Chapter Twenty-three
Raising her hands above the altar Friday morning, Emberlyn stared down at the pocket-sized chunk of bloodstone as—
Scuffling sounds coming from below.
Pressing her lips together, she stomped twice on the floor. ‘I’m trying to concentrate.’
Another noise came from the basement. A light crash this time.
‘You’re not luring me down there, no matter what you do. My answer is still no.’ Emberlyn drew in a centering breath and began to chant. Teal, black and silver magick motes slowly drifted down from her palms. Motes that swirled, thickened, pulsed and sparkled.
Then they shot downward into the bloodstone, engraving the protective spell into it. The gem tremored, pulsing with light.
Done reciting the spell, she closed her fists. The bloodstone stilled, the glow fading. She scooped it up – it felt warm in her hand, purring with power. Satisfied, she placed it in the pocket of her black ribbed pants.
She’d agreed to do a healing session this afternoon. Reworking a person’s energy involved unblocking clogged pathways and ridding them of negative vibes. It was easy to accidentally take the latter inside you. The bloodstone would deflect any negative energy.
She usually did such sessions after the hub closed for the day, but it wasn’t going to be possible this time.
Not if she was to attend the football game later.
Her client had no issue with an afternoon appointment because they didn’t want to miss the game either.
Paisley, Chrissie and Clem had already agreed to hold the fort – they could easily manage without Emberlyn for a few hours.
She walked about the study, blowing out the incense burner and putting things away. The door hinges creaked as Lucie swanned inside, meowing loudly in a way that said, Give me your attention.
Emberlyn cocked her head. ‘What is it, kitty?’
Another meow, this one less whiny.
‘I don’t know what that means.’
Lucie chirped and glanced outside the room . . . and it was a mere moment later that a knock came at the front door.
‘Oh, I have a visitor? Well, I appreciate the heads-up. Thank you.’ Emberlyn exited the study with Lucie and made her way to the front door. Opening it, she almost froze. Because what the fuck was Reena doing on her porch?
The house had let her get this far, which meant it didn’t currently perceive her as a physical threat to Emberlyn. That didn’t mean that the High Priestess hadn’t come to pester her again.
Reena quickly lifted her hands in a placatory gesture. ‘I’m not here about the will or the manor or anything related to those matters. Nor am I here to cause any sort of trouble. I’m here because, well, I don’t know who else to consult about this.’
Emberlyn felt her eyes go squinty. ‘Expand on “this”.’
Reena licked her lips. ‘I wanted to talk with you about the rebellious faction in my coven.’
Huh. Not what Emberlyn had expected to hear. It could be a ruse, of course; a way to convince Emberlyn to speak with her. But that wasn’t really Reena’s style.
There was only one way to find out just how genuine the High Priestess was being.
‘I have twenty minutes before I need to leave for work,’ Emberlyn told her.
‘This shouldn’t take that long.’
Emberlyn gestured to the porch table, and then she and the other witch sat across from each other much as they had a few weeks ago.
Seeming somewhat hesitant, Reena braced her elbows on the armrests of her chair and interlinked her fingers.
‘There has always been a rebellious faction, you know. Probably always will be. Because there will forever be witches who want to explore or at least understand the forbidden. In the past, the faction was never destructive; never caused problems within the coven. This time round, however, I cannot say the same.’
Emberlyn frowned as she read between the lines. ‘Not-so-nice things have happened to coven members?’
‘Yes,’ Reena admitted, her voice low with mental fatigue. ‘No physical harm came to anyone, but possessions were destroyed. Secrets were exposed. Arguments were caused. It was all rather petty, really, but still damaging.’
‘A little like some of the things I was accused of doing that I swore was not me.’
Reena exhaled heavily. ‘Yes.’
Emberlyn couldn’t say she was necessarily appeased by the High Priestess’s admittance that she’d effectively been used as a scapegoat, but it was a welcome change from having her claims of innocence dismissed. ‘Do you know who’s part of the faction?’
‘No. I’ve questioned many potential suspects but felt forced to clear them of any wrongdoing – I could find no evidence to support my suspicions.
Since hearing about the curse jars, I’ve redoubled my efforts to identify the faction members, because it seems likely that one or all of them are responsible.
’ Reena gave a tight, self-deprecating smile.
‘And I have been entirely unsuccessful, as have those who I recruited to help.’
‘Who were those recruits?’
‘My inner circle – Ward, Tyra, my sister Penelope, Getty and a few others. They’re as eager to unmask the faction members as I am, and they’re equally frustrated by how fruitless our attempts have been.’
Emberlyn tipped her head to the side. ‘Why come to me? And why be so forthright about everything?’
‘Because’ – Reena took in a shaky breath – ‘with regards to the curse jars, I think I was the target, not Millicent.’
Emberlyn felt her brows snap together. ‘Why?’
‘The damage to the land didn’t really impact her, did it?
She found the jars an annoyance, nothing more.
The only person who would be truly affected by the land being poisoned is the person who had great plans for it.
Me. I’d been cooking up those plans for several months.
I think that someone wanted to sabotage them.
So much so that they kept replanting jars, even though they knew what Millicent would do if she caught them – that is a huge risk to take. But they did it anyway.’
Mentally running through it all, Emberlyn nibbled on her lower lip. She hadn’t considered this possibility.
‘My coven was angry with me due to the promises I was unable to keep. That anger eased when I came up with the alternative of refurbishing existing houses. But then Lincoln was bespelled, and my plans were foiled again because Carver dropped the project. So, once more, anger is rampant in the coven – made worse by how the wolves now all look upon us with suspicion. I’m being pressured by all three Alphas for answers I just don’t have. ’
Pausing, Reena looked down at her fingers. ‘Carver and I were friends. He won’t give me the time of day now. He doesn’t see how I could not know what’s going on within my own coven. He thinks I’m covering up the truth.’ Her gaze lifted to meet Emberlyn’s. ‘I’m not. I’m truly in the dark here.’
Searching her eyes, Emberlyn believed her. ‘So you think that though Lincoln was bespelled and placed near here, the witch or witches responsible weren’t so much interested in harming me as they were in making your situation worse.’
‘Yes. I believe they wanted to turn the clans against the coven, knowing it would leave my hold on my position shaky. I’m supposed to protect my witches. But right now, they feel unsafe.’
Emberlyn drummed her fingers on the armrest. It bothered her that she hadn’t considered this theory herself. It made sense. All of it.
‘I’d like to know your thoughts on this,’ said Reena. ‘You have no reason to help me – I’ve certainly failed you many a time. I wouldn’t blame you for throwing me off this porch. But this situation impacts you regardless of whether I’m the focus or not. It benefits us both to be frank here.’
Well, she wasn’t wrong there. And while Emberlyn felt zero inclination to aid the woman after their history, she’d be stupid to let it color her perspective and dictate her choice.
‘I’d have to agree with you. I think it’s highly possible that there’s someone in your camp who’s put a lot of effort into making trouble for you. And if so, it’s probably a woman.’
Reena’s brow pinched. ‘Why a woman?’
‘Unless you’ve earned yourself an enemy, the only real reason for a person to take such risks and invest so much of themselves into this is that they have something big to gain.
Like becoming High Priestess – only a woman could do that.
If they can make the coven mad at you, they’d have a shot at replacing you.
People could come together to force you to step down. ’
Her expression thoughtful, Reena nodded. ‘That makes sense. Who would you consider a suspect?’
‘Aside from my family, I don’t know your witches well enough to say who might have an interest in what you consider “the malevolent path”.
If you know of any who do, look closely at them.
It wouldn’t surprise me if Ames is part of the faction – he asked Millicent for lessons in blood magick once; she refused to oblige him. ’
‘Can you give me names of witches who came to you over the years looking for potions or spells that would be considered unethical?’
‘I can do that. But there’s no point if you’re going to dismiss the names of people who you believe wouldn’t ever set you up to deal with all sorts of crap.
’ Reena liked to blind herself to what the people she cared for were capable of, from what Emberlyn had observed.
‘You’d be surprised who showed up at my doorstep over the years. ’
Reena looked away, uncomfortable. ‘My ex-husband was one of them, I know – he confessed to it years ago.’
‘So was your sister, Penelope,’ Emberlyn added, causing the High Priestess’s gaze to shoot back to hers and widen. ‘And her then-partner, Bennet. Your right-hand Getty, too – yeah, even I was shocked she showed here. She always seemed so disapproving of “other” crafts.’
Reena shifted in her seat, cursing beneath her breath. ‘That they came to you doesn’t necessarily follow that they would betray me.’