She blushed. Wonderful. I might as well have said we’d been screwing our brains out.
Troy laughed, catching on. “Fair enough.” He closed his shirt, and looked at Alix. “What do you think?”
“I’m game,” Alix said. There weren’t any better options on the table...actually, there weren’t any other options on the table. So she didn’t see the harm in hearing the woman out. “What are you offering?”
Miranda smiled and continued, “Well first of all, I would be offering you a place to stay. There are a few cottages on the grounds to choose from. You may have your pick of the ones available.”
Alix couldn’t help but smile. The place they were at currently, was like living on their own small cloud of heaven. It was perfect.
“You would also have full access to all of the facilities on the property. There are several company vehicles you would be welcome to use, until you acquired one of your own of course. But, more importantly, I will teach you about your potential, and help you to harness your power.”
“Wow, that sounds a little too good to be true,” Alix said. After her mother died, no one had given her anything that didn’t cost something. She’d had her share of scams and scary situations. This offer seemed to fall into the same category.
Troy had the courtesy of voicing Alix’s next thoughts. “So what’s the catch? What do you want out of this?”
Miranda sat for a moment, looking at them. Her fiery brown eyes seemed alight, as she spoke, “Loyalty. I want your loyalty to this place. If you join this sisterhood you must protect it, with your life if necessary. This sanctuary is strong only because we work together to make it that way. Nothing less than your full commitment will do.”
Whoa, she broke out the “C” word. Alix had been longing for a place to call home ever since her mother had died, even before then really. But this was all too good to be true, and too weird. She still hadn’t wrapped her head around the whole witch thing. Part of her just kept screaming “Bullshit!” But Miranda appeared sincere, and the place had already sunk a few hooks into her. She had no idea what to do.
“You said sisterhood...how many witches are you planning on having in your coven?” Troy asked.
“Thirteen,” Miranda said. “There will need to be thirteen of us.”
“That’s a lot of witches,” Alix said.
“Yes, it is,” Miranda answered. “So you can see how important it is to me that you stay. The offer is extended to both of you of course.”
Troy looked over at Alix. “What do you think?”
Honestly, she still didn’t know. She nodded. “Yeah, I guess.”
“I know this is a lot to take in, but if you give me some time, I can make things more clear for you,” Miranda said. “The last thing I want is for you to feel uncomfortable. Please, give us chance.”
Alix raised a brow. “So no ‘commitment’ right now?”
“No commitment right now,” Miranda agreed. “Stay for a while and figure it out.”
Alix couldn’t argue with that, and the fact that she didn’t really have any other options, kept coming into the equation. Also, and most importantly, Miranda had saved their lives. Alix owed her. The least she could do was take advantage of her hospitality. She glanced at Troy. “Okay, we’ll stay.”
Miranda sat in her study, staring at the dancing flames in the stone hearth. Red wine swirled in her glass, as she did lazy circles with her wrist. It had been a long couple of days.
“Is she going to stay?” Hannah asked from the doorway.
“Yes,” Miranda said, looking away from the fire. “For now.”
“Well, that’s better than nothing I suppose.” Hannah walked into the room. Her gait was more sure-footed than elegant. She had an earthy way about her, which was only appropriate given her power. Her hair was just over shoulder length, and black as coal, with long bangs that swooped to the side. She was tall and shapely, but not heavy. Her rough hand patted Miranda’s shoulder in comfort, as she passed by to take a seat in the matching recliner.
“It’s not her I’m worried about,” Miranda said absently. “She is a good-natured girl, despite her hardships. She will join us.”
Hannah’s full lips turned downward. “The man then. The one she’s bonded?”
Miranda shook her head. “He will follow her.” She sipped her wine, savoring its woody flavor. “The men who were chasing them, the hunters. They summoned a Seeker.”
The crackling of the fire filled the silence for some time, until Hannah finally said, “More will come. We must prepare.”
Miranda nodded. She smiled, thinking of Alix. Deep down Miranda could sense that the purple-haired girl’s arrival was just the beginning, that the hunters wouldn’t be the only ones to come looking for them. “Not to worry,” she answered. “We already have.”
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Book Two: Hannah
Chapter 1
Hannah looked up into the canopy of giant trees, though “giant” might not have been the correct term. Colossal seemed more appropriate. Five years ago, she would have thought the types and sizes of flora surrounding her would never exist again, but, under Miranda’s supervision and assistance, Hannah had nurtured this small patch of wood into something unlike anything on the planet. She and Miranda had been at it for a little over four years now, and the results had proved nothing less than staggering.
The giant grove had germinated within the heart of a pile of fallen trees, located at the convergence of several hillocks. The natural landscape had provided a deep, rocky bowl that helped camouflage the enormous pines, oaks, and sequoias that now grew here. If seen from the air, the trees would still be much larger than their surrounding cousins, but, to the untrained eye, the difference would appear to be caused by a large hill, not prehistoric-sized vegetation.
Hannah moseyed toward the dais that she, Miranda, and Rhea had created three years ago. Its base grew up from the mossy earth in a tangle of roots and vines. A rough, tapered block of white quartz had been pulled up from the earth by the surrounding trees. Their tangling roots had offered themselves up to become part of the living altar.
Rhea had chiseled a smooth bowl into the giant block that now served as the coven’s cauldron. She had also etched ancient runes around the lip of the bowl, and the sides of the stone, which pulsed with soft golden light.
The summoning incantation the three of them had performed last summer remained strong to its purpose. Soothing vibrations thrummed from the ground into Hannah’s bare feet as she approached the heart of their home. She placed her hands on the white stone and smiled. Warmth crept into her hands, slow and steady. The feeling was on the verge of intoxicating.
Hannah stepped back, admiring the work she had done to create such a wondrous thing. It worked, she thought with a pang of heady excitement. I can’t believe it really worked.
Alix’s arrival this last winter had been proof enough for Hannah that their magic was indeed effective, but she wanted more. Hannah’s gaze went to the forest around her. She would like to see the growth that had started here expand further out into the region—into other states even. To achieve such a feat would require a great amount of power, power they had yet to possess.
They would need more sisters.
Months ago, when the three of them had enacted the spell, Hannah had hoped Miranda, their matriarch, was correct when she had said the incantation had worked. Now, there was no doubt in Hannah’s mind that more sisters would come. She would just have to be patient.
“It’s truly beautiful, Hannah,” Miranda said from behind her.
Hannah turned, in surp
rise, with a laugh. “You startled me.”
“My apologies, that was not my intention.” Miranda stepped from the edge of the forest into the clearing. Even dressed in sweatpants and a t-shirt, she maintaining the classy poise of an aristocrat. She moved with the fluid grace of a fashion model, her long legs shapely and navigating the uneven terrain with ease. Broad shoulders and hips gave her that classic hourglass figure most women would kill for. Her wavy auburn hair glistened as she walked closer to the glowing runes. She gestured to the root and stone altar. “Your work is a beautiful thing to behold.”
“You’re too kind,” Hannah beamed. “Though I couldn’t have done it without you and Rhea.”
“Even so, your power made all of this possible,” Miranda said as she opened her arms to the forest surrounding them. “But, that’s not the reason I’ve come.”
Hannah arched a brow. “Oh?”
“No,” Miranda said, shaking her head. She took a moment to search out a patch of lush, green grass, and then took a seat. “Come, sit with me.” She patted the ground next to her.
Hannah frowned, but settled on the ground next to her matriarch. She had never been good with surprises, the butterflies always taking great pleasure in filling her stomach with fluttery wings. To calm her nerves, she grabbed a small stick, and slowly twirled it between her fingers.
“I’ve sensed some...unrest in the house as of late,” Miranda said.
Ah. Hannah knew where this was going. Ever since the “new arrivals” had moved in, Hannah and Rhea’s space had been disrupted. Hannah thought Rhea was having more trouble with the new arrangement than she herself, but there had been times when the newcomers had really gotten on her nerves as well, like this morning for instance. Hannah had a strict routine for the caretaking of her greenhouse. Every morning, she would spend several hours, pruning, feeding, and watering the various species of flora that would eventually be planted out here in the grove, and other various places on the property. Today was to be no exception, until Hannah had opened the weathered doors to her garden nursery. There they were: Alix and Troy, naked as the day they’d been born, and going at it like rabbits in the spring. The image of them grinding on each other would forever be burned into her memory. She shook her head and chuckled. “We thought you were bringing witches to the grove, not sexual deviants.”
Miranda sighed. “I know. It’s been hard for me, too.”
Hannah smirked as she held the stick out straight, and then let it slant downward as if limp. “Or not.”
Miranda blinked in puzzlement, staring at the flaccidly hanging stick. Hannah could have sworn she heard the wheels turning in the auburn beauty’s head, until suddenly Miranda began giggling as she caught on. Her laughter was infectious, causing Hannah to join her in the gut-wrenching gasps that followed.
Their amusement tapered off, and Hannah wiped the tears from her eyes. “We aren’t mad, if that’s what you think. We’re just...frustrated, or I am at least.”
“I get that,” Miranda managed, still chuckling. “I wish there was something I could do about it.”
Unfortunately, not even magic could remedy the lack of companionship Hannah felt. When it had been just the three of them, the longing for a man’s touch had been pushed into the background, but now, with a male actually in the house, that distant yearning had come charging to the fore. The yearning had set a blazing fire in her heart... among other places.
Hannah was pretty sure that Rhea had been experiencing similar feelings. The garage was cleaner than usual, which was Rhea’s hangout/project area. She’d also been going out to the reservation more often; a sure sign of trying to make herself scarce. Miranda’s visit, however, was the first indication that she had been affected as well.
Hannah was just glad that she was going to be leaving to give a seminar on eco-friendly concepts for the urban environment next week. “Well, it’s just going to be you and Rhea’s problem next week, thank goodness,” she said. “Maybe we should sit down and talk about some boundaries when I get back.”
“Sounds good to me.” Miranda sobered. “I’m glad you’re going to take some time for yourself, and I’m glad that you and Rhea aren’t mad.” She gently patted Hannah’s shoulder. “As difficult as this situation is right now, we need Alix. And she needs us.”
“Yeah, I know.”
Miranda got to her feet, and offered a hand to Hannah. “Be careful on your trip. You girls mean the world to me.”
Hannah gave Miranda a hug. “I will.”
They made their way back up to the main house in silence. Miranda gave a final nod as she went into the mansion. Hannah continued walking around to the south side of the house, toward the greenhouse.
The mansion itself, dubbed Coven’s Grove, was the pinnacle of the estate. Miranda had assured her that the home had started as a plantation house, but, over the years, the white plaster had been replaced with layered rock and dark wood. The once round pillars surrounding the structure were now giant squared posts with towering stone bases. The central part of home had kept its wraparound porches and basic rectangular shape, but the many alterations and additions had made the mansion a wondrous affair of sprawling sunrooms, pavilions, and pool areas. Hannah wasn’t sure of the number of carpenters that had worked on the house over the years, only that the current one Miranda had hired was truly gifted. Brody, the new carpenter, had more than proven his worth with the detail work he’d done on the mansion, and Miranda had lined up many months of projects for him.
Hannah approached the place she had claimed as her daytime sanctuary with a smile. The base of the greenhouse was constructed of the same river rock and dark wood as Coven’s Grove. The massive A-framed roof was made of recycled slider glass and salvaged timber. Solar panels covered a small area on the southern side, away from the mansion, so energy was never an issue.
Miranda peeked in through the front door to see if there were any naked bodies humping on her worktable. She sighed in relief, finding the large, wooden structure vacant of any oversexed lovebirds.
Time to get to work, she thought. Though, in truth, tending to the greenhouse had never been work for her. Plants were her life, they always had been. Ever since her mother had pulled that first carrot out of the dark soil from their home garden, Hannah had been hooked. She had gone to every farmers market she could as a child, attended every seminar on growing techniques when she was old enough to drive, and ultimately got her PhD in Botany and Plant Biology at Cornell University. But it had been the discovery of her mystical power that had driven her to seek out Miranda and the hidden paradise located here in Nowhere, Oklahoma.
Hannah donned her apron, and filled buckets with water that was piped in from the stream outside. She’d never pictured herself living in Oklahoma, but, after discovering Coven’s Grove, there wasn’t anywhere else she’d rather be.
The door opened with a bit of a squeak, then closed on its own by the power of an air shock.
“I’m just getting started, so grab a bucket,” Hannah said over her shoulder.
“Um...okay,” Alix replied.
Hannah turned to face the purple-haired girl in surprise. She’d thought Rhea had come back from her run in the forest, and hadn’t expected Alix to come back after this morning’s debacle. “Sorry, thought you were somebody else. You don’t have to help,” Hannah said, a little more sharply than she intended. She closed her eyes. Don’t be a bitch. She’s got a man, and she has every right to use him. Hannah opened her eyes again, this time much more calm. “I mean, unless you want to,” she corrected.
Alix stood at the door with a sheepish look on her face. “Look, I just wanted to apologize for this morning. That was really uncool of us.”
Hannah chuckled in spite of her irritation. “It’s all right. You guys just need to learn everyone’s schedule, so you’re not in the middle of everything—at the wrong time.”
“Yeah. That would be smart, huh?” Alix smiled. “We just haven’t really had a chance to get to k
now you and Rhea.”
“I know,” Hannah said. “Miranda wanted you guys to have some space to figure things out, so Rhea and I have kept our distance.”
“Oh,” Alix replied, sliding her hands into her pockets. “That was cool of you guys.”
Hannah nodded. “Our coolness knows no bounds.”
Alix snorted, and took a half-step toward one the buckets Hannah had filled, but stopped, as if unsure of herself.
“C’mon.” Hannah gestured to the bucket. “We can talk while you help me.”
Alix grinned, and snatched up the bucket.
“So, you’ve been here almost two months now,” Hannah began as she grabbed her bucket and headed into the rows of developing flowers, vines, and saplings. “What do you think?”
“I’ve always lived in the city, but this place is nothing short of...freakin’ fabulous!”
Hannah smiled. “Thank you. It’s taken us a long time to get it started.”
“Started?!” Alix stopped on the gravel path between the yellow Balsam Roots and crimson Blanket Flowers. “What does that mean? This place is a full blown Land of the Lost.”
Hannah laughed. “We’re not done yet, not by far.”
Alix shook her head in wonder.
“I want to change the world,” Hannah said, as she stopped at a low partition that separated a series of tables from the rest of the greenhouse. “A lot of people, the doomsayers, think the world is dying. It’s not. It’s just changing. Changing in a way that’s not good for us humans. I intend to change it back.”
“You’re talking about global warming,” Alix replied.
“A terrible name for it, but yes,” Hannah agreed. “Global change would probably be a better description.”
“That’s a pretty big goal you’ve set for yourself.” Alix followed Hannah into a segregated area of the greenhouse.
“I plan to take it a step at a time. And, I won’t be doing it alone,” Hannah gave Alix a penetrating stare. “What I meant to ask was, what do you think about staying—becoming part of the coven?” Hannah broke eye contact, afraid she might scare the purple-haired woman, and began watering the handful of plants not tied into the aquaponics ecosystem she’d built. These segregated plants were special—hybrids she had created. The stream that ran into the “megaflora” forest was tailored to feed the new species, and was the one landscape feature that had taken them the longest to bring into being.
Alix (The Coven's Grove Chronicles #1) Page 12
