Chapter Twenty-three #2
‘Why? Because they’re family and friends?
’ Emberlyn snorted. ‘Gill, Dez and their kids are my family – look how they treat me. If people want something bad enough, things like loyalty, love and honor can fly out the window. Aren’t there people you trampled over in your effort to rise to the position of High Priestess? ’
Reena hesitated. ‘I take your point,’ she finally mumbled. ‘Did your grandmother ever say who she thought might be part of the faction?’
Emberlyn shook her head. ‘Millicent didn’t care about coven issues unless they impacted her.’
‘When I wanted to be voted in as High Priestess, I considered challenging her to prove my worth to the coven. But I knew I would lose. Another idea I had was to drive her out of town. But, again, I knew I’d fail.
’ Reena paused. ‘I tell you this because whoever wants my position may think of doing the same to you. Unlike me, they may be willing to take the risk of losing. They’ve taken plenty of other risks so far. ’
That much was certainly true. ‘You like to claim the right to punish your witches yourself. I’m going to be clear to you right now that if any of them take the risks you just mentioned, I’ll handle it my way. And if I were you, I wouldn’t retaliate against me.’
Reena let out a soft snort. ‘The warning is not necessary. You think I’m not aware that you’re more powerful than I am? Much as it vexes me, I’m unable to deny it.’
‘And yet, you thought to take the manor from me the very night it chose me.’
‘It was an act born of anger and desperation. Though I didn’t realize quite how powerful you are until that night.
I knew then that I had no chance of taking the house from you by force, so I tried talking you round.
It became clear that you wouldn’t part with the manor.
And when your family’s attempt to invalidate the will failed, I accepted the situation.
If I were to challenge you, I would lose – and look weak.
A witch of my status can never afford to look weak. ’
Emberlyn hadn’t thought she’d say it, she really hadn’t .
. . but she had the honest feeling that the woman across from her genuinely meant her no further harm.
Not that she now thought of Reena as anything close to an ally.
This truce was situational, and it wasn’t likely to last. But it at least meant that she had one less person coming at her for now.
‘I’ll give you the names of those who came to me looking for the kind of magickal aid that you’d consider unethical.
I advise you strongly to look closely at all of them.
By that, I don’t mean question them. I mean watch them.
Monitor their activities. Even follow them, if necessary.
Feed false information, set traps, don’t share your suspicions with others.
Trust no one, because they will have infiltrated your inner circle.
You’ll have at least one spy in your camp for sure. ’
Sighing, Reena rubbed her temple. ‘It’s ironic that, right now, I trust you more than I do my own people.’
‘You don’t trust me, but you trust that I don’t have my eye on your position. That makes me no threat to your status quo. You just sadly can’t say the same about those who’ve sworn fealty to you.’ And wasn’t that a bitch?
‘Are you going to keep glaring at my legs?’
Ripper forced his gaze upward to meet the pale-hazel eyes staring at him in mild exasperation. ‘Not your legs, your pants.’
Emberlyn’s brow pinched. ‘Why?’
‘I have an issue with them.’
‘What’s that?’
‘They hide your legs from me.’
She blinked. ‘You talk as if it’s their motive. Like my pants are purposely inconveniencing you.’
‘Feels that way.’
She rolled her eyes and turned back to the football game. Her tongue took a dainty lick of the ice cream he’d nabbed for her at halftime. His dick twitched in envy, so easy for her it was almost embarrassing.
Their sides were all but plastered together, since there wasn’t much empty space on the bleachers, but he was perfectly fine with that. The closer she was, the better.
Excitement rolled off the fans. Some waved flags or signs. Others ate or took pictures.
Ripper had never watched a live game on TV – there was no cable here.
But he’d watched reruns, as well as movies that featured large events.
The football games here might be smaller, but the fans were louder, rowdier and more prone to cause riots – likely because they were so personally invested in the games.
Little specks of magick skipped along Emberlyn’s skin, as if the anticipatory energy bounding around acted like a magnet to the power inside her.
Throughout the game, his witch had let out the occasional cheer or boo but – as opposed to the screaming fans around them – she was her usual collected self.
Not stoic, not uninvested in the game, just composed.
Her muscles were loose, her expression placid, her smile easy. But a fine line of tension – so fine he could have missed it if he hadn’t come to be so attuned to her – rode her spine. ‘You don’t like crowds?’ he asked.
She side-eyed him. ‘I don’t like the friction that’s building in the air. Shit’s gonna go down at some point.’
‘Probably.’ Shane’s team was up against Carver’s. The latter was losing, and the spectators could sense it. A shouting match would break out eventually, but no fights – people typically saved that for the parking lot.
Emberlyn didn’t seem to know it, but Ripper had never taken a woman to a game with him before. Not even one he’d dated. But he wanted his witch with him. And this way, he could be sure that she wasn’t being crushed by the crowd or forced to deal with more bullshit from her family.
‘Would you stop doing that,’ Paisley complained from beside Emberlyn, frowning at her twin.
Dusting a dead fly off of his palm with the other hand, Kage asked, ‘Doing what?’
‘You’re always killing flies.’ Paisley sniffed at him. ‘Insects deserve love, just like any other creature.’
Her brother raised a brow. ‘Even spiders?’
‘Fuck, no. Don’t talk craziness around me.’
Kage snickered. ‘Almost forgot to tell you. Mom called.’
Paisley’s lips parted. ‘Finally? What did she say?’
‘“Hello, Kage.” ’
‘And?’
‘And nothing. I hung up.’
Emberlyn’s brows drew together. ‘Why?’
‘I don’t want the silent treatment to end yet,’ Kage explained. ‘I’m not ready to have her try to stab holes into my happiness.’
‘She hasn’t called me,’ Paisley muttered.
Kage flicked a hand. ‘I’m her favorite. You know that. You’re a little too childish for her tastes.’
His sister glared daggers at him. ‘Childish? I’m not childish!’
‘You’re wearing sneakers that look like a fairy took a shit all over them.’
Paisley peered down at her glittery footwear. ‘It’s called fashion.’
‘Yeah, for nine-year-olds.’
Emberlyn sighed. ‘Could you two be nice to each other for five minutes?’
Kage blinked. ‘I mean . . . no.’
‘Sounds complex,’ Paisley said to her. ‘I prefer the simple things.’
Kage slid his sister a look. ‘It’s why you like yourself so much.’
At that, the twins began squabbling and bumping each other’s shoulder.
Ripper leaned into Emberlyn. ‘So they’re not close?’
His witch seemed surprised by the question. ‘Oh, they’re super close. You can’t tell?’
‘No. No, I can’t.’ Feeling eyes on him, he looked to his right . . . just as CeCe fast swerved her head to face the field. He inwardly sighed. He’d caught her staring several times, and it was getting annoying fast.
At least she was staying out of his – and, more importantly for him, Emberlyn’s – way. She’d also ceased spreading her stupid little ‘Ripper’s under a spell’ claims. Emberlyn had bewitched him for sure, but not in the literal sense – there was no magick involved.
Just then, he caught sight of Reena walking up the concrete steps. Her gaze clashed with that of Emberlyn, and the two women – what the fuck? – exchanged the most subtle chin tip.
He frowned. ‘Did you just greet Reena?’
Her shoulders stiffening, Emberlyn very slowly turned her head toward him. ‘You watch me far too closely.’ She didn’t sound too happy about it.
‘Why wouldn’t I? You’re mine. My scent on your skin says so. Now, what don’t I know?’ He leaned in, planting his palm on her thigh. ‘Talk to me.’
Sighing, she flicked a hand. Suddenly, all the sounds around them became muffled. He realized she’d formed a sort of magickal invisible bubble around them.
‘I had an interesting visit from Reena today. Relax,’ Emberlyn added when he tensed. ‘She didn’t harass me to give up the manor again. It wasn’t about that.’
‘Then what?’ he asked, leery.
‘She has a theory.’ Emberlyn licked at her ice cream just before it dripped onto her finger.
‘She believes that whoever buried curse jars on what’s now your land did it to foil her plans, not impact Millicent.
Reena feels that she’s the main target. Lincoln may have been sent after me, but what happened to him has turned the clans against the coven, which weakens her standing. ’
Ripper twisted his mouth, considering that. ‘She could be right. I automatically assumed that this was about you, since you have enemies. But maybe that’s what someone is counting on.’ Reena’s theory actually made a lot more sense, because targeting Emberlyn was nothing short of self-destructive.
Emberlyn took another lick of her ice cream.
‘Reena wanted a list of the coven members who came to me for the kind of spells and potions she’d deem amoral.
She’s trying to identify who’s part of the faction.
It is likely one of them – maybe even all of them – who’s behind this.
To take so many risks, they must have a substantial goal in mind. ’
‘Like becoming High Priestess.’
Emberlyn nodded. ‘That would be my guess.’ She paused as half the crowd erupted into cheers that barely overrode the whines and groans of the rivalling team’s fans.
‘Our cunning little culprit is pitting others against Reena. Now the coven feels unsafe. It wouldn’t be hard for one voice or a few to convince others to put pressure on her to step down.
If that doesn’t work, they’ll try something else. ’
‘Like what?’
‘When aiming to take over the coven, Reena thought of either challenging Millicent or trying to drive her out of Chilgrave to make a statement. She warned me that whoever wants her position could think of doing the same to me.’
Just the thought made anger scratch at his insides. Once, he’d looked at Emberlyn and wanted. Now? Oh, there was still plenty of ‘want’. But it was different. More.
He wanted to possess, protect, cosset, keep, hog her. And he did not fucking want other witches coming at her. She’d dealt with enough of that shit.
It pained him to say it, but . . . ‘Again, she could be right. Our culprit is cunning, like you said. But they’re not wise, or they wouldn’t have dragged you into this.
They also wouldn’t have underestimated Reena’s willingness to do what’s necessary to keep her position, even if it meant consulting you.
’ He paused. ‘So you two are allies now?’
‘Hell, no.’ Leaning down, Emberlyn plopped her ice-cream stick into the empty soda can on the floor between her feet.
‘I don’t trust Reena as far as I can throw her, nor do I have a modicum of respect for her.
And I will never forgive her degree of inaction over the years.
But I can still be objective here and concede that she made valid points.
Plus, it’ll be good to let it seem as though she and I are on good terms. It’ll make any faction members nervous to see me and Reena seeming civil.
If they’d aimed to come between us, they’ll realize they failed.
I do like to highlight when the assholes from the coven fail at anything. ’
A smile built in his chest because, yeah, he’d noticed.
Just then, the noise around them turned louder, so she’d evidently dropped the ‘bubble’.
Paisley glanced from him to Emberlyn. ‘What are you keeping so secret?’
Emberlyn waved her hand. ‘I’ll tell you tomorrow, it’s not important.’
‘Speaking of tomorrow,’ Ripper cut in, ‘you’re working, right?’
‘Until two p.m.,’ Emberlyn told him. ‘I’ll drop off some clients’ laundry on my way home, and then I’ll be done for the day.’
‘I’ll meet you at your place around six.’
She tilted her head. ‘You were serious about spending the full moon with me?’
‘Very serious.’ And equally serious about what he’d promised he’d do to her.
She must have been remembering that promise, because heat seeped into her eyes. ‘All right.’