Coven

by Lacey Weatherford

  Chapter Eighteen

  “You are the biggest, two-timing, effin’ bitch I’ve ever met!” Megan shoved her finger in my face. “I know he did it because of you. How could you? I even voted you on the squad—against my better judgment, I might add.” Sneering, she cast a disgusted look over me. “I should’ve never listened to Jett when he convinced me that he wanted nothing to do with you, and that this was all for Seth’s benefit. And what about Seth? Did you just dump him for Jett?”

  “Do you always jump straight to assumptions, or do you ever try to find out the actual facts first?” I asked, not even the tiniest bit intimidated by her snotty girl persona. “There was nothing between Jett and me before you broke up.”

  “But you admit there is now?” she asked, folding her arms and glaring at me.

  “I admit nothing,” I replied. “Now if you’ll excuse me, my boyfriend is waiting.” Glancing behind her, I smiled at Seth who was briskly coming toward me with a wide grin on his face. That was probably a pretty big indicator that he was feeling okay with how things worked out last night, something I still wasn’t quite sure about.

  “Hey, gorgeous,” he said, brushing right past Megan and leaning in to kiss me briefly on the cheek. “How are you this morning?”

  “Great, now that you’re here.” Last night, the three of us decided that since everyone was pretty much aware of the relationship between Seth and me, we would keep that up at school and in other public places. I’d be dating Jett after hours, so to speak. It wasn’t exactly the ideal situation, and Jett was less than thrilled over being the guy hidden in the closet, but he still agreed. That spoke volumes about his feelings for me—that he was willing to sacrifice public time just to see me in private—not that we didn’t plan to go out in public together, ever; we’d just be more discreet when we did.

  Man, this was all so confusing.

  “Ready for class?” Seth pretty much ignored Megan completely, taking my books from me.

  “I am.”

  It felt good when he laced his fingers through mine and steered me past her and down the hall.

  “This isn’t finished,” Megan called after me, haughtily.

  “Oh, I think it is,” I replied, not even glancing back as we disappeared around the corner.

  “Is everything all right?” Seth asked once we were out of sight.

  “She seems to think Jett broke up with her because he wants to date me.”

  “Hmm. Smart girl, that one. What did you tell her?”

  “I didn’t tell her anything. It’s none of her business.”

  “Well, it’s my business and I’m feeling pretty weird about it.”

  “Weird? Did you change your mind?” My heart rate picked up and I was surprised to recognize panic. I couldn’t lose him.

  He shook his head. “No, it’s weird because I feel strangely okay with it; but I’m not sure why. Maybe it’s because I’m confident that you’ll choose me in the end.” Squeezing my hand tighter, he smiled at me.

  “You know I never wanted this, right? I never wanted to do anything to hurt you.”

  “I do know. And that’s why I agreed to this arrangement. I don’t want to hurt you, either; and forcing you to be with me before you’re sure of your feelings will do precisely that. At least this way I still get to be with you in some capacity while you decide.”

  “You were always my choice,” I replied. “I was perfectly content.”

  “Content, but not sure. And when you do finally come to me, I want you sure—beyond the shadow of a doubt.”

  A movement caught my eye and I saw Jett strolling down the hall toward us. Seth didn’t release my hand, but pulled me out of the way of most of the traffic.

  “And how are we all this morning?” Jett spoke cheerfully as he approached. “No regrets?” he added in a lower voice.

  “I’m all good,” Seth said, tightening his grip on my hand, and I wondered if he realized he’d done it.

  “Great. Me, too.” Staring specifically at me, Jett moved closer, leaning against the wall beside me. One of his fingers lightly brushed my pinky, linking with it, but he blocked the view with his body, so no one else could see. “You look really pretty today.”

  Both of them were touching me. I couldn’t even remember what I was wearing as desire streaked hotly through me. I’d noticed it last night, too. Whenever both of them touched me at the same time, it was like rocket boosters were being set off inside me.

  “Thanks,” I managed to mutter as a flush raced through me. It was so hot I feared breaking into a sweat.

  Leaning closer, Jett whispered. “Did Seth tell you what happened to us?”

  “I haven’t had a chance, yet,” he replied. “Megan was all up in her face when I got here. You need to put a stop to that.”

  “I will. Are you all right?” His concerned gaze penetrated me.

  “What happened?” I asked, impatient, glancing between the two of them.

  “We both dreamed about you, again,” Seth said, watching me closely.

  “The same dream?”

  “Mostly. This time all three of us were in it.”

  “Please tell me we weren’t all married because that’s just a bit too weird. I’m already way over the line of comfortable as it is.”

  Seth and Jett exchanged glances, clearly giving me an answer.

  “Seriously? We were all married?” What the heck was up with these dreams? I had the sudden urge to skip school and go talk with Bels. I needed to figure out what the crap was happening. It was obviously something magic related, but what? I was getting a more than a tiny bit creeped out with this whole dream scenario, to be honest.

  Jett nodded. “We all were. And that’s why it’s so strange.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “We were all married. As in all . . . Seth and I weren’t just married to you, but we were married to each other.”

  “Excuse me?” My eyes went wide and full panic exploded in my chest. What the hell was I involved in? “Are you two trying to tell me that there is something between the two of you?” I was pretty sure my pulse rate was at heart attack level now.

  “Oh hell no!” Seth groaned out, before sticking Jett with a glare. “I told you she wouldn’t get it.”

  Jett shook his head. “There is nothing, uh, sexual, on any level, between Seth and me. Our mutual attraction for you is the only thing going on. But knowing that makes me think that maybe you’re right about the dream symbolizing something else. I don’t necessarily think it’s about actual marriage, but maybe magic.”

  “He thinks maybe we’re supposed to bind our powers together, that perhaps it’s the magic between us that’s melding . . . sort of like a trifecta of power.”

  “So we’d be like our own coven or something?” I asked, trying to follow along. Actually this made sense to me and did a whole lot to calm my over-anxious nerves.

  “Yes, exactly like that,” Jett said.

  “I’m not really in a coven, since I’ve mainly just practiced with my dad. There weren’t really any other witches around except my adopted uncle, Earl, but he died when I was pretty young. But wouldn’t that mess up your magic with the covens you belong to? I thought your powers were bound to them, making it where you can’t join another coven?”

  “I don’t think so. Think of it as something separate from your regular group. Sort of a nexus of power that is always at your fingertips, except from a different source.”

  I nodded, even though I wasn’t sure I totally understood. “Will it make your covens mad, though?”

  “Actually, I’m the only one tied to a coven,” Jett said, surprising me.

  “Yeah, my family practices mostly as solitary witches, unless my mom is leading us in certain festival rituals,” Seth added, telling me something I should’ve already known about him. “Jett has been given the task by his parents to recruit me to their coven.”

  “Actually, you aren’t the only one they want me to recruit.” Jett stared
at me, making his point clear.

  “Me?” Now my pulse was skyrocketing for a different reason. “A demon coven is targeting me?” I could taste the fear in my mouth, despite all my training.

  “Don’t worry. Seth and I will protect you. That’s another reason why we think it would be good to bind our powers together. It will give the three of us a stronger defense against anyone who might try to attack us.”

  “So you’ve changed your mind about becoming a demon?” I asked.

  His heated gaze never left me. “Let’s just say I’ve found something that interests me more.”

  “We want to know if you’ll meet us after the scrimmage tonight?” Seth spoke up before I could respond to Jett’s comment. “Maybe we can try testing some things out and see how it goes. It might shed some light on what’s going on.”

  I nodded. “That’s fine with me. I’ll have to ask my parents first, but I don’t think they’ll have an issue with it. I don’t work on Fridays since they’re game days.”

  “Are the cheerleaders going to be there, tonight?” Jett asked, changing the subject entirely.

  “Yeah, just in our practice uniforms, though. Why?”

  “No reason. Simply looking forward to watching you.” He squeezed my finger a bit tighter before glancing around the quickly thinning hall. Leaning down he brushed his lips ever so briefly against my cheek. “See you at lunch, darlin’.”

  Watching him for a moment as he walked away, I immediately realized that Seth watched that exchange and glanced up at him. “You okay?” I asked, still worried about all of this.

  “I’m perfect,” he said, raising my hand to his lips and kissing the back of it. “Let’s get to class.”

  ~~~

  “Hey,” I said, leaning in the doorway of my dad’s home lab, watching as he bent over a microscope, studying carefully. Kyle was seated beside him in a swiveling chair and turned to glance at me.

  “Hey, kiddo! How are you today?” he asked.

  “I’m good.” Okay, that might not have been the most honest answer, because I was truthfully confused out of my head at the moment. “I love Fridays because we have early release.” I continued on with a smile, not wanting to dwell on my current predicament. “How’s the research going?”

  “It’s looking promising. Your dad and I think we may have finally isolated the gene that is causing your mom’s blood to overreact to magic. We have several more tests we need to do on it, but we’re closer than we’ve ever been.”

  “That’s exciting! Congratulations.” I really hoped they found a way to make it work. Reintroducing my mom’s magic would go a long way toward healing my dad’s broken heart.

  “Thank you. We’re feeling pretty pumped about it, too. Vance tells me you have your first game tonight?”

  “We do, but it’s just a scrimmage. The first real game is next weekend.”

  “Is it at home?” Dad asked, straightening.

  “Yeah, both games are.”

  “Then I will definitely be coming to watch.” Crossing the room he wrapped his arms around me and hugged tightly. “How was your day?”

  “It was good,” I replied, going for vague and hugging him back just as strongly.

  “Are you hungry? Your mom is still working, but Kyle and I can stop and we can all go get something to eat.”

  “Actually, I ate lunch at Nicolazzo’s, with Seth, before he dropped me home.”

  “You never said how dinner went with his parents last night.”

  “I didn’t get to meet them. Something came up and we had to reschedule. Seth ended up taking me to hang out with a friend of his until he brought me home. You were out doing a late bike delivery to someone, Mom said. Sorry I fell asleep before you got home. I haven’t been getting much rest and was feeling pretty dead.”

  “I understand. You were up early the night before.” Releasing me, he took a step back. “How do you feel about making Kyle and me some lunch so we can keep working just a bit longer? And then, after we eat, I’ll take you to buy your new car?”

  “Seriously?” A girlish squeal escaped me as I threw my arms around his neck, once more. “I’d love that!”

  Dad laughed. “I never knew you liked making food so much.”

  Giggling, I pushed away from him. “The excitement was for the car.”

  “Well, damn. I just thought you really enjoyed doing nice things for your old dad.”

  “You’re not old, and I do love doing things for you—and Kyle.” Casting a glance over to him, I found him watching our interaction with a smile.

  “You have a good girl there, Vance,” he said. “If I knew I could have a kid like this one, I might look harder for a wife.” He winked at me.

  “Be careful what you wish for.” Dad warned him. “Portia has already met someone she wants to set you up with.”

  “Really?” Kyle asked, a surprised grin appearing. “Tell me about her.”

  “I don’t know much—just that someone recommended a hairdresser to her and, after the appointment, Portia said she’d found your soulmate.”

  “Soulmate? She actually said that?”

  I could understand his surprise, since that was a term not casually thrown around in the magical community.

  “Is she a witch?”

  “I didn’t ask. All I know is her name is Julie or something like that.”

  “Come on. You’ve got to give me something better than that. Is she good looking?”

  Dad chuckled and shook his head. “Again, didn’t see her. You’re going to have to take it up with Portia if you want to know more.”

  “Oh, I definitely want to know more.”

  “What do you guys want to eat?” I interrupted, anxious to get on with the car part of this day.

  “It doesn’t need to be anything special. Sandwiches are okay,” Dad said, going back to the workstation and peering into the microscope again.

  “On it. Be back shortly.”

  Making my way into the huge custom kitchen, I let my thoughts wander over things with Jett and Seth as I collected the items to make ham sandwiches—getting out some chips and a lemonade mix to go with them.

  Summoning magic to make the lemonade, I used my hands to put the sandwiches together at the same time. It was just a few short minutes before lunch was prepared and I carried it to them.

  “I wish we could speed the process up,” Dad was saying.

  “I know you do; but in this case, better safe than sorry,” Kyle responded. “How’s the serum that Hex has been working on?”

  “Good. He says it shouldn’t be too much longer. When he gets it just right, he and Milly are planning on flying out here.”

  Hearing that tidbit of news excited me. I loved great Grandpa Hex and Grandma Milly. Even though Hex was my step-grandpa, he was the only grandpa I’d ever known. All of my grandpas were dead; so he was very important to me. He had married my grandma after everything that happened with my parents. In fact, he was the reason my mom was still alive. My dad hadn’t been in his right mind after The Awakening was removed from him, restoring him to his full demonic state. His bloodlust for her had nearly driven him mad.

  Hex found my mom as she was running for her life and hid her, teaching her to fight and introducing his jinn powers to her. He was the one responsible for turning her into a fighter strong enough to survive, and I loved him for it. If he hadn’t interfered, I might never have been born.

  “Here’s your food,” I said, interrupting and placing the two plates I was carrying on the large mahogany desk at one end of the lab. “I’ll be right back with your drinks and then I’m getting on my laptop to look at cars until you’re ready to go.”

  Dad smiled and nodded. “Sounds like a plan. Thanks for lunch.”

  “Yes, thank you,” Kyle added.

  “Not a problem,” I replied, practically skipping from the room. Today was shaping up to be awesome.

  Chapter Nineteen

  “What are you doing?”

  I cou
ldn’t help myself—I jumped, clasping my hand over my heart as I stared up at the shimmering figure materializing in my room. “Dee Dee, you can’t just pop out of nowhere like that. I swear you almost scared me to death.”

  “Sorry,” she said, her brogue sounding more pronounced than the last time. “I see you haven’t told your parents about me.”

  Sighing, I glanced at the list of cars on my screen before closing my computer. “That’s because I wasn’t entirely sure I didn’t dream you up. One second you were there and then you were just gone.”

  “That happens sometimes. I sort of blank out.”

  “How weird that must be for you.” Crossing my legs, I stared at her. “So, tell me about death. Is it the same for everyone? Did you see a white light?”

  Shaking her head, she looked sorrowful as she drifted soundlessly toward the window. “For me, there was no light. I don’t know about for other people. I haven’t seen any others like me.”

  “Really?” How terribly lonely. I felt sorry for her. “How long have you been . . . like this?”

  Shrugging slightly, she glanced back at me. “Time is irrelevant to me, but a long time.” Coming closer, her stare pierced me in an uncomfortable manner. “That first night in the attic—before I revealed myself to you—you were with a young man. Who was he?”

  Apparently she’d seen Seth and me. That wasn’t embarrassing at all, since we practically made out like fiends that night. “He’s a good friend of mine—my boyfriend, I guess you would say.”

  “Your beau reminds me of mine, the one that I lost so long ago. I have never stopped pining for him, even though he eventually found solace in the arms of another.”

  I wasn’t sure what to say. “Seth is a good guy. I’m glad I met him.”

  Again, her intense stare made me uncomfortable and I thought I saw a spark of anger light her eyes. “Be careful, young one. It’s been my experience that men are rarely what they seem. They like to entice women, seduce them even. It seems so romantic, but then they will destroy everything about you and use you to further their own sadistic games.”

  Angry much? I thought, though compassion flooded my system for her. “How terrible things must’ve been for you. I wish there was some way I could help you set them right.”