mine this way. Can we be any more perfect for each other?
Tennessee’s eyes met mine then snapped back to whatever he’d been looking at. I sighed and heat filled my chest. I needed to get a hold of my anxiety before it burned a hole in my chest.
“Come on, son.” Uncle Kessler stepped forward and wrapped his massive arm around Tennessee’s shoulders. “Together.”
The two of them walked up to the front door in unison. The sun sparkled against the silver rings on Tennessee’s tan hand as he reached out and knocked on the door. Uncle Kessler dropped his arm and stood tall beside him. When the front door opened, I heard a small gasp, but I couldn’t see around the two men. The muscles in Tennessee’s jaw flexed, like he was holding back emotions. Uncle Kessler said something to whoever opened the door, but it was too low for me to discern any of his words. A second later, Kessler stepped inside the house.
Tennessee stood on the front stoop and waved us forward. I walked up and tried to read his expression, but he wouldn’t even look at me.
Is this how it’s going to be from now on? I clenched my teeth to stop myself from saying that out loud. We were forbidden to date. I couldn’t have him. Making other people aware of my feelings for him wasn’t going to help. My mind had sunk so deep into thoughts on Tennessee that I hadn’t noticed we’d walked back outside until the sun flashed across my face. I flinched and looked around.
We stood in the middle of a lavish, thriving garden full of every color of flower and plants I’d never seen before. Behind the garden, a pool with waterfalls and ornate scrolled tiles was starting to turn green. My heart sank at the reason why. Libby.
“I’m sorry, Edward and…Edward and Aspen are at the infirmary with…with…with…” The woman stumbled over her words like a scratched record.
My father pushed through the group until he reached her, then placed his hand on her shoulder. A soft golden glow radiated from within his skin, then rolled like a wave onto the woman. She closed her eyes and sighed. Her blonde hair brushed over her thin shoulders. When she reopened her eyes, they sparkled like diamonds.
What did Dad just do to her? It was the same thing he’d done back at Uncle Kessler’s house during our meeting.
“Thank you,” she whispered to my father. She cleared her throat, then looked around at the rest of us. Her eyes were the most spectacular silver I’d ever seen; it actually looked fake. “Edward and Aspen are at the infirmary with Libby. I just ran home to pick up a couple things.”
Ah, this is Monica. Though she didn’t look much like her daughter. They were the same height and shared the same high cheekbones, but that was where the similarities ended.
“We’re sorry to delay your return.” Tennessee’s voice was soft and warm.
“Thank you, Tennessee.” Monica smiled just a tad. “And thank you all for going to see her so much. I can’t tell you how much it means to us and her. But I’m sure that is not what you’re all here for?”
The Brave Witch Page 8