Alix (The Coven's Grove Chronicles #1)

by Virginia Hunter

  “Whenever the power is used of one of my ‘imprints’, the image disappears.”

  “Whoa, that’s so cool!” Sam drawled, still looking at Alix’s arm.

  “Mine didn’t disappear,” Troy said. He avoided looking into the mirror, as his ginger brows came down in an expression of concern.

  “Yeah, I’m not sure what that’s about,” Alix replied hesitantly. “I’ve never had one not disappear before.”

  Troy gripped the steering wheel so hard that his knuckles turned white, but he didn’t say anything more.

  Even Sam noticed the tension, and was on the verge of saying something, but Alix made a cutting motion across her neck, signaling for her friend to stop. With a frown, Sam settled back into her seat, and closed her eyes.

  For the next couple of hours the car was void of conversation, just as the landscape was absent of pit stops.

  Alix laid back down. She tried to sort out what had happened to her the past few weeks, and why those guys and that creature would be after her. Nothing readily came to mind, until she glanced at the tattoo on her left hand. I knew this power was going to be trouble, she thought. I wonder if Mom knew something? Her mother had been acting a bit skittish a few weeks before she was murdered. Alix hadn’t thought anything of it at the time, her mother always got edgy before they moved. She just figured her mom had had enough of the place, and was ready to move on. Maybe they moved around so much because of Alix, because of what she would eventually become. Maybe someone had been after them the whole time. Now you’re being paranoid. She pushed thoughts of her mother away, which left room for memories of her friends to flood in.

  Tears welled in her eyes as thoughts of Hank and the others set fire to her guilt. They didn’t deserve what had happened to them. They didn’t deserve to be subjected to Alix’s curse, but they had been, and now they were gone. She rolled onto her side, and quietly cried herself to sleep.

  The sound of the car door closing woke Alix from her dreamless slumber. A gush of cold air invaded the cozy den she had created in the back seat, and brought goose pimples. How long she had been asleep was a mystery though it seemed to span the blink of an eye. A yawn of some magnitude escaped, as she stretched the stiffness out of her muscles.

  “Hey sleepyhead,” Sam said, looking over the front seat. “You gonna join us in the land of the living for a while?”

  “I could do that, yeah,” Alix replied. She sat up, thankfully with no dizziness this time, and looked around.

  Troy was walking into the lobby of a one-story motel. The buildings close by had a small town feel, warm, and safe. The sun was just dipping into the horizon, giving the clouds and sky a sense of etherealness, that added to the overall homelike atmosphere.

  Alix frowned. “Where are we?”

  Sam slouched in the passenger seat. “Lexington.”

  “That doesn’t tell me anything,” Alix replied. “Where’s Lexington?”

  “Virginia.”

  Alix’s jaw dropped. “What?!”

  “Well it’s not like we have to be at work or anything.”

  “Are you kidding me?!” Alix grabbed hold of the headrest in front of her. “What the hell Sam? Everything I have—we have—is in New York—”

  “I know, geez. Chill for a sec,” Sam interrupted. She cut her gaze to the motel entrance. “You weren’t awake when we were driving around last night. It was like a scene from the ‘Fast and the Furious.’ Those dudes were on us wherever we went. The highway was our last option.”

  “Yeah, but Virginia?”

  Sam looked at her, annoyed. “You don’t know what it was like. You didn’t see what was happening. It’s like they had a homing beacon or something.”

  Alix took a deep breath, and let it out slowly. “So how is coming to Virginia going to help with that?”

  “Well, Troy made them wreck before we got outta the city. So that bought us some time at least.” Sam half-smiled. “Right?”

  “Yeah, I suppose.” Alix rubbed her temples. That may have bought them some time, but what they were going to use it for she had no idea. “Did you guys eat?”

  “No, not unless you count my stomach eating my spine.”

  Alix chuckled, “I think we just found our first priority.”

  Troy stepped out of the lobby with a set of room keys in his hand. His breath trailed behind him in streams of white, puffy steam, as he walked over to the car. The door squealed when he opened it. A blast of cold entered their tiny sanctuary, as he hurriedly got in, and pulled the door closed with another loud screech.

  Alix didn’t remember her car being so noisy the last time she had done her errands. “I guess it’s time for some grease on those hinges huh?”

  Troy and Sam glanced at each other awkwardly for a moment, but said nothing. Troy held up the keys. “Room 147.”

  “Sounds good to me,” Sam replied a little too quickly.

  Alix raised her brows at the pair, but was too stressed and hungry to comment on their sudden squirreliness. “Let’s get something to eat.”

  “That sounds even better,” Troy said, as he put the car into gear.

  They did the drive through at a fast food, Mexican restaurant. Family-sized order of tacos and burritos. Alix would be the first to admit that cheap take out lacked in many ways, taste and style to name a few, but after not eating for almost twenty-four hours. Those were the best damned tacos and burritos she’d ever had.

  The sun had finally gone down by the time they got back to the motel. It wasn’t a high class place for certain, but it was clean on the outside at least. Troy pulled the car around back. The headlights shined on the dull, black numbers, 147.

  “This is us,” Troy said, as he cut the engine. He and Sam shared another odd look before getting out of the car. Troy went directly to the door, and went inside.

  Sam pulled the seat forward so Alix could get out. “So, we’re good friends right?”

  Alix scooted to the passenger side of the car with a burrito in one hand, and a drink in the other. She stopped at hearing Sam’s ridiculous question. “What the hell are you talking about?”

  Sam nibbled on her lower lip. “Well, I’m not sure how to say this...” She paused in indecision.

  “What the hell Sam?” Alix was starting to get concerned. Then a thought came to her that sent a wave of hurt, and no small bit of jealousy through her heart. What if Sam and Troy had...

  “Ah crap, just get out of the car.” Sam backed away.

  Suddenly, Alix didn’t feel like getting out of the car. She didn’t feel very hungry any more either. In fact, she didn’t feel much of anything, as her emotions went numb. Man, I just can’t catch a break, she thought.

  “Hey, you okay?” Sam asked, after Alix hadn’t moved.

  Alix looked up at her friend. She was cute, even after all of the bad shit they had just been through. Alix could see how something might have happened between her and Troy. It was more than just good looks though. Sam was funny, and fun to be around too. That’s why she and Alix were such good friends. That’s part of what made this so painful. Alix shook her head. “Yeah, I don’t know.”

  Sam looked down at the pavement to avoid eye contact. After a moment she took a deep breath and said, “I just want to say I’m sorry, we couldn’t avoid it. It really was a matter of life or death.”

  Alix frowned. “Okay, that’s kind of lame. ‘Life or death,’ really?”

  “But it was!” Sam looked up at Alix. “You don’t understand. You were—”

  “Unconscious, yeah I got that part,” Alix interrupted. A bit of feeling came rushing back through the depressive haze. Unfortunately, that emotion was anger. Alix really didn’t want to be so upset. Hell she barely even knew Troy. But whatever had passed between them that night at the tattoo parlor had changed her, and she wanted the chance to find out if it could be something real. She crawled out of the car, and stepped up to Sam. “You knew how I felt about him, dammit! How could you?!”

  This ti
me it was Sam’s turn to frown. “He? Aren’t car’s usually ‘Shes’?”

  “Car?” Alix blinked, perplexed. “She? What the hell are you talking about?”

  Sam gently put her hand to Alix’s cheek, and turned her face so that she was looking at the Volkswagen Bug. The beautiful little car Alix had cherished for the past year could not have been the vehicle sitting before her now. It had taken almost two years to save up for the tiny, purple vision she had seen so many times in her dreams. Alix could still remember the day she drove it off the lot. A moment she had marked as another turning point in her otherwise dreary life. Stunned, she meandered around the pathetic calamity that Sam had proclaimed to be Alix’s crowning achievement since being pulled off the streets.

  Deep gashes ran along the entire length of the once pristine sides. Huge dents in the fenders, doors, and bumpers, made the car look as if it were inoperable. The front hood was completely gone. Just gone. The exposed engine remained intact, but covered in grime from the long road trip. Once Alix had made a complete circuit around the mangled heap of metal, she stopped, and stared in disbelief.

  She burst out laughing.

  The thought of them driving cross country in that junker brought tears to Alix’s eyes. Sam began to chuckle as well. The two of them traded snorts and giggles, until they were both bent over from knee-slapping laughter. In that brief moment, things returned to how they had been before all of this tragedy had started.

  “I’m glad you’re taking this so well,” Sam said, through her giggles.

  “Oh, hell,” Alix moaned, as she wiped moisture from her eyes. “I’m such an idiot. I thought you were talking about...something else.”

  “Yeah, I kinda figured once you got out of the car all crazy girl on me,” Sam replied, running the back of her hand across her eyes. “Jesus, what kind of an asshole do you think I am?”

  They both doubled over again, their laughter renewed. Thankfully the rooms nearest them appeared to be vacant, so no calls for disturbing the peace would be placed. Troy did poke his head out the door however, with a look of consternation on his face. Sam gave him a thumbs up, as she attempted to stifle her laughter, which was enough for him to go back inside without comment.

  Alix’s sides began to hurt from all the cackling. She leaned against what used to be her most prized possession, gasping for breath. “I’m so sorry, Sam,” she said, once again gaining control of herself. “I’m the asshole.”

  “Don’t sweat it.” Sam stepped over and leaned against the side of the building across from Alix. “I get it. He’s a hottie. I wouldn’t want to share either.”

  Alix smiled. “It’s more than that. Something happened between us that night I put the tat on him. I don’t know what it was, but I need to find out.”

  “That’s not the only thing you need to figure out. Those things chasin’ us are no joke,” Sam said. “But first things first,”—she nodded her head toward the room—“Figure out what’s up between you and him...I can sleep in the car.”

  “Sam, no—”

  “Just get me the keys, okay?” Sam interrupted, as she came away from the wall with a smile. “It’s freakin’ cold out here.”

  “You’re not sleeping in the car,” Alix stated, with no room for debate.

  Sam rolled her eyes. “Fine. I’ll go for a drive, and scope out this hoppin’ little town for a while.”

  Alix frowned. “That’s not a good idea.”

  “C’mon, maybe I can find us a club to hang at later,” Sam said sardonically. “Besides, I owe you for saving my life back there.”

  Stubborn girl, Alix thought. “You owe me nothing.”

  “I do,” Sam persisted. She crossed her arms, and added her pouty little I’m-not-going-anywhere-until-you-do-what-I-say face. “Just get me the keys, okay?”

  Alix slipped into the motel room. Warmth seeped into her as she closed the door. She glanced around, scanning for car keys.

  Two queen-size beds dominated the smallish space, while a long dresser sat against the opposite wall. There was a thin pathway to the two sinks and bathroom in the back. Wainscoting came up about three feet off the floor all the way around the room, and two framed prints, typical of motel decor, hung on the cream-colored walls. She couldn’t see Troy anywhere, but could hear the shower running. His clothes were folded up in a neat pile on the vanity, and bingo, the keys were right beside them.

  Alix made her way across the room, and grabbed her keychain. She smiled with a touch of regret at the little purple troll that dangled from the chain. He was another purchase she had made the day she got her Volkswagen. A damn shame, she thought. Maybe I can get it fixed up after all this craziness has ended. Shaking her head, she went back to the door, and stepped outside.

  Sam stood next to the twisted piece of purple metal that used to be Alix’s pride and joy. She opened her hands, signaling Alix to throw her the keys.

  “You don’t have to do this,” Alix said.

  “Yeah, I’m a saint that way,” Sam replied. “Look, you guys need to talk some things out...without an audience. Now give me the damn keys before my ass freezes off!”

  “Don’t be gone long, all right?” Alix said, tossing Sam the keys.

  Sam saluted, and hopped into the car.

  Alix went back inside, her stomach began to twist into knots. The whole discussion with Sam about talking to Troy had been just that—talk. Now she found herself on the verge of actually having to do it. Talking that is. How that conversation would go was anyone’s guess, but the closer Alix got to finding out, the less she really wanted to. She was afraid he harbored some resentment about what she had done to him, and how it had put his life in danger. Hell who wouldn’t be? I’d be pretty pissed myself. That was only part of it though. The real reason she was dreading the conversation was because of the possibility that he might not feel the same way that she felt about him. The yearning to be close to him had been so intense sometimes, that it couldn’t have been natural. Being with him the last twenty four hours had helped in a way, but had also stirred something deep inside of her. She wanted him, in every way. And she needed him to feel the same.

  Steam fogged the big mirror over the two-sink vanity. Troy came out in a towel, and began wiping the mirror with a wash rag. The muscles along his back rolled under his flawless skin, and the dimples just above his athletically shaped ass were delectably easy to see in the light streaming from the bathroom. He looked over his shoulder. “Sorry, let me get some pants on.”

  Alix bit back a comment about her not minding him being in just a towel, or even less for that matter. Get a grip girl, she thought, as she sat on the corner of the bed, and said, “Okay.”

  Troy grabbed his jeans and went into the bathroom. When he came back out, his snug-fitting pants had replaced the towel, which was now being used to dry his hair. He was still shirtless, and the muscles along his side rippled as he scrubbed. “Where’s Sam?”

  “She needed some air,” Alix answered, staring at him while his head was still covered by the towel. She moistened her lips, her eyes devouring every scrap of him. “I gave her the keys to go for a drive.”

  Troy stopped scrubbing. “That might not be the best idea,” he said, as he pulled the towel away and eyed her. “At the least she might get pulled over...which I’m sorry about the car by the way.”

  Alix quickly averted her gaze. “Yeah, I thought so too, but she was pretty insistent.” She wrestled with her amped up nerves, until she felt safe enough to not betray her thoughts, then raised her eyes to meet his. “Don’t worry about the car. There are bigger issues to deal with at the moment.”

  “Well, if it makes any difference,” he said with a wry grin, “the jeep that me and that creature landed on back at your apartment was mine.”

  Alix barked a laugh. “So you’re saying what happened to my car was payback?”

  He chuckled, and scratched his chin. “Karma, not payback.”

  Guilt washed over Alix, even though she knew h
e was just giving her a hard time. The events that had transpired the past few weeks were entirely her fault. “I’m so sorry about the tattoo. I just wanted to give you some protection,” she blurted. “I didn’t mean for all this craziness to happen.”

  Troy turned to face her fully. The infamous tat stood out against his broad chest—pitch black on fair skin. He had a slight pink tint from all the scrubbing of the towel, but otherwise, he looked as he had in the shop that night—gorgeous.

  God, he could be a red-headed Superman, she thought while trying not to be obvious about her ogling. He’s got a freakin’ emblem and everything.

  He walked toward the other bed, his movements were smooth like some predatory animal. Whether he meant to move that way or not, it made her hunger for him all the more.

  He sat down across from her. “Ya know, I didn’t say something earlier in the car that I should have.” He laid the towel on the bed beside him, and then looked at her with those fabulous blue eyes of his. “Thank you, for saving my life.”

  Alix swallowed, not able to speak from the blood rushing to every nerve in her body. She could have sworn that the temperature in the room had risen twenty degrees in the span of that one second. His close proximity charged the air around her with a carnal yearning. She stared into his eyes like a dumb-struck buffoon.

  Troy arched a brow. “You okay?”

  “I...” Alix began, her thoughts and emotions were in a swirling mess. She was happy that he wasn’t upset, but she wanted to know more. She wanted the answer to her true fear. “Why... Why are you helping me?”

  He broke eye contact, and looked down at his hands.

  Alix cursed herself for being too forward, or needy, or whatever it was that was driving her into a tizzy. But she had to know if he felt the same as she did, even though she was terrified to know the answer.

  “At first I just wanted an explanation for this,” Troy began, gesturing to the tat on his chest. “I was freaked out about what happened, and I wanted to know what the hell was going on.” He paused and took a breath, then looked up again. “Actually that’s not right. That part came later.”