Sitting down on the couch, I noticed he was wearing jeans and a button-down shirt. "Um. Aren't you a little over dressed?"
"It's thirty-three degrees out there. I'll strip at the clearing. Safer for Captain Nightstick that way."
"You did not just call your dick Captain Nightstick."
"Um. Force of habit. It wasn't me who came up with that name…"
I let it go. I didn't want, or need, to know. "Do you have all the components and implements?"
"Yep. They're already at the clearing."
"Do you want a drink?"
"No. I'm fine. You sound like you could use one, though."
"You have no idea."
"Why are you nervous? You know this is going to go fine."
"That's what I'm afraid of. Moved four states away to not have to do this. And here I am. What am I doing?"
"Three states."
"We drove through Maryland for like ten minutes. Four."
"Fine four. Go have a drink."
I sighed, heading for the kitchen. I opened the door of the fridge and popped open a beer. "Bheith fuar," I whispered, chilling it before it reached my lips. It went down like bitter truth. I coughed and repeated the procedure.
Three beers later and I wasn't ready to bolt.
"Slow down there, frat boy."
I looked at the trio of bottles on the counter in front of me. "Shush. It's medicine."
"Uh huh. Look. I'm not doing this to get you to call me Bill."
"What?" I turned around as his arms wrapped around me.
Turning my head, I pressed it against his chest. His heartbeat calmed me a little bit more, so did his warmth and his scent. I let out the breath I'd been holding without realizing it.
"Thanks, Bill."
"You seemed like you needed it. Want me to let go?"
"No. Not yet. We still have a few more minutes."
"Okay."
He rocked side to side for a minute. I rubbed my cheek against the rough material of his shirt, my arms wrapping around his waist. It had the unfortunate side-effect of opening my cloak. There I stood in the middle of my kitchen, holding a fully clothed man while I was butt naked. I don't think he would have appreciated my asking him to strip, so I let it go.
"Thanks," I whispered and stepped back, letting the cloak fall into place. Not before he smiled in admiration.
"Come on. We'd better get going."
"You riding with us?"
"No. You're riding with me."
"Cuff me before you toss me in the back?" I asked hopefully.
"You have serious issues."
That made me laugh and took the last of the edge off the butterflies threatening to shank me and escape through the gaping wound.
I sat in the front of the Cherokee and Josie got to ride in the back. It took ten minutes to get to the clearing. We were almost late thanks to my nerves. We made it with just a few minutes to spare. I hadn't realized the clearing was that far into the woods, but luckily there was a trail the jeep could follow.
Ten witches stood around a blazing fire and no one was wearing a cloak. We were going to be holding many winter ceremonies. I'd put an order in for a bunch of them and make them gifts for yule.
Chief parked next to the other two vehicles. I guess they believed in carpooling at least, and I gave silent thanks I'd let Chief drive. My Soul wouldn't have made it over the trail.
We got out of the vehicle and walked into the clearing. Even with the fire it was near freezing. We stepped over the salt line someone had used to cast the circle around the entire clearing. I reached down and gently touched my finger to it, canting, "Coinnigh muid te!"
The fire began glowing brightly and the air inside the circle warmed. Gooseflesh smoothed as I moved into the throng of witches. Chief nodded his thanks and began removing his clothing.
It was improper to stare, so I smiled at everyone gathered. I moved to the altar by the fire. I also smiled at the scian, goblet of salt, a switch of willow, and bowl of purified water. All of which had been thrice blessed beneath the moon that night.
"Ready," Chief called over to me.
I unhooked the pin at my neck and set it before me upon the altar. Raising my arms to the sky, I let the cloak fall free and gather at my feet as I gazed to the moon and chanted:
Blessed be our Mother
We pray for you this night
Guide our coven forward
And shine upon us light
Our priestess has been lost
We ask of you our right
Let your wisdom guide us
And help us with our plight
Show the one you favor
And bless her with your might
The breeze, warm as it was from the spell, stilled completely. The circle flared and coalesced all around us in a miasma of light. I picked up the scian and parted the flesh of my finger, letting the blood fall into the bowl of purified water. The coven circled the alter, each member pausing before me. I drew blood from them and added it to the bowl. With each drop it began to glow brighter and brighter. As the thirteenth drop fell, it chimed like the toll of a bell.
The light around us flared again, nearly blinding us in its intensity. My body went rigid and I found myself unable to move. I was forced from my very flesh as the Lady filled me completely.
Standing inside the circle, next to myself, I looked down at my hand and could see the ground through it. My spirit had been forced from my body.
Gazing up at my very own face, the Lady gave me a small patient smile. "Be at ease daughter. I merely wish to speak."
I bowed and made to step back, but she reached out with her hand and held my spirit fast by her side.
"I grant this one the title of high priestess. Show her all the love you would show me. Gone is the Coven of the Gold Moon. Its days are long past. From this day forward, thou art the Coven of the First Moon…"
There was a collective gasp as the Lady held up her hand and anointed my forehead. A faint sliver of a moon flared with light and then fainted from view. The goddess smiled and left my body, drawing me back in.
The wind picked back up and I dropped to the floor of the forest, neatly landing on my cloak. Josie rushed forward, and I held up my hand. I was fine. I just needed a moment.
"Well, that was something," Chief said, standing above me.
"That wasn't supposed to happen, I don't think. Never before has a coven been renamed. I've never heard of the Lady making an appearance either…" Josie sounded frightened and amazed at the same time.
"The coven wasn't renamed. We were born anew. You heard her," I explained to Josie.
"We didn't want that."
I looked at Jason. He was beginning to be a pain in my ass. Already. "I didn't ask for it to be so. It was the Lady's decision. If you want to question her wisdom, please do so at your own discretion and not while I'm around. Thank you."
"But–"
"Jason!" Dwight, or I assumed it was Dwight, silenced him with his terse tone. "Respect."
Jason looked like he still wanted to argue, but he shut his mouth and stepped back a little. I nodded my thanks to Dwight.
As I made a move to get to my feet, Chief and Josie each grabbed an arm. "Is it hot in here or is it just me?"
"No. It's very warm," Chief said and I noticed his nakedness for the first time as I stood up.
Holy shit. Now I know how he earned his nickname…
I blinked and focused my attention anywhere but there. It just happened to focus on the coven standing before me. Some of them looked like they were about to cry. Some of them looked afraid. But the thing I noticed most was the energy swirling around each and every one of them. I could see the soft glow of their power inside them as well as their shields around them. They were beautiful.
"Well. Greetings, Coven of the First Moon."
"Greetings, Lady." They bowed. All of them. Even Jason.
Above us, the soft sizzling noise of snowflakes melting against the dome of
light surrounding us drew our attention upward.
∞ ∞ ∞
I groaned as I slipped between my nice warm covers.
Why couldn't the itch have pulled us to Florida?
A soft knock at my door snapped me out of my wishful thinking. "I'm awake, Josie," I called out softly.
The door opened, and Josie padded softly into my room wearing her pink terrycloth robe. "Hey."
"Hey, you."
"Mind if I sleep in here?"
I laughed. Whenever Josie got freaked out about anything, she didn't like to be alone. We slept in the same bed quite often. "Sure."
I turned on my side and closed my eyes. She could be the big spoon.
"So. Um. That was something…"
"What?" I decided to pretend it wasn't that big of a deal. Maybe she would actually get some sleep.
"Don't you dare 'what' me. You know damn well what I'm talking about. You were visited. By the goddess."
"Oh, that. Yeah. She was much nicer than I was expecting."
"Dot, do you know how often that happens? Try never. I know. I broke down and called my mother."
"You what?" Ignoring the fact I was naked under the covers, I sat straight up and stared down at her incredulously.
"Called my mom."
"Why the fuck would you do that?"
"Well, I figured if I told her that we were fine and joined a coven, she might actually start saying something to me other than, 'If you don't get your delinquent ass back home, I'm disowning you.'"
"Josie, while I appreciate the fact that you are having difficulty dealing with your mother, now that you've hung up with her, what do you think the first thing she's going to do is?"
She thought about it for a moment. "Um. Call your mother?"
"Precisely. After she greets my mother, what do you then think the first thing she's going to tell her is?"
"That you were visited by the Lady?"
"And what do you think my mother is going to do?"
"Um. Call you?"
On cue, my phone started ringing. I kept staring at Josie as I blindly reached over to the nightstand and brought the phone over to stick in Josie's face. "Tell me, Josie. Who might that be calling me at this hour?"
"Um. Chief."
"What?" I looked at the phone. It really did say Chief across the screen.
I swiped it open to answer it.
"Hello?"
"Sorry. I know it's really late. There's been another murder…"
Chapter 12
I pulled my car up to the address the chief had texted me on the way over. I'd also ignored fourteen phone calls from my mother. I may not have been right on cue, but I was right. I promised myself to give Josie bunny ears when I got home. I'm not talking about holding my fingers above her head. I was going make that shit grow right out the top of her skull. She deserved nothing less.
My car skidded to a slight stop on the snowy road. We got snow in Virginia, but not much. I wasn't used to driving on slick roads. At least I didn't crash into the back of the coroner's truck. That would have been embarrassing.
The chief was waiting for me in the doorway. "Nice stop."
"Not in the mood. Was it a witch?"
His solemn nod told me all I needed to know.
"Who?"
"Dane."
"No! They killed a cop?"
"Yes. We need to figure out who is doing this and why. Quickly."
"Let me see the body."
"Herb waited for you."
"Herb? I forgot he was the coroner. He's human."
"But after being the coroner for twenty-seven years, he figured things out pretty quickly. Feel free to talk in front of him. He knows not to ask questions."
"Okay."
Herb was sitting on Dane's couch, the body on the floor by the door. He had fallen backwards. Whoever killed him had done it from the door. "Hey, Herb."
"Hi, Dot. Are you?"
I nodded. "Yep."
"I should have figured that out from the beginning. Welcome to the party."
"Next time I'll bring beer."
I crouched down next to Dane and said a silent prayer to the Lady. "May you be reborn into a better life."
He wasn't burned like Richie. Someone had slashed him with a knife across is throat. He was lying in a puddle of blood and I looked up at the wall. It had painted a red rainbow across the white paint and front window.
"Could a spell have cut him like this?"
I leaned closer to the body. I could feel some residual magics, but their intent had been to burn, not to cut. "It could have, but it wasn't. Whomever did this to him had tried to burn him. I can feel the spell. When it didn't work, they slashed his throat."
"You can feel all that?"
"Yes. But at least we know one thing."
"What?"
"It wasn't a member of our Coven. They would have known that their spell wouldn't have worked and started with the knife."
"Or they wanted it to look like it wasn't someone in the coven."
His logic made sense. "Or that. Yeah."
"Thanks, Herb. You can bag him up now."
"Okay, Chief."
"I'll be out front," I told him. "Night, Herb."
"Night, Dot."
I walked through the front door and sighed, crossing my arms and leaning against one of the porch columns. We were missing something. Something simple. I could feel it.
Chief came out and leaned against the other column. He didn't look sad, he looked angry. "You couldn't tell who cast the spell?"
"Not today. Maybe in ten years when I learn the feel of each and every person's magic in our coven, I could. But, not yet. Assuming it even was one of them. I feel like we're missing something easy."
"Nothing's easy when it comes to murder."
"Murder is for some people. It's too easy."
"I meant solving it. Killing is easy."
"You gonna be okay? Were the two of you close?"
"Worked together for ten years. Knew him longer than that. I talked him into becoming a cop. Figured it was safe enough in a small town like this. Guess I was wrong."
"Stupid time to ask, but what did he have in common with Richie?"
At least he thought about it for a minute before shaking his head. "I haven't got a clue. Maybe the murders are just random. Who knows."
"You're afraid to start questioning the coven again." I didn't ask, I said it.
He looked me in the eye and nodded slowly.
"I can be there with you if you want."
"Technically this falls under police business, not coven."
"I know. I'm not stepping on your toes, was just offering some moral support."
"That's very…kind. Thanks, Dot."
"You're welcome…Bill."
"Hey. I didn't hug you."
"You want to?"
"I could sort of use one right now. You don't mind?"
"Not at all."
He stepped a little closer and opened his arms instead of enveloping me in them. I met him halfway and wrapped my arms around his stomach, pressing my head against his chest. He even kissed the top of my head. Nothing more. We just stayed like that until Herb carted the body out the front door. He was the first to let go.
"Thanks."
"Anytime."
"Well, you better get home. It's getting colder out, and we're supposed to get a few inches of snow tonight. I'll see you tomorrow, Dot. Thanks for your help."
"You gonna be okay?"
"Eventually. I'm going home to have a very stiff drink and get some sleep."
"Okay. Call me if you need anything." I padded down the concrete steps and got in my car. Starting it up, I blasted the heat to dispel the chill I felt in my bones that had nothing to do with the weather. Getting back into my bed sounded better and better.
There was a strange car in my driveway when I pulled in. Warily, I got out and headed to the front door. I pulled my key out and nearly screamed when I noticed the man on the front
porch. Luckily, I recognized Jimmy before I belted one out.
"Hey," he mumbled tiredly.
"Hey, yourself. You okay?"
"Lil drunk, but I'll live."
"Where's Dennis?"
"He pulled an extra shift. Left me all by my lonesome."
"How did you survive?"
"Bad choice of words. Heard about Dane."
"Yeah. He seemed like a nice guy."
"Who's doing this, Dot? Why?"
"Come inside. We'll talk. I'll make you some coffee."
He nodded and picked himself up off my concrete stoop. I walked up the stairs and patted his shoulder before fumbling the lock open. The smell of beer wafting off Jimmy was almost overwhelming.
"How many did you have?"
"Just a couple or twelve."
"No wonder you reek. Go take a shower. I'll loan you some sweats."
"Sorry. You sure?"
"I'm sure. I'll put a pot of coffee on. You can use the shower in the master bath."
"Thanks."
"Did you drive here?"
"Yeah."
I didn't hold back. I swatted him upside the head as I let him through the doorway. "Do it again and I will leave a scar. Got it?"
"Yes, ma'am."
I sighed and closed the door behind me, letting him head off to the shower. I didn't know if Josie was still in my bed, and I didn't care. Let her be shocked. Lady knew, she deserved it.
I headed into the kitchen and put the coffee on. Josie came padding out of her room, rubbing her eyes. "Who you talking to?"
"Jimmy. He was on the front porch, drunk off his ass. He's in the shower sobering up."
"Oh. Oh! Good luck!" She winked and nearly skipped back into her room, lightly closing the door behind her.
"Yeah, right."
I waited in the kitchen while the coffee brewed. The glug, glug, glug was interrupted by a resounding thud coming from my bathroom. I ran in to check on the drunk. He was lying naked on the shower floor, rubbing his head and wincing in pain.
"You okay?"
"No," he said defeated.
"Can you stand?"
He sat up, rubbing the back of his head. "Maybe someday."
First Moon : A Reverse Harem Tale (Lovin' the Coven Book 1) Page 9
