“Shit, I’m sorry. I didn’t hear you come in.” I put my hands on Lucas’s chest and push him away, giving him a glare. I didn’t hear my friends come into my house, but he did. He grins, dark blue eyes flashing.
“This whole I don’t have a vampire boyfriend thing will work a lot better if you don’t come in smelling like you just had sex with one.” Naomi leans against the wall and crosses her arms over her chest. “Though I will admit I’d take a go at him if you’re willing to share.”
“You gotta pay me first.” I run my hand through my messy hair. “A hundred bucks every half hour?”
“I’m worth more than that,” Lucas huffs. “Two hundred at least.”
We all laugh, and Nicole comes into the kitchen carrying a bottle of white Zinfandel. I open the wine and pour four glasses, knowing Kristy will be here soon. She’s usually not late, and right when I grab my phone to text her and make sure things are all right, she comes through the front door.
“Here.” She hands me a little glass jar. “You have bite marks on your neck. Put this on and let’s pray to the Goddess they go away before the witching hour.”
“You made me extra-strength healing balm?” I ask, eyes getting a little misty. Just a little. “Thank you.” I hug my best friend and go upstairs to get a hair tie, pulling my hair into a messy bun before slathering the healing balm over the fading bite marks on my neck.
Eliza calls Lucas while I finish dinner, and he goes outside to talk to her. Suddenly, the energy shifts.
“Callie?” Evander calls.
“Kitchen,” I call back. A second later, he walks through the wall, projecting himself into the kitchen. “You’re making teriyaki chicken without me?” He looks at the pan on the stove. “Bring me some?”
“If there’s any left over,” I laugh. “Glad your priorities are in order.”
Evander looks around the kitchen. “Good, you’re all here.” He’s dressed in all black, with a silky cloak draped over his shoulders. It’s the traditional garb for gatherings. My friends have on their black dresses already, but I still need to change. “I don’t have much time, so let’s make this quick.”
“What does the Grand Coven know about the demon attacks?” Kristy asks.
“They were alerted after the third death, and the fact that they didn’t react fast enough can be used as leverage if need be. They didn’t take the threat seriously and more witches died than would have had they been involved. The story they were told is that everything unfolded as it truly did, with the last of the coven taking refuge here.”
“What about Lucas?” I ask. There were several Council members with Evander when they led us to the door. “Do they know about him?”
“Mother skipped over that part, but that’s not to say the others won’t mention him. But all who were with you that night will attest to him putting his own life in danger in order to protect the coven.”
“Thank god,” I sigh. “What am I supposed to say about the demon? If I tell them I commanded hellfire they’ll…they’ll…fuck. I don’t know what they’ll do.”
“Nor do I. What they were told was we all passed through the door, but the demon got you. You were able to cast a protective circle around yourself and conjure a ball of white light strong enough to kill a fourth hierarchy demon. No one outside this room, besides my mother, knows the true identity of the demon. And we have to keep it that way.”
I look at my friends, feeling bad they’re involved. “Okay. I can do that,” I say with a nod. “Were the specifics of the circle cast mentioned?”
“Not that I know of,” Evander answers.
“The Light of the Moon Circle,” Kristy suggests. “Say that’s what you cast. It’s fast and strong and could kill vampires.” She turns to me, eyes wide. “Which unfortunately happened.”
“You’re faking my death now?” Lucas comes in through the back door, and Evander looks him up and down.
“I can see why you’ve taken to him, Cal,” Evander says under his breath, nodding approvingly. “Though that is an interesting twist to our tale. The vampire got caught in the cross fire and is no longer a threat.” Evander considers it for a moment. “Only bring it up if they ask. The best lies are simple lies.” He turns, listening to something back at the Academy that we can’t hear. “I must go now. Take care, sister.”
He disappears, and the five of us are left standing in silence in the kitchen. The gravity of the situation is weighing heavily on me, as well as my friends.
“Is dinner almost ready?” Nicole asks, breaking the silence.
“Almost.” Kristy checks the rice, and Naomi pours us all more wine. I add sauce to the chicken and veggies, and Lucas sets the table for us. Right as I start to serve up our plates, Binx comes shadowing through the door, shifting into cat-form as soon as his paws hit the floor.
“What?” I ask, spinning around so fast a piece of chicken falls to the ground. It won’t go wasted at least. He darts forward to grab it, pushing the thought back into my head.
Something is going on with the Ley line again.
Chapter 8
“What do you mean again?” Kristy asks, taking her plate into the dining room. “Something was messing with the Ley line before?”
“I’m not sure,” I confess, looking at Binx. “We went for a run and it felt weird. But then it went back to normal, and I had all three of my familiars canvas the woods. They found nothing, making me think it was an influx of power from the recent Solstice.”
Binx meows, reminding me that he, Freya, and Pandora have continued to patrol the woods and paid extra attention to the Ley line since then and haven’t felt anything weird since.
“You know how the Ley line ebbs and flows. Sometimes it gets a little extra power and you can feel it in the air.”
“It’s been rather calm for a while.” Naomi stabs her fork through a piece of broccoli. “We’re due for a little influx, actually. I should have brought my crystals to charge. The Ley line runs right through your downtown, doesn’t it?”
“Yeah, almost directly under the main road,” Kristy answers. “Which at first was done to keep nons from digging into it, but then they put the sewer lines in.”
“It’s only a matter of time before you have a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle situation on your hands,” Nicole says seriously.
“Hey, as long as they help me fight demons, I’m good with it.” I mix my chicken in with my rice.
“Do you want me to check it out?” Lucas asks.
I look up at the beautiful vampire standing in the threshold of the dining room, and my heart hammers. There’s a chance there could be members of the Grand Coven in the woods, and it would be in their best interest not to run into Lucas.
Because if they tried to attack him, he’d fight back. And he’d win. Then we’d really be in hot water.
“Yeah,” I say, and I instantly regret it. “I felt it stronger by the white house in the woods.”
“You mean our house.”
I can’t help but smile. “Right. By our house.”
“You bought a house together?” Nicole asks once the screen door snaps shut after Lucas leaves.
“He’s buying that white house down the road that I’ve been in love with as a surprise.”
“I got excited when my last boyfriend bought me a pizza as a surprise,” Nicole laughs. “But a house?”
“Lucas likes to invest in, uh, different properties,” I say, feeling uncomfortable. “He has the means to buy it and fix it up, and he knew I’ve had my eye on it, that’s all.”
“Yes, that’s all,” Naomi quips. Kristy, bless her, changes the subject, and we talk about potions the rest of dinner. I carry my empty plate to the sink, looking out at the dark yard for Lucas. He hasn’t come back yet, and I can’t shake the bad feeling that’s growing in the pit of my stomach. Sensing my nerves, Freya shadows into the yard, going after my undead lover.
The girls help me clean up the kitchen, and I go upstairs to change into a trad
itional black dress.
“I came back at the right time.”
I turn, having just pulled my shirt over my head, and smile when I see Lucas. His hair is windblown from running fast through the forest, and he has mud on his pants. Or maybe not.
“Is that blood?”
Lucas looks down at his clothes. “Yes, but it’s not mine.”
“Who’s is it?”
“I believe you call them lower-level demons,” he says, coming into the room. He grabs me around the waist and pulls me close. He smells like the forest, and I find the scent to be rather intoxicating.
“What kind?”
“I’m not sure. It’s dead, though. I ripped out its heart and tore off his head. And yes, I buried the body. We might as well mark off an area to be your unofficial demonically-caused-death unmarked graveyard.”
“Either that or invest in pigs. They’ll eat body parts.”
“Smart.” He slides his hands down to my butt.
“Before you dismembered the demon, did you happen to get a good look at it?”
He nods. “Maybe five feet tall if I’m being generous. Claws, flat teeth, smelled like the inside of an asshole, with skin resembling an elderly man’s ball sack.”
“Scrapper demon. Great. When there’s one there’s usually more. They follow behind more powerful demons, eating their scraps. Hence the nickname. I’m surprised it took them this long to follow behind that Third Hierarchy twatwaffle.” I tip my head. “How many old man ball sacks have you seen?”
“More than I care to have seen.”
I wrinkle my nose. “Why?”
“Bodies decompose better when they’re stripped of their clothing. And when you’re feeding your leftovers to wild animals—”
I hold up a hand. “Got it.” Shaking my head, I flatten my hands against Lucas’s chest. “Did you feel anything out there? Like weird energy?”
He shakes his head. “Whatever was going on with the Ley line stopped by the time I got there. But there was a faint smell of burned herbs. I can’t tell you which exact ones, but someone must have been doing something.”
“That is strange, isn’t it?”
“I suppose it could be. You need to be careful walking to the door tonight. I take that it’s best I stay here this time.”
“Yes. Scrappers are easy to kill. Kinda fun, really. And I have my friends and my familiars with me. I’ll be fine.”
“You better be.” He brings his face down, nuzzling it between my breasts. “I’m already thinking about how I’m going to lay you down and make love to you tonight.” He sweeps his hand down my back, parting my legs, and gracing his long fingers over my core. “Where else haven’t you had sex?”
“The front porch,” I tell him. We already checked the back porch off the list. “Or the hallway up here.”
Lucas groans, lifting his head and pressing his forehead against mine. He twirls a piece of my hair in his hands. “What I want to do to you tonight requires more room than a hallway.”
“What do you want to do to me?” I bite my lip, heat rushing through my entire body.
“You’ll have to wait and see. Do you have a blindfold?”
“I have a unicorn sleep mask.”
His full lips curve into a smile. “That will work, I suppose.” He steps back and sits on the bed, pulling me onto his lap. “Do you have to leave soon?”
“Yes.”
Lucas runs his hand through my hair and shifts his weight, moving onto his side and spooning his large body around mine. I close my eyes, finding comfort in his embrace. I’ll be damned before I let anything tear us apart.
I pull at the ties of my cloak, feeling like it’s choking me. Even after loosening the ties around my neck, I still feel like something is closing in on my throat. I push the hood off my head and take in a slow breath. The entire coven is here, and we’re all crowded into the pew of the gathering hall.
Everyone else is excited. The Grand Coven coming for a visit is an honor. The witches and warlocks making up the Grand Coven are the best and brightest, having accomplished some sort of great magical feat in their younger days. We learned all about them at school, having an entire class devoted to learning everything there is to know about the Grand Coven.
But the only thing that’s sticking out in my mind right now is how they don’t fuck around. You don’t get another chance with them.
Kristy pulls her hood down and puts her hand on top of mine. “You okay?” she whispers.
“Yeah,” I tell her, which is kind of true. “It’s hot in here.”
“It is. I think the whole coven is here tonight, even those who don’t normally come, trying to make it look like they’re good little witches for the Grand Coven,” she whispers, elbowing me.
I smile. “Oh, totally.”
The room is lit only by candlelight, and the flames of every single candle dims—magically, of course—right before the door near the altar opens. Tabatha enters the hall, followed by Evander and the rest of our own coven’s council. The gathering gets started like any other, with a circle casting and Tabatha bragging a bit about the high marks students at the Academy got on their finals before school let out for the summer.
“And now,” Tabatha begins. The flames on the candles behind her grow, casting the altar in a bright golden glow. I remember my first coven gathering, sitting in the first row in between Evander and Tabatha, back before she was the High Priestess of our coven.
The gathering hall is in an old brick building, with vaulted ceiling and exposed wooden beams. Three large cast iron candelabras hang down, with the largest being right over the altar, which is a raised platform with a podium in the middle. Behind the altar is a large stained-glass window with a triple moon symbol in the center.
It’s our coven’s unofficial symbol, and one that has particular significance for many of us, for our coven has been ruled by a High Priestess instead of a High Priest for over a century now. Sexism within the covens has been an ongoing issue since the beginning of time, but I feel like things are finally starting to get better—for some people, at least. Our powers can speak for themselves, and in the last twelve years, witches have come out on top of warlocks in nearly every test.
I pull on the ties of my cloak again, completely undoing the knot. My cloak slides down over my shoulders. I inhale again, comforted by the faint smell of lavender coming in from the hall.
“We are honored to have Grand Master Albert and Grand Mage Ruth joining us tonight,” Tabatha says, smile on her face. She admires Ruth especially, whose claim to witch-fame is perfecting an invisibility spell. Many tried the spell before and disappeared—literally. Whether they turned themselves so invisible not even their familiar could find them, or they vanished into another realm, no one knows.
Albert was named Grand Master by devoting his life’s work to shape shifting and transfiguration, which is some of the most complicated magic out there. It’s something that’s always fascinated me, and I wanted to study it in my University years, but since I was naturally good at conjuring I stuck with that.
Usually, witches and warlocks are able to prefect one kind of magic. They’re strong in one main area, and I went along with that belief for a while until I realized I was more than just good in a lot of areas.
The coven claps, all standing to show our respect for the members of the Grand Coven. Tabatha steps aside, clapping loudly and looking at Ruth with adoration. Ruth steps up to the podium, looking out at the coven. She’s wearing a long black dress with stars and moons embroidered along the hem in silver thread. Her silver necklace matches the design, and her cloak is a shimmery purple.
She’s an older woman but is still one of the youngest to have joined the Grand Coven. Her curly dark hair is streaked with gray, but her piercing blue eyes still hold the youth she had years ago.
“Good evening,” she says, holding up a hand. We all sit down, eager to hear her talk. Though I’m scared of what she’s going to ask me later, I can’t
help but feel a bit of excitement go through me too. The work she’s done for the coven—for the rights of witches as well as warlocks—affects us all today.
“It is a joy to see a full Covenstead. As you know, our numbers are dwindling.”
Not quite the cheery start to an epic speech, but it’s the truth.
“And with the latest attack on the surrounding covens, we must take all threats seriously. It is no secret that witch hunters are not the only ones who’d like to see us dead. Vampires and now demons are more desperate than ever to see our demise, but do not let that fear you. Let that be a reminder of what we are. Witches. Warlocks. Gifted with the power to walk in the light and the dark, with the power to wield the elements, and command the forces around us. I urge you all to hone your powers, to embrace everything you have been given, and to fight for our kind.”
A chill runs through me, and I get a flash of the blue-eyed man standing in the flames. I thought I had embraced “everything I’d been given” just like Ruth said, but ever since I commanded the hellfire, I’ve felt like that’s a whole other side to me that I can’t quite see, yet I know it’s there.
After Albert gets up and talks, we’re all invited into the Academy’s dining hall for tea and chocolate cake. Kristy loops her arm through mine, and we shuffle through the crowded hall alongside Nicole and Naomi, bringing me back to our Academy years. And when I see Ruby Darrows, a professor now, glaring at the four of us, I’m taken back even more.
“Callie,” Evander calls, pushing through the crowd to get to me. Kristy and I step to the side, out of the way of the other witches and warlocks hurrying to the dining hall for dessert.
“You look spooked,” I tell him, and Kristy tightens her grip on my arm. “What’s going on?”
“Come with me.” He motions for us to follow, and we duck out of the hall into a sitting area. The fire in the large fireplace cracks and pops, heating the already warm room. The heat creeps down my neck, filling me with anxiety.
“The Grand Coven,” Evander starts, looking behind us to make sure no one followed or is watching. “I overheard them speaking with my mother before the gathering.”
Dark of Night Page 7