High Priestess

by Wendy Hewlett

  Raven focused on her plate where she’d been pushing the food around and then carefully laid the fork down. “I’m sorry. I know you went to a lot of trouble cooking, but I’m just not hungry.” She used her knuckle to push the button on her iPhone sitting on the table next to her, to check the time once again. LaCroix was working on a warrant for Adara’s house. Even though it was Saturday, she was hopeful he would get it pushed through.

  Just the thought that it was Adara who tried to kill her grated on her nerves. She trusted Adara, loved her. Did she really just try to kill her?

  Yes, she did. I’m so sorry, Rave.

  Raven was surprised Ena was still in her head. They made peace with each other. She thought Ena would have passed over to the other side.

  “How can you be so sure?”

  Both Mick and Kiran looked at Raven, but neither one of them raised an eyebrow at Raven’s question or at who she was asking it to.

  Everyone has their own unique energy. I’d recognize Adara’s anywhere, although her power was much stronger than I’ve ever known it to be.

  “You helped Kiran stop her. Would she have felt your energy?”

  Yes.

  Raven dropped her head and began to run her fingers into her hair. Even that stung like hell and she winced as she pulled her fingers out, waving her hand to ease the pain.

  Twelve years. She let Adara be her mother figure for twelve years when she should have been with Ena. God, she was such a fool.

  You were a child, Rave. If anyone is to blame for the time we lost together, it’s me.

  “If we’re going to blame someone, let’s put it on the shoulders of the woman who kept us apart all these years.” The evidence was on the videotape. Adara had clearly lied to Ena about trying to get Raven to come and see her. At this point, Raven had no doubts Adara had been doing her best to keep them apart for the past twelve years. “She’ll come after Kiran now, too.” After the show they put on out on the cliff, Adara would know they were on to her.

  No, sweet angel. I won’t allow her to harm another soul.

  Well, that explained why Ena was hanging around instead of crossing over. The shrill ringing of her cell phone had Raven nearly falling out of her chair. She fumbled with the phone trying to pick it up then, giving up, she used her knuckle to answer the call and hit the speaker button. “Grayson? You got the warrant?”

  A loud sigh of frustration seeped out of the speaker. “No. Judge Cromwell is away for the weekend and they haven’t been able to get hold of him. Apparently, he’s at his hunt camp. I’ve sent Tate to him, but it’s a good six hours away.”

  And knowing Tate, he’d take his sweet time getting there. By that time, Adara could have destroyed her Book of Shadows. Hell, she could have done it already. Raven pushed to her feet and began stalking back and forth like a caged tiger. “I’m going over there.”

  “No,” Grayson said. “You have no way of protecting yourself if she uses this hocus pocus crap against you, Rave. She damn near killed you this afternoon.”

  “Aye,” Kiran agreed, his eyes like frozen lasers blasting Raven. “You’ll not be going near her.”

  “I’m not planning on going over there and riling her up. I want to make her think we have no idea it was her. If she thinks we’re clueless, she’s less likely to get rid of evidence. Think about it, Grayson. It’s going to be hard enough to prove what she’s done. If she gets rid of the physical evidence, we’ve got nothing.”

  “Oh, I don’t know about that,” Kiran said. His icy glare melted away and the edge of his mouth curled up ever so slightly. “I think there’s a way to get a confession out of her and protect Raven from any further harm.”

  Raven stopped pacing, staring into Kiran’s eyes. “How?”

  “You said she lost her cool when you mentioned becoming the coven’s HPS.”

  “Yeah.” It was the only time Raven had ever seen Adara get angry.

  The Cheshire cat had nothing on Kiran’s grin. “I propose you come to the gathering tomorrow … in Ena’s robes.”

  Raven’s mouth dropped open. He wanted her to walk into the gathering wearing the robes of the High Priestess and shock Adara into a reaction. She began pacing again. “I haven’t been to a gathering since I was twelve. I wouldn’t know what the hell to do anymore.”

  “Then we’ve a lot of work to do tonight,” Kiran said.

  “How will you keep Raven safe?” LaCroix’s voice drifted through the phone.

  “Ena and I were able to stop Adara this afternoon. With the power of the entire coven, Adara’s hands will be tied.”

  “I still can’t believe Ena is helping you from beyond the grave,” LaCroix said. “How the hell am I going to explain all of this to the brass?” He huffed and muttered a few colourful oaths. “I take it you’re still at your mother’s house?”

  “Yeah,” Raven answered

  “Stay there. I’m on my way over.”

  The line went dead.

  The last thing Raven wanted was for LaCroix to see her in her current state. Aside from the new injuries, she was pretty sure she was still shocky. When Kiran brought her into the house, it took her a while to smooth herself out. She hid in the bathroom for a while, calming her anxiety and grounding herself by naming the objects and colours she saw around her. Kiran had wanted her to go to the hospital to get checked out, but she insisted she was fine. Even now, he was keeping a close eye on her, looking for signs she was about to lose it. She couldn’t blame him. She’d been moments away from a panic attack since Mick pulled her off of the edge of the cliff. Nearly dying rocked her to the deepest part of her soul, but she refused to let Kiran or Mick know it.

  Kiran rose and began clearing the table and Raven picked up her plate using her palms at the edges, drawing a scowl from Mick.

  “Don’t you dare.” Mick jumped up and took the plate from her. “Just go sit down or something. Let us clean up.”

  “Aye,” Kiran said over his shoulder. “I still wish you’d get those fingers and your legs looked at.”

  Raven spread her hands out in front of her and examined her fingers. She’d cleaned them up in the bathroom, but they still looked a mess. Still, there wasn’t much they would be able to do with them at the hospital. She didn’t need stitches or anything. It was just going to be awkward for a while.

  She resigned herself to letting Mick and Kiran deal with the dishes and settled into a chair by the fire in the living room. She still felt chilled to the bone, shivering slightly even with the heat of the fire. As soon as she got comfortable, her eyelids grew heavy. She thought she would just close them for a minute.

  She woke to the lovely sound of Riley’s voice saying her name and a warm hand gently rubbing her knee. She wondered if she was dreaming before forcing her eyes open and staring into Riley’s.

  Riley smiled. “Hey.”

  Raven blinked a couple of times to make sure she wasn’t seeing things then said, “Hey. What are you doing here?” She sat up, stretching her neck to get the kinks out from sleeping in an awkward, upright position. Riley’s eyes flashed over Raven’s shoulder and Raven looked back to see LaCroix standing behind her with a dark haired woman. She wondered for a moment if LaCroix had a new girlfriend. She was about his age and just his type – tall, lean, and drop dead gorgeous.

  “Sarge.” Raven got to her feet and turned to him.

  “Detective Constable Raven Bowen, this is Dr. Kirsten Shoal,” LaCroix said.

  Raven raised an eyebrow. “Doctor?”

  LaCroix cleared his throat. “She’s the psychologist I was telling you about.”

  Raven took a step back and bumped into Riley. Turning, she said, “Sorry.” Then her attention was back on Dr. Shoal. “You came here to see me?” Damn him. She wasn’t ready for this. Not now. Not when she was feeling so vulnerable already.

  “Riley’s going to have a look at your wounds then I’d like you to sit down and talk with Dr. Shoal,” LaCroix said.

  Whipping her head a
round, Raven stared dumb-founded at Riley. She cheated on her, got knocked up, nearly lost her job for her and still Riley came out to tend to her wounds? Did Riley still love her? Or was she just being her kind, nurturing self? She couldn’t tell because Riley dropped her head, her hands stuffed in the front pockets of her low-riding, faded jeans. Damn, she looked … sexy. A wave of arousal spread through Raven’s body. It was the first time she felt warm since the cliff incident. And because she desperately wanted to lean in and devour Riley’s mouth, she turned back to LaCroix. “This isn’t necessary, DS.”

  “Oh, yeah, it is,” LaCroix said. “Shall I get a mirror so you can see what I’m seeing, Rave.”

  I’ll be with you when you talk to her, if you want. This is long overdue, my sweet angel.

  Kiran and Mick stepped between LaCroix and Riley, so Raven had a semi-circle of people staring at her like she was in the middle of an intervention. She supposed she was. In fact, as she looked at each of the faces in that semi-circle, she realized this was exactly what that was – an intervention.

  “I’ve had a rough day already. Can’t this wait?”

  Dr. Shoal took a tentative step forward in black slacks with a razor sharp edge down the front and an ivory silk blouse. “Raven? May I call you Raven?”

  Raven stepped back, berating herself for being such a coward. She nodded her head. “Yeah, sure.”

  “Thank you. I’m not here to force you to do anything you’re not comfortable with, Raven. I just came to have a conversation and see how you’re coping with all of the stress you’ve been under lately. Your sergeant just wants to be reassured you’re capable of doing your job without distractions.”

  Well, didn’t that make her feel like a spoiled five year old? Having a conversation didn’t sound so bad. “Okay.”

  “Why don’t you let me take a look at your hands and your legs first?” Riley picked up the first aid kit sitting next to the chair Raven had been sleeping in and motioned to the couch. “Take a seat.”

  Raven glared at Mick. Someone obviously filled Riley in on her injuries. Neither Kiran nor Mick knew how bad her shins were. Kiran had given Raven a pair of Ena’s jeans to change into because hers had been torn to shreds and bloody, but they hadn’t seen just how badly cut and banged up her legs were. She really didn’t want to do this with an audience.

  “Can we go into Ena’s office?” Raven didn’t wait for an answer.

  * * *

  Raven plunked herself down in the big, comfy chair in the corner of Ena’s office where Ena used to curl up with a book. Riley grabbed the chair from the computer desk and rolled it over in front of Raven.

  “Why are you doing this?” Raven asked as Riley took her right hand and examined the tips of her fingers and the missing nail.

  Riley sighed and their eyes met. “Grayson asked me to come over since you wouldn’t go to the ER.”

  “So, you’re doing this for Grayson?”

  “No,” Riley said with a frown. “I’m doing it for you, Rave.” She tucked her hair behind her ear then placed a small basin on her lap under Raven’s finger tips. “Always for you.”

  Hope soared in her belly leaving her feeling like she was on a rollercoaster ride. “So, you still love me?” Her normally raspy voice came out all breathy.

  Riley’s frown deepened as she poured some sort of antiseptic over Raven’s fingertips. She may as well have poured acid on her. Raven hissed, her eyes watering at the stinging sensation.

  “Holy hell, that hurts.”

  “Did you even bother to clean these wounds?”

  “Yes, of course I did.” She ran her hands under cold water to ease the pain. That qualified as cleaning them, didn’t it?

  “Tell me what happened.”

  Raven sighed, knowing Riley wanted to get her talking as a distraction technique. Talking, but not about their relationship. Grayson or Mick had probably already told her what happened. Riley took her left hand and began to unravel the bandage covering the cut in her palm. She examined it closely then made a tsking sound.

  “You’ve pulled a couple of the stitches. You really should go into the ER and get this looked at.”

  “Not going to happen. At least, not tonight. I’ve got too much work to do.” The sting gradually lessened on her right hand and she braced herself for the antiseptic on the fingers of her left hand.

  When Riley had her left hand poised over the basin, she repeated, “Tell me what happened.”

  “Someone tried to kill me.” Riley poured and Raven let out a scream worthy of a Hitchcock film. “Damn it, Riley. Isn’t there something a little gentler you can use?” Raven took short, gasping breaths through the worst of the pain. It wasn’t until it eased a bit she noticed Riley staring at her with wide eyes and a slack mouth. “What?”

  “Who’s trying to kill you?”

  Raven lifted both her hands and waved them like she was trying to dry nail polish. “I can’t talk about it. It’s an active investigation.”

  “Jesus, Rave.” Riley’s eyes glossed over with unshed tears.

  The way Riley was looking at her confirmed she still loved her. Raven wanted to pull her into her lap and hold on to her for the next year or so.

  “I love you, Ri.”

  “Raven … don’t. Please.” Riley set the basin aside, picked up a roll of gauze, and began wrapping Raven’s fingers.

  “I’m sorry I hurt you, Ri. I’ve never regretting anything more in my life. When I was out there hanging on the edge of that cliff, knowing I was going to die … that my baby was going to die without ever having a chance at life …” Raven’s eyes burned and her nose began to run. She sniffed and swiped her sleeve over her eyes.

  Riley stopped wrapping the gauze and stared at Raven with her brow drawn in and her lips pursed. The hair she tucked behind her ear had fallen forward, framing her angelic face in flames, the freckles dotting her nose belying the seriousness of her expression.

  “It wasn’t my life that flashed before my eyes. It was you. All the great moments we spent together – sitting on my deck watching the sun set, holding hands, laughing so hard it felt like we’d done a thousand crunches, making love in the morning, in the shower, in the lake...”

  “Rave.” Riley sighed, closed her eyes and when she opened them they were a glistening, mossy green. “You have to stop doing this.”

  Raven looked away, biting down on her bottom lip to keep it from trembling. She closed her burning eyes and concentrated on breathing. The elastic bands tightened around her lungs again and all she could think was maybe she would have been better off if she had gone over the cliff.

  Don’t ever think that, darling. You have everything to live for.

  Everything? In the span of a few weeks she’d lost the woman she loved, her mother, and the woman she thought loved her like a daughter.

  And you’ve gained a father and a daughter.

  A daughter she was going to have to raise on her own.

  Well, it’s not like you can’t afford a nanny.

  A half laugh, half sob escaped Raven’s throat. She bit her cheek and squeezed her eyes shut to keep from breaking down in tears. She wouldn’t cry in front of Riley. Not after her rejection.

  “Okay,” Riley said softly, pressing the last piece of tape in place. “Let’s have a look at your legs.”

  Raven spread her hands out in front of her and stared at her white capped fingers. “Jesus. I look like Mickey Mouse.”

  Her jeans were too narrow to pull up enough to expose her shins, so if Riley wanted to take a look at them, she was going to have to remove her jeans. How the hell was she supposed to undo the button and zipper to get her pants off?

  “My shins are fine,” Raven said, pushing to her feet. “I took care of them already.”

  Riley crossed her arms over her chest and shook her head. “Uh-uh. Sit your ass down and I’ll pull up the legs of your jeans.” Raven watched her as she studied her pant legs and knew the exact moment it dawned on Riley that the p
ants would have to come off. Her face flushed a lovely shade of rose. As far as awkward moments went, this one was stellar.

  “Oh. Well. You’ll have to take them off.” Her spine straightened and she reached for Raven’s waist. Raven lifted her shirt a little more than was necessary to expose the button on the jeans. Her belly was one of her erogenous zones. Riley fumbled with the button and zipper. Those green eyes kept flicking up to take in Raven’s ripped abs.

  “Can you handle it from here?” Riley asked.

  Disappointment sliced through Raven, but she knew it was for the best. She wanted Riley. Then and there, even with her father and the others just down the hall. She carefully slipped two fingers into the waistband at either side of her hips and shimmied them down, over black lace boy shorts, to her mid thigh. Then she sat back down again to gently pull them over her battered shins. She’d wrapped them in gauze to keep Ena’s jeans from getting bloody, but even through the gauze it was apparent her lower legs had swollen. Blood seeped through in several spots and she dreaded Riley pouring that antiseptic on them.

  Riley used scissors to cut through the gauze then gently peeled it away from the wounds. She gasped as the gashes and bruises were revealed. “Oh, Rave.”

  “It’s not as bad as it looks,” Raven admitted. She hadn’t even felt it when she’d been on the edge of the cliff. It wasn’t until the shock and adrenaline began to wear off that her legs and fingers began to throb. The angry bruise on her hip and the road rash down her left side from being hit by Jaxon’s truck made her look even worse.

  “Some of these need stitches, Rave. Like it or not, you’re going to the hospital.” Riley cleaned out the wounds. “I’ll go see if Kiran has a pair of sweats you can wear so you can at least get in and out of them yourself.”

  Well, damn. Raven was looking forward to Riley helping her back into the jeans. Now all she had to look forward to was hours sitting in the emergency room, needles to freeze the cuts that needed stitches, and someone stabbing her with a needle to sew her up.

  You have the power to heal yourself, Rave. Why don’t you use your healing powers?