by Pat Esden
“The bats didn’t bother me,” Chandler’s deeper tone said. “I was worried that we’d never get the box out from under the oak’s roots.”
“How did you even know where to look?” Midas asked.
“Runes,” Athena said. “But we’ll save that story for another time. I believe Jessica has a treat for us. In our travels, we also discovered a technique Merlin used to divine the future. It involves owl bones and ash berries. Jessica’s been practicing, if anyone would like to have their fortunes told.”
Athena’s voice faded into the background as Chloe let her mind drift, digesting all the bits and pieces of the story. She imagined creeping through the dark woods, uncovering the box, then opening it and seeing the amethyst stone twinkling in the moonlight.… “With this item, guidance, and the right coven members…our minds and spirits will be able to move out of our bodies and explore places like Ancient China and the Library of Alexandria,” Athena had said. Incorporeal time travel, even the thought of it was amazing.
The fog in Chloe’s head subsided. She blinked. Though it felt like she’d only been daydreaming for a moment, she’d clearly spaced out longer than she’d thought. Devlin and Midas were gone. Jessica and Em sat close together with a handful of small bones and red berries sprawled out between them. Drizzles of condensation now hazed the teahouse’s sheer walls.
Em tilted her head to one side and laughed softly. “I think the bones are wrong. Falling in love with a tall, dark-haired, country boy is the last thing I see happening to me anytime soon.”
Chloe scooted over to them. “Em?” she said. “Are you ready to go home?” Jessica shot her an irritated look, which she pretended not to see. While she felt badly about interrupting them, Chloe was exhausted and ready to call it a night. Like it or not, she had stuff she needed to do in the morning, like laundry for one thing—and the ever present Organic Chemistry memorization. Where was Devlin anyway?
“You go ahead.” Em waved her off. “I’m spending the night here.”
Athena smiled. “You’re welcome to stay as well.”
Jessica snapped a sideways look at Athena, her jaw working like she wanted to say something about the growing guest list.
Chloe saved her the trouble. “Thanks, but I need to get home. Do you know where Devlin and Midas went?”
“They said they were going back to Devlin’s apartment.” Athena smiled.
Chandler got up from the mat. “I’ll show you the way. I’ve got to get back to the main house anyway. The sitter will be dropping off my son soon.”
“I didn’t realize you had a son,” Chloe said, as she followed Chandler outside. It surprised her, but in retrospect the kid’s bike outside Chandler’s workshop should have been a big clue.
“His name’s Peregrine. He’s eight years old. The light of my life.” She laughed. “He is a handful, though. All boy, like his father was.”
“Was?” Chloe’s stomach tensed. She shouldn’t have said anything. It sounded like he’d died and the last thing she wanted to do was bring up bad memories for Chandler.
Chandler rested her hand on Chloe’s shoulder, guiding her down the path to the footbridge. “I didn’t mean it like that. We separated before Peregrine was even born.”
“Oh.” Chloe fell into silence, unsure what to say next. There was a wistfulness in Chandler’s voice that said not all her memories of Peregrine’s father were bad, but clearly something had gone wrong.
As they reached the other side of the footbridge, Chandler pointed to the left. “Follow that path. Devlin’s apartment is attached to the garage. His BMW will be parked out front.”
Despite the lingering thoughts about Chandler and her son, and the general fogginess of her brain, a tingle of excitement danced just below Chloe’s stomach. Chandler had just said, Devlin’s apartment. Athena had said it too. Devlin’s apartment, as in his apartment, not his and Athena’s.
She had no trouble finding Devlin’s place. But his BMW wasn’t out front. The garage’s overhead door was open and it wasn’t in there either. Damn it, Chloe thought. He must have left to take Midas home. Who knew how long she’d have to wait for her ride.
A thought crossed her mind and a smile lifted Chloe’s lips. Was she crazy? She might not have planned on waiting, but this was perfect. Without Midas around, she could talk to Devlin about the orb uninterrupted. Plus, it would be the perfect time to get the whole scoop on Devlin and Athena, not to mention a read on how he really felt about her.
Next to the open garage door, vines arched over what most likely was the front door to Devlin’s apartment. Chloe considered trying the door to see if it was unlocked. She suspected he wouldn’t care if she waited inside. But it felt wrong, so she pulled her jacket tight around her and made herself at home on a marble bench in a nearby garden.
Above her, the stars sparkled in the darkness as bright as flecks of crystal. Chloe stretched out on the bench and gazed up. The night was so clear it was perfect. She’d remember this moment forever; even if the coven decided to not let her join and she never had a reason to return to the complex. This was one of those seconds in time where everything felt right and beautiful, so far from her home and family, from her apartment, even away from the high-powered energy of Athena and the rest of the coven. This moment was a different kind of power: still and natural. It fed her soul.
“Which is your favorite?” Devlin’s voice eased into the stillness.
Chloe bolted upright, swinging her legs off the edge of the bench. “I didn’t hear you drive in.”
He sat down next to her. “I left my car in front of the main house. But I ran into Chandler and she told me you were here.” He glanced skyward. “So which is your favorite?”
“My favorite? You mean, star?”
“Yeah, which one?”
“Ah—probably the North Star. Though it is a little boring. Too dependable.”
He laughed. “Nothing wrong with dependable.” He got up. “Why don’t we go inside? I’ll fix us some coffees. I believe there’s something you wanted to tell me?”
“It feels like it almost didn’t happen now, but yeah. It’s important.”
His apartment was a single room like hers, but that’s where the similarity ended. His was an ultra-large, L-shaped space with a high ceiling and exposed barn-like beams. First came his kitchen, then a large office and living room area. Off to one side in an alcove was a king-size bed created out of logs, and the door to a bathroom. Everything was neat and classy, a page out of an L.L. Bean catalog. The only thing missing was a golden retriever.
“Make yourself at home,” he said, directing her to a jumbo-size couch.
As she sunk down into its cushiony depths, the warmth of the air and the tinkle of a desktop fountain lulled what remained of her senses. She put her feet up on the coffee table. It felt like the kind of place where that was okay.
On the other end of the coffee table, a brass tray filled with pebbles held three beeswax pillar candles with symbols of the Craft etched into them. Geodes glistened on the windowsills. She nestled her head back on a pillow, closed her eyes and breathed in the faint aroma of coffee and cinnamon. The pillow was soft, her eyelids heavy…She had to tell Devlin about the orb. Why had it asked for him? She really didn’t know much about Devlin. Where did his greatest magical strength lie?
A hand took her by the arm. Firmly leading her somewhere.
Soft pillow. Smooth sheets. She was laying on a bed.
Her feet were cold. And naked.
And she couldn’t move her legs.
Chapter 6
I walked in the mist between worlds, A ghost among the dead. A child more lost than those I freed.
—Journal of Emily Adams. New Dawn House. Albany, New York
Chloe jerked awake. She wriggled her toes. Her feet were naked. But now that the heavy fog was lifting from her brain, she could
tell her legs were immobilized by tangled blankets and not by something more sinister like duct tape or rope.
Something warm snuggled against her back. Oh, shit. Last night came rushing back to her in one quick jolt. Devlin. His apartment.
She swallowed hard and froze, worried that any movement might wake him up. What had she—or more precisely—they done? Anything? Everything? Not that the thought of having sex with him was horrible. She just…She’d have preferred to remember it.
A huge wet nose jabbed her in the ear.
What the hell?
She rolled onto her back. Instantly, the golden retriever—who last night had seemed missing from Devlin’s perfect L.L. Bean apartment—was on top of her, rolling and licking.
“Off, off!” she shouted. She pulled the blankets up to her neck and scooched upright until she sat against the pillows. The room swayed, a nauseous feeling swelling upward from her stomach. Oh boy, she didn’t just have a hangover. She had the Queen Mother of hangovers.
The dog bounded down from the bed and began sniffing her jeans and yellow gilet that were both meticulously draped over a nearby chair. That explained where some of her clothes were, but what about the rest?
Chloe eased the blankets a few inches away from her body and took a quick inventory. Her top, bra, and panties were all where they belonged. That was a good sign.
“Come on, boy.” Devlin’s voice whispered from the direction of the kitchen, followed by a soft whistle. “Come on, Henry. You want to go out?”
The dog took off. She heard a door open and close, probably the beast being put outside. A moment later, Devlin walked into view wearing nothing but a pair of worn jeans. His hair was damp and rumpled, every delicious inch of him flushed from a recent shower. Perfect abs. Perfect chest. A tree of life tattoo spanned his muscular upper arm.
He gave Chloe a dimpled smile and her thoughts stuttered to a halt. Last night she’d wondered where his greatest magical strength lay. Right now, she was pretty sure it had to do with electrifying every synapse in her body. Holy Goddess of Lust that boy had it all going on.
As he walked over to the bed, she swallowed about a million times. His bed. The bed she’d spent the night in.
“Sorry about Henry. He snuck inside before I could stop him.” He held out a shot glass of what looked like thick, dark beer. “A little something for your hangover.”
She grimaced and her voice stammered a little. “I—I don’t think it would be smart for me to drink anything right now.”
“Trust me. You won’t regret it.”
Chloe wasn’t so sure about the trust me part, though she wasn’t entirely sure why she shouldn’t. Her head was too screwed up to figure out what had happened. Especially with him standing there half-naked and her sitting in his bed. But she suspected he’d been a gentleman.
“Go on,” he said. “Raw honey, tomato juice, and a few secret ingredients.”
“It looks gross.” Her fingers trembled as she took it. At this point, what could it hurt? She lifted it up and chugged it in one sickly-sweet and chunky liverwurst flavored gulp.
“Oh my God. That was disgusting,” she said, wrinkling her nose as a bout of shivers gripped her body.
He chuckled. “There’s extra toothbrushes in the medicine cabinet. Take a shower if you want. I’ll make us breakfast.” He took the empty glass from her and smiled. “Most of what you’re feeling isn’t from the alcohol. You overexposed yourself to the coven’s magic. You must have sensed it.”
“Yeah, but I didn’t realize it was that strong.”
“Athena was turning it up pretty high last night. Well, everyone was. Don’t worry. But next time, you might want to close yourself off a little more.”
He turned to head for the kitchen and she slipped out of bed. She didn’t bother to wrap in a blanket. It wasn’t like he hadn’t gotten an eyeful already. Besides, after swallowing his putrid goop, it seemed wiser to get closer to a toilet as fast as she could. Still, before Chloe shut the bathroom door, she swiveled back. “Hey, Devlin?”
He glanced over his shoulder, the muscles in his back flexing.
“Thanks, for letting me have the bed and being considerate.”
He waved off the compliment. “At least I made one person happy. I suspect Athena feels quite differently this morning.”
Chloe felt herself pale as she waited for him to expand on that. But he returned to the kitchen and the clatter of utensils being moved filled the air. Damn, Athena being unhappy didn’t sound good, she thought, closing the bathroom door.
In the bathroom, she didn’t just find extra toothbrushes. There was a stack of towels, a washcloth, and a folded Middlebury College T-shirt waiting on the vanity. The shower helped. The T-shirt was large—obviously his—but soft and worn to cozy perfection. Once she was done, she wriggled into her jeans.
She found Devlin in the kitchen, standing over a sizzling frying pan. He’d put on a white button-down shirt. Its tails hung out, but that only added to his air of laid-back sophistication.
“Feeling better?” he asked.
“Very much.” Chloe smiled. “That disgusting cure of yours is pretty amazing.”
“I hope you like frittata.” He slid a cast iron frying pan filled with a cheesy mix of bubbling egg and vegetables into the oven. “I’m a one-trick pony when it comes to breakfast.”
She wandered over to the coffeemaker and helped herself. “I don’t think anyone in their right mind would call you a one-trick pony—chauffeur, landscape architect extraordinaire, maker of the world’s best hangover cure, not to mention witch.” She took a sip of coffee, pressing her lips against the cup for an extra second while she worked up her nerve. “So I kind of don’t remember much after I sat down on your couch.”
A wicked twinkle brightened his eyes. “Well, after I put away the trapezes and sent the contortionists home, we stole a car and broke into a liquor store.”
Chloe laughed and cuffed his shoulder. “I’m serious.”
The humor faded from his voice. “I’m not sure what you’re getting at.”
“Is there a specific reason Athena isn’t happy with you—like because I stayed here?” She edged toward her real question. “Are you two friends? Business partners?”
“Athena’s my sister. You didn’t know that?”
She clamped her teeth down on her bottom lip to keep from grinning. “Ah—no. Why would I?”
“Technically this place—the complex and everything—is as much mine as hers. Our mother signed it over to both of us when she resigned as high priestess.” He scratched at his cheek as if deciding where to go from there. “I was away at college when it happened. Athena devoted herself to rebuilding the coven.”
“So the idea of searching for cures was hers?”
“Yes, and one I’m proud to be involved with. That’s why I don’t mind giving her absolute authority, loyalty, and my respect. I want to see her succeed. I owe it to her.”
Chloe glanced into her coffee cup, her reflection staring back. Medicine and magic. Chloe didn’t know if something had happened in Athena’s past to motivate her into pushing the coven in that direction any more than she knew the root of why Devlin owed Athena, but Chloe understood being driven by the past.
That night at the Vice-Chancellor’s house, she’d learned that there were nightmares as horrible if not worse than drowning. Like being responsible for destroying a young child’s life—and all because of her impulsiveness. In four days, it would be five years and four months since the Vice-Chancellor’s son went into a coma; lack of oxygen had destroyed his brain beyond repair, even experimental therapies that had created tissue regrowth in some children had failed on him. Five years and four months with no change to his condition, except for his family becoming more and more despondent—all because of her. With all the magic witches had, there had to be some way to repair or r
everse the damage she’d caused. But there wasn’t one. Not now. Not yet. But maybe, just maybe, there was a plant or potion or spell that could make things right. Something that could heal that little boy’s brain.
Chloe lifted her gaze to Devlin’s. “I’d be proud to be a part of her plans, too.”
He rested his hand on the small of her back, guiding her to the kitchen island to sit. “It is a major obligation. You have to be willing to do as asked without question. Trust and unswerving commitment to the Circle. It will take away from your study time.”
She nodded. His tone made it sound ominous, but it was far from that. Being a part of a serious-minded coven with goals that paralleled hers was what she longed for. Magic and medicine. Her parents wouldn’t be happy, but this was what she needed. “You’re forgetting. My family is devoted to the Craft. I know what kind of discipline and commitment is required. As for college, I do better under pressure.”
“Why doesn’t that surprise me?”
“Ah—maybe because you’ve been spying on me?” Chloe teased.
He took a seat on the opposite side of the island. “You know I’m sorry about that. I feel bad about the way the invitation was delivered too. That wasn’t my idea. My father started that tradition decades ago.”
“Don’t worry about it. I’m fine with that now. Truthfully, I’m glad I’m here.” She raised her coffee cup in a toast, the way he’d done with his beer at the party last night.
His dimples flashed, along with a roguish glint in his eyes. “In truth, Chloe, when I heard who your parents were and read your college records, I never expected you to be such a wildcard.” He cleared his throat. “Before I start saying stupid things like how good you look in my T-shirt, I believe there was something you wanted to tell me last night?”
Chloe smacked herself on the forehead. “Oh my Goddess, how could I forget!”
While the aroma of cooking frittata slowly filled the kitchen, she told him what the orb had said. Yin and yang. Betrayal. He listened to her closely. When she was done, he reached across the island and squeezed her hand. “I’m glad you told me first, like the orb asked. But I have no idea what it means.”
