Haunted Covenant (Dying Covenant Trilogy Book 1)

by Amanda M. Lee

  He was right. “You carry Sami,” I instructed. “Stay right behind me.”

  “An insecure man might feel feminized by the gender role switch,” Aric said. “I, however, am oddly turned on.”

  “You’ve always been a marvel of nature.”

  “And don’t you forget it,” Aric said, pulling Sami in for a hug before sweeping her up in his strong arms. “What is this place?”

  “Later,” I said. “Let’s get home. We’ll worry about the rest of it when we’re sure everyone is safe.”

  THIRTEEN

  W e made the trip back to the house without incident. James and Helen waited in the backyard as we approached. James opened his arms to take Sami, but Aric refused and didn’t release her until we were inside. I engaged the security system while Helen fawned over Sami.

  “Oh, my poor baby,” she gushed. “Were you frightened?”

  “At first,” Sami admitted. “Then Mom was a complete badass and like totally ripped those things apart. I mean … it was like she was shredding toilet paper. She did that one time when Dad didn’t put the roll on the thing in the bathroom and she was ticked.”

  “That’s sounds … delightful,” Helen said, pushing Sami’s flyaway hair from her face. “I don’t think you’re supposed to swear, though.”

  “She can say ‘badass,’” Aric countered. “We only consider it a swear word if it earns an R rating in a movie and even then it’s negotiable because Zoe swears like a sweaty sailor when someone she likes on a television show dies.”

  “Hey, if they didn’t want me to swear they wouldn’t kill off the best characters,” I said.

  Paris smiled as she joined us, relief evident as she offered Sami a hug. “So did she take off or was she taken?”

  “Taken,” I replied. “She was in one of those trances again when I got to that house. Did you know that was out there, by the way?”

  Aric nodded his head. “That’s been there since we moved here, although no one has ever lived there. I don’t even know who owns the property.”

  “We can find out tomorrow,” James said. “Why didn’t you leave one of the kidnappers alive so we could question him?”

  “Because they weren’t technically kidnappers,” I replied, irritated he would dare call my rescuing technique into question. “They were … something else.” I cast a quick glance at Sami. The last thing I wanted to do was frighten her.

  James obviously missed my furtive look. “What were they?”

  “Black ghosts,” Sami replied.

  “They were not,” I said.

  “That wasn’t racist,” Sami said. “They were black.”

  “I get that they were black,” I said. I had no idea where she came up with the “racist” thing. “I mean they weren’t ghosts.”

  “They looked like ghosts,” Sami said. “They didn’t have legs and they floated. They kind of hissed, too.”

  “That sounds like a wraith,” Paris said.

  “What’s a wraith?” James asked, confused.

  “They’re soulless witches,” Paris explained. “A wraith develops when a witch dies a violent death and the soul refuses to move on because it’s anchored to this plane of existence by something, usually an object.”

  “Kind of like the object you guys were looking for when you searched Sami’s room?” Aric asked.

  Oh, great. Why did he have to bring that up? “I think it’s different,” I interjected. “The way Paris explained it to me is that witches tie their souls to magical objects as a form of protection. When they’re killed, they have no choice but to float around being … jackoffs.”

  “She was going to say a bad word,” Sami said sagely.

  “Listen, mouth, if I want to say a bad word I’ll say it,” I said, poking her cheek. She seemed to be in good spirits, but she was pale. “How about we make you some hot chocolate, huh?”

  Sami nodded and followed me toward the kitchen, Aric serving as her personal watchdog as he followed. Speaking of dogs, our newest family member picked that moment to come barreling into the room, and Sami was delighted to see him. She sat on the floor, pulling him to her lap and giggling as he licked her face. There was something charming about their interaction.

  “What are you thinking?” Aric asked.

  “That you haven’t licked my face like that in years.”

  “Ha, ha.” Aric poked my side. “What are you really thinking?”

  “That she had no idea where she was or what she was doing,” I replied, keeping my voice low as I flipped the switch on the Keurig and grabbed a mug from the cupboard. “We have to find a way to block whatever is happening.”

  “Well, for starters, the security system is going to be on twenty-four hours a day,” Aric said. “If someone takes the dog out they don’t do it alone, and we activate the system even when that’s going on. We’re not making that mistake again.”

  I nodded.

  “Perhaps she should sleep in our room with us,” Helen suggested, joining us. “We know she would be safe that way.”

  “No way,” Sami said, making a face. She had her father’s ears. She could hear whispers from miles away. No joke. “I’m not sleeping with Grandma and Grandpa.”

  “You don’t have to sleep with Grandma and Grandpa,” I said. “You need to leave your door open, though. We’re also not telling you the new code in case you can somehow punch it in while you’re sleeping.”

  “It’s probably just your wedding anniversary,” Sami said. “The last one was your birthday.”

  I glanced at Aric, amused he’d been outsmarted by a twelve-year-old.

  “I’ll change it right now,” Aric said. “It’ll be something you can’t figure out. I already know what it’s going to be.”

  “Two, three, zero, four?” Sami asked.

  Aric swiveled. “How the heck did you know that?”

  “Michael Jordan is your favorite basketball player of all time and Brett Favre is your favorite quarterback,” Sami replied, not missing a beat.

  “You’re the one who wanted to teach her to talk,” I said, fighting the urge to grin when Aric shot me an incredulous look. “I thought she would be more fun if she just pointed and grunted for the rest of her life.”

  “Nice,” Sami said, rolling her eyes.

  “Fine,” Aric said. “I’m going to let your mother pick the code. You won’t be able to figure that out.”

  “She’s going to pick one, four, one, nine because those are the jersey numbers of her favorite Red Wings,” Sami supplied.

  I licked my lips as I worked to tamp down my irritation. I wanted to prove her wrong, but those were the numbers I was going to pick.

  “I’ll pick the numbers,” Paris offered. “Aric can show me how to do it.”

  “How does that sound, smart mouth?” Aric asked.

  Sami shrugged. “I’m fine with that. Can I have my hot chocolate?”

  “It’s almost ready,” I replied.

  “Can the puppy sleep with me tonight?”

  I nodded.

  Sami flashed an impish smile. “Are you going to give me whatever I want because you’re worried I’m going to be upset about what happened tonight?”

  I didn’t bother lying. “Yup.”

  “Can I be ungrounded?”

  “Nope,” Aric answered. “You’re still in trouble for your attitude.”

  I ran my tongue over my teeth as I regarded him. I was never going to hear the end of this, but … . “You can be ungrounded,” I said, earning a groan from Aric. “It’s not going to do you any good because you can’t go anywhere, though.”

  Sami didn’t seem to care. She was just happy to be out of the doghouse. “Can I have that candy bar you stole from Dad’s shopping bag the other day before I go to bed, too?”

  “I knew it!” Aric extended a finger. “You’re busted.”

  “I’ll split it with you,” I said, wrinkling my nose as I skirted Aric’s hand as he reached for me.

  “That seems only fai
r,” Sami said.

  “HOW IS SHE?”

  Aric looked up as I entered the bedroom an hour later. He had a book open on his lap and a serious expression on his face as he rested against the pillows.

  “She’s jacked up on sugar and I said she could read under the covers for an hour until she was tired,” I replied. “Other than that, she seems none the worse for wear. She’s either putting on a massively good show or … .”

  “I think you proved tonight that you were a badass, and that made her feel safe,” Aric said. “I know you made me proud.”

  His earnest expression cradled my heart. I crawled on the bed with him and rolled so my head was on his chest. He shifted the book so I could get comfortable and wrapped his arm around my back as he pressed his lips to my forehead.

  “I didn’t do anything out of the ordinary,” I said finally. “I didn’t think about what I was doing. I just did it.”

  “You were still amazing,” Aric said. “If I’d been the one to come across those wraiths I’m not sure if I could’ve stopped them.”

  “I’m sure you would’ve figured something out. It’s not as if I’m a genius.”

  “Stop putting yourself down, Zoe,” Aric instructed. “You kicked ass and saved our kid tonight. You did it all by yourself. How did you even find her?”

  “I felt something shadowing me in the woods,” I replied. “I couldn’t see anything, although I swear there were these phantom black fringe things in my peripheral vision a few times. I couldn’t really sense them, but I could feel them in my bones.

  “I warned them,” I continued. “They didn’t seem to care and they made this odd murmuring. I think it’s what I heard when I went into Sami’s head, but it was slightly different. Anyway, I had a feeling one was behind a tree, so I torched it.

  “I knew I was outnumbered and couldn’t torch a bunch of trees, so I ran in the direction I was heading before I set the thing on fire,” I explained. “I figured the rest were getting close to me because I was on the right track. Once I saw the house, I noticed something moving inside. That’s when I found Sami.”

  “And she didn’t respond to you?”

  “No. She was walking toward that pentagram on the floor and I just screamed her name. She snapped out of it. She was confused, but … she held it together.”

  I could feel Aric’s lips curl into a grin against my forehead. “She gets that from you.”

  “I think she gets that from both of us.”

  “I think I would’ve been prone to panicking in that situation,” Aric countered. “It doesn’t matter now. She’s home, and we have time to figure this out.”

  “Speaking of that, what are you looking at?” I gestured toward the book.

  “It’s an old pack book. I was hoping to find something about wraiths in here, but I can’t find anything.” Aric set the book on the nightstand and cuddled me closer. “I’d rather focus on you right now.”

  “Oh, you like it when I’m bossy, huh?” I was teasing, but Aric’s expression was serious when I locked gazes with him. “What’s wrong?”

  “You saved our family tonight, Zoe. I love you.”

  Leave it to him to be serious at a time when I was emotionally fried. “I love you, too.” Tears filled my eyes, frustrating me. The last thing I wanted to do was cry. “Don’t make a big deal about it.”

  “Oh, I’m making a big deal about it,” Aric said, pressing his face to the hollow of my neck as he rolled on top of me and making loud smacking noises as he kissed me. “I’m going to reward you warmly.”

  I giggled as I tried to shove against him. His body was all muscle, though, and even though I had the power to move him with my magic we both knew I never would. “You need to be quiet,” I hissed. “We have a house full of people.”

  “I don’t care.”

  “Sami is still up.”

  “She has her puppy and is perfectly happy,” Aric said, licking my face.

  “Gross! Why did you do that?”

  “You complained in the kitchen I don’t do that anymore,” Aric said, pulling his head back. “I think you were insinuating I’m a dog.”

  “You’re a pain is what you are,” I said, gasping as Aric tickled my ribs. “Knock it off!”

  “No way, Trouble,” Aric said. “You bossed me around earlier and now I’m going to boss you around.”

  He didn’t get a chance to do whatever he was planning because someone made a noise in the hallway. We jerked our heads in the direction of the partially ajar door to find Sami standing with her arms locked around the puppy.

  “What’s wrong?” Aric asked, instantly alert. “Did something happen?”

  “I just … .” Sami looked conflicted. It didn’t take a mind reader to know what she was thinking.

  “Are you afraid to go to sleep?” I asked, exhaling heavily when Aric shifted his weight off me and got comfortable at my side.

  “Is that it?” Aric asked.

  Sami bit her lip and nodded.

  “Do you want to sleep in here with us?” Aric asked. I could tell it was the last thing he wanted, but Sami’s needs outweighed his desire for a good time.

  Sami broke into a broad grin and scurried toward the bed. Aric moved to make room on his side – she generally preferred to sleep next to him on those rare occasions when she crawled into bed with us – but she climbed in next to me instead.

  “Can Trouble sleep with us, too?”

  Aric lifted an eyebrow as he snuggled up behind to me and petted the dog’s head. “Trouble?”

  “I like that name,” Sami said. “You guys don’t like Cuddles, so I thought I could name him Trouble.”

  “But why?”

  “Because that’s what you call Mom,” Sami answered, not missing a beat. “Mom saved me and was a total badass. The puppy is a boy, so I can’t name him Zoe. I thought Trouble might be fun.”

  “I think that’s a marvelous idea,” Aric said, earning an eye-roll from me. “Now when I call for Trouble two things will show up. It’s twice the fun.”

  I elbowed his stomach as I watched Sami get comfortable. Aric waited until she was completely settled before turning off the light.

  “Can we do a dream thing tonight?” Sami asked, her voice shaky. “Can we go somewhere together like we did when I was little?”

  She was terrified of falling asleep and the realization hurt my heart. “Sure,” I said. “Where do you want to go?”

  “Let’s go to Disney World,” Aric suggested.

  “No,” Sami said. “Let’s go to a made-up place so we know it’s a dream.”

  “Like where?” I prodded.

  “Can we go to Cinderella’s castle?”

  “I guess,” I said. It wouldn’t be my first choice, but if that’s what she wanted she could have it. “Shall we turn Dad into a talking dog or mouse this time?”

  “I don’t care which one you pick,” Aric said. “Just don’t put me in froufrou tights and make me dance.”

  “Challenge accepted,” I teased.

  “That wasn’t a challenge, Zoe. Zoe? Oh, why do I even bother?”

  FOURTEEN

  I woke with my face pressed against Aric’s chest, his snores lightly reverberating in my ear, and something solid resting on my back. At first I thought it was Sami – even though she never wanted to get that close while sleeping – but the panting in my ear told me either Aric was gearing up to do something completely inappropriate in his sleep or Trouble was on top of me.

  “Get him off,” I groaned, trying to shift the puppy off of me. “He’s killing my back.”

  Aric snapped open his eyes and glanced over, smirking when he saw Trouble licking my face. “I think he’s cute.”

  “I’m not joking,” I growled. “My back really hurts from sleeping like this all night.”

  “Hold on,” Aric said, grabbing the puppy and settling him on his chest. I had no choice but to pull my face away if I didn’t want to get swatted by a happy tail. “Hey, boy! Who’s a good
boy?”

  I rolled my eyes. “I can see I’ve already been replaced in your affections.”

  “Not even close,” Aric said. “You’re such a grump in the morning, though, I think having a happy face when I wake up is going to be fun.”

  “Stop making so much noise,” Sami mumbled. “I’m sleeping.”

  “Speaking of grumps,” I said, raising an eyebrow and groaning as I rolled over and looked at her. “I’m in pain!”

  “So am I because you won’t stop yelling,” Sami shot back.

  “Hey! Who let you dance with your father in the castle all night while I got stuck with the weird prince dude? He was wearing tights and kept talking about himself in the third person. It was ridiculous.”

  Despite her disdain for mornings, Sami couldn’t help but giggle. “That was fun. I liked your version of the fairy godmother being a cross-dressing dwarf. Where did you get that idea?”

  “I saw it at a circus once,” I replied, grunting as I attempted to force myself into a sitting position. “Does no one care about my back?”

  “I think you’re getting old,” Aric said. “I would rub your back for you – but I can’t because we have the kid with us and you know how our massages usually go. Can’t you just heal yourself?”

  “I could, but then whining wouldn’t be allowed and I’m not sure that’s how I want to spend my day yet,” I replied, causing Aric to bark out a laugh.

  “I wish I could heal you,” Sami said, her expression serious. “Why do you think I can’t do it?”

  “I don’t know,” I answered. “That doesn’t mean you won’t ever be able to do it. I didn’t do it for the first time until I was twenty.”

  “Did you know you could do it or did it just happen?”

  “It just happened.”

  “How?”

  “Well … .” I tilted my head to the side as I considered how to answer.

  “I was hurt and she healed me,” Aric supplied. “We didn’t know she could heal herself until months later. That was a big relief, though, because we both know your mother is a klutz.”

  “That shows what you know,” I grumbled. “I could’ve been a professional athlete if I wanted.”