Witch’s Blade
The Bone Coven Chronicles
Jenna Wolfhart
Witch’s Blade
Book 3 of The Bone Coven Chronicles
Cover Design by Orina Kafe
Copyright © 2017 by Jenna Wolfhart
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Created with Vellum
Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
About the Author
Chapter 1
The only good thing about being stuck in Blue Moon Tavern another night was the perfect sight before me. Dorian Kostas leaned closer, his elbows digging into the rough hardwood surface of the bar. He winked, and my stomach churned. After our night in bed—and when we were so rudely interrupted by a phone call before anything really juicy could happen—I hadn’t been able to stop staring into his dark and stormy eyes. And wanting to turn back the clock so it could relive the moment again.
It had been two long and agonizing weeks, and we hadn’t ended up in another tight embrace, much to my disappointment. It was all I could do not to jump his immortal bones right there in front of everyone.
Not that we had many customers tonight. The place was pretty dead, no pun intended.
“You having fun back there?” he asked in a low gravel that sent my pulse racing. “Slinging drinks like a pro?”
Dorian winked, but his question only reminded me of my new status in the Bone Coven (or the lack thereof), and even his presence couldn’t stop the scowl from creeping across my face. “No, this really sucks. I feel like I’ve been sidelined.”
“You haven’t been sidelined, Zoe.” He paused when my eyebrows shot up, and then he gave me one of his signature “you’re over-reacting, Zoe” looks. A look he’d perfected by now. Still, Dorian knew just as well as I did that the Magister’s intentions were exactly that. He wanted me out of the field after my rebellious moment two weeks ago. Needless to say, when I’d gone against his orders, he’d been just a teensy bit pissed off. Okay, he’d been a lot pissed off.
Enforcers were trained to do what they were told, no questions asked. And well, I’d pretty much blown that rule right out of the water.
“Okay, so, maybe he has benched you for now, but we both know it isn’t permanent. The council is just trying to do what’s right for the coven. You disobeyed orders, remember? The Blood Coven’s Magister was pretty upset about what happened to his witches and that you confronted them without their approval, even if those rogue members were acting against the main coven’s wishes.”
“If I hadn’t disobeyed orders, there’s no telling what would have happened. Not just to the veil. And not just to all the humans in this city who would have died if those demons had gotten loose. But to you, Dorian. You could have been stuck like that forever.”
My voice cracked on the last word. Because of Dorian’s special status as warlock-vampire hybrid, he’d been kidnapped by the Blood Hunter Coven—a rogue spinoff group of the main Blood Coven—so they could use his long lifespan as a way for them to control demons indefinitely. And so of course I’d blatantly gone against the orders of our Magister in order to save him. The Bone Coven had wanted for us to stay out of the conflict, too dependent on the ever weakening alliance with blood mages.
Ever since, my involvement in cases had been scaled way back.
Like, way back. To the point where I hadn’t even been allowed inside headquarters.
Dorian slid his strong hand around mine and pulled me close, and I could smell the hint of whiskey on his cool breath. “Zoe, I know. And I’ll be forever grateful that you did whatever it took to break the spell they cursed on me. You know that. But you also have to know that I have had absolutely no say whatsoever in your status on cases. That’s all up to the Magister. Hell, you’re lucky the Coven didn’t kick you off the force for good. And you’re even luckier that Ben decided not to tell the Council the truth about your powers.”
And he was right. I was lucky, at least in that regard. I hadn’t been fired or dismissed or whatever happened to Enforcers who got banished from the squad. Ben had kept my secret, which also meant I hadn’t been thrown behind bars for deceiving the Council about my powers. Or exiled from the country. I’d just been demoted until I finished my full round of training and passed the Enforcer exam. For now, my mission was one thing and one thing only.
Train with Dorian. And keep an eye on things from my position at Blue Moon Tavern.
Because there was one other unfortunate side effect of last month’s events. While the Blood Coven had agreed to continue with our tenuous alliance—there were strings attached, of course—the local Clan of Daywalkers hadn’t felt quite so forgiving. While we hadn’t been the ones to go after their kind (that had also been the Blood Hunter Coven), it didn’t matter. All witches were the same to them. And according to them, one of us had burned down their club, killing several of their vampires as well as their collection of human blood bags.
Christian Dogaru, the leader of the Clan, wasn’t the kind of vampire to take an attack like that sitting down. He’d broken the truce between us, which meant there was nothing stopping them from attacking humans whenever they felt like having a taste of fresh blood. And this was the kind of place they’d stalk for prey.
“I know you’re right, but I’m bored, Dorian. It’s about time something interesting happened around here.” Leaning back, I scanned the bar that was almost as familiar to me as my own home. I certainly spent more time here than my apartment. The neon beer signs crackled and buzzed, casting red and blue beams across the quiet space. The jukebox sat abandoned in the corner, and every faded leather stool pushed up to the long, skinny bar was empty.
It was the middle of the week, and the university was currently on winter break, so hardly any customers dotted the dimly-lit room. A rarity these past few months. Even with the termination of our truce, some of the Daywalkers still swung by here from time to time while reconstruction of Slayerville was underway. Sure, I was a witch and technically the enemy, but they didn’t lump me in with the Bone Coven since they could smell the truth about my power. Because the Daywalkers hadn’t felt the need to keep away, the Coven was convinced I’d be able to catch them fangs deep in murderous activity. Enough for the Enforcers to make a move. But, so far, they’d been on their best behavior. At least, as far as I could tell.
Dorian quirked an eyebrow. “You don’t honestly wish the bloodsuckers would attack someone inside Blue Moon Tavern, do you?”
I let out a heavy sigh and sunk my chin on
to my knuckled hands. “Of course not. I’m just bored, Dorian. Bored as hell. I thought I’d found something worth doing when you got me added to the force. Something that wasn’t, you know, morally questionable like my previous job. And now I feel like I’ve had it taken away from me. When Professor Wagner escaped from confinement, I thought I’d be right there by your side trying to track him down. Now, you’ve got some other partner, and I’m stuck here behind this bar.”
His eyes flashed, full of heat, reminding me of the way he’d looked at me that night when we’d come so close to sharing far more than just Enforcer business. “I didn’t take another partner. Told them I only want to work with you. I’m waiting for you, Zoe. I’ll be here, as long as it takes, until you pass the exam.”
My heart flickered in my chest, and my hand tightened around the glass in my hand. Dorian was only talking about work, nothing more, but it didn’t stop a thrill from going through my body, especially when he began pressing his body across the bar. Suddenly, he was so close the lingering magical bond between us sizzled in response.
Was he going to kiss me? Here? Now? It had been weeks since we’d been so rudely interrupted, and neither of us had tried to reignite that moment. Whatever magic had happened in that room between us had been muted by the knowledge that another demon summoner was running amok in the world. But maybe that would change now. Maybe Dorian would finally make his move.
But just as his lips hovered a mere inch from mine, the door of the bar flew open and slammed into the wall. A loud crack rang through the quiet space, causing the few customers to cry out in alarm. Ugh, not again, not now, I thought to myself. The Daywalkers always liked to make an elaborate entrance, but their aggressive displays had a tendency to scare customers. The heavy thump of boots on hardwood followed just behind, and when I pulled back from Dorian, my eyes widened when I saw who had entered the room.
These men weren’t vampires. They were Enforcers. And from the elaborate symbol etched into their necks, they weren’t from my coven. Not all of them anyway. Ben, the council member who had helped me confront the Blood Hunter Coven, hovered just behind them, nervously glancing around the bar until his gaze landed on me.
“Zoe. Ah, good. You’re here.”
“Ben? What’s going on?” I frowned, eyes still glued to the Enforcers. There were five of them, all crowding into the small space around the door and making the bar feel much smaller than it had only moments before. Most Enforcers were ripped like Dorian. Tall, strong men who could just as easily pummel a person as cast them down with a spell. I stood out like a sore thumb in that regard. A small woman with biceps the size of noodles. But I was fucking good with a blade, thanks to Dorian.
“Some members of the Blood Coven have come all the way here from Scotland, and they’d like to take a look around.” Ben grimaced and glanced away, dropping a pit of dread into my gut. Why the hell would the Blood Coven want to take a look around my bar? Were they hoping to find some vampires here? Seemed like a strange thing to fly thousands of miles for, but blood mages had always been a mystery to me. Except for one, and it was probably best for these Enforcers not to encounter her right now.
“Yeah, of course you can take a look around.” I dropped my rag on the counter and tried to keep my voice steady as I cleared my throat and spoke loud enough for my words to echo to the back stock room. “But if you’re looking for some Daywalkers among my customers, you won’t find any.”
Dorian raised his eyebrows, but luckily, his back was still turned to Ben and the Enforcers, so they didn’t catch his look. Because I was lying through my fucking teeth. Kind of. None of my customers were Daywalkers tonight. That much was true. But we had one in the building. In the stock room. With Laura. The broken alliance sure hadn’t stopped that vampire from coming around any chance she got.
The humans clustered in the back booth looked up from their pint glasses before returning to their murmured conversation. They were regulars, and they’d seen it all by this point. While the general public had no idea that witches, demons, vampires, and werewolves existed, word had started to spread throughout Boston. After the recent supernatural events, it had been next to impossible to keep it entirely under wraps. People had seen things, and whispered rumors made their way from one curious human to the next. Not to mention that my customers had been mingling with witches and vampires for months. In fact, that was probably why a lot of them came here.
One of the Enforcers crossed his arms over his chest and raised his eyebrows. “Well, if it’s all the same to you, I think we’ll take a look around to confirm.”
“Alright, have at it.” I mimicked his movements, crossing my arms and leaning against the back wall, as much to present the aura of total ease more than anything else. Anastasia wasn’t here doing anything wrong, but that wouldn’t matter to them. The Blood Coven had always taken a harsher view on vampirism than any other group of mages. They hated them with an intensity that was almost scary at times.
It was why the Blood Hunter Coven had formed in the first place and why they’d taken such extreme measures. Blood witches and warlocks would do anything to destroy vampires, including using demons to destroy them, and they would never dream of differentiating between a murderous one and a decent one. Though even I had to admit that Anastasia was far from innocent. She had killed one of theirs after all, even if it was in revenge for the pile of bodies the witch had caused.
If these Enforcers found her, there was no way in hell they’d let her go.
As the Enforcers moved through the room, Ben joined me behind the bar. “Sorry about this, Zoe. I wanted to give you a heads up, but they insisted on coming here without warning.”
“I wasn’t aware there was a visit from the Blood Coven on the schedule, Ben,” Dorian said. To anyone else, he would sound calm and measured and totally in control, like always. But after spending so much time with him these past few months, I could pick up a hint of tension in his voice. And for good reason. This visit was totally unprecedented. As new as I was to the team, I knew that Enforcers of a different coven didn’t just drop in unannounced. Or ever, really. We mostly kept to ourselves, and we rarely visited other coven bases. There must be something big going on if they were here.
Ben frowned. “Yeah, I wasn’t aware of it either.”
My eyes followed the Enforcers as they edged closer to the door leading into the stock room. “Are they looking for a particular vampire or something? Seems a little over the top to fly three thousand miles just to check out my bar for random Daywalkers. Especially when they have their own problems to worry about.”
The Nosferatu filled the Scotland streets like hungry rats, and they were much more deadly than the type of vampires we had here in Boston. While Daywalkers were born with their powers—and their souls—the Nosferatu had demonic origins. They couldn’t and wouldn’t control their urges. On the Dangerous Supernaturals scale, Daywalkers were at a solid seven out of ten while Nosferatu practically pinged off the scale to hit a hundred.
Ben cleared his throat and turned his back toward the Enforcers before lowering his voice to a whisper. “That’s just it. They aren’t looking for a who. They’re looking for a what.”
“A what? I don’t understand.”
“What do you know about the smuggling that’s been going on here in the bar?” Ben asked, rubbing his slender jaw with worry. “You don’t have to name names. Just give me some indication about what they’ve been doing.”
“Smuggling?” I frowned, confusion flickering through me. “I think there must be some kind of misunderstanding here. You know as well as I do that this dump? It’s just a bar. There’s no way in hell any smuggling has been going on here. If there was, I would have gone straight to the coven to report it.”
“Forgive me for not having total faith in your willingness to tell the coven everything.” Ben gave me a meaningful look. When we’d been battling the demons together, he’d caught me using my shadow magic. I’d let my guard down in fron
t of him, even though I knew I shouldn’t have, but my shadow powers were the only way I could have beaten those creatures. Even though he hadn’t reported me to the Council, he’d made it clear he didn’t approve.
Tell them, he had said that day, whispering rushed words into my ear as the Magister arrived at the scene of our fight. They’ll welcome your powers, especially now.
But Ben was wrong. I’d heard the Magister speak of shadow mages, and he thought we were as bad as demons themselves. We were dangerous, evil, not to be trusted.
“If Zoe says she doesn’t know anything about smuggling, then she doesn’t know anything about smuggling,” Dorian said in a low growl. “And if she knew, then I would certainly know.”
Ben sighed just as one of the Enforcers disappeared through the stock room doors. “Alright. But if you can think of anything, you have to let me know. I can’t stress how important it is to comply with their demands right now. Don’t forget, they are not happy about what happened to their splinter coven on our watch. Even though those witches were rogue, they were their witches. It’ll only take one more wrong move on our part for the alliance to break. And this time, it’ll be for good.”
Unease flittered through me, though a part of me questioned whether that would be such a terrible thing. The Blood Coven had different priorities, different tactics, different views on right and wrong, which was pretty telling coming from me, the ex-con. If we weren’t on the verge of an all-out demon war, then I might just throw up my hands and say fuck it. Let each coven operate on its own.
Witch's Blade (The Bone Coven Chronicles Book 3) Page 1