Chapter 15 - Adalyn
Zephyr and I fell asleep that night in a blissful, peaceful silence. There was very little tension and no arguments before we slept. But as soon as the candles extinguished and all that remained was to stare into the darkness before sleep came for me, I couldn’t stop my thoughts.
I was so aware of him next to me, all ink and physical might. How he had handled me so roughly but then kissed me so tenderly. He hadn’t dared do it again. I hadn’t asked him to, either, but it had crossed my mind.
What are you doing to me ?
No, what was this place doing to me, this situation? I put it down to the fact that I had nobody else but him to talk to. I was simply warming up to him, giving him the benefit of the doubt, and attempting to make my own life easier by getting along with Zephyr.
But when I looked at him, making out his outline in the dark, I couldn’t help but want to brush my hands down those thick biceps. I wanted to kiss his skin, feel its warmth beneath my lips, and feel the heartbeat that pounded in his chest.
I wanted to unravel Zephyr—I want to unwrap the hard exterior he wore and find out who lay underneath. What sort of a man had gone into the military, come back out, and how had it changed him?
I wanted to know why he’d gone into such an organization. Zephyr seemed like the sort of man who stood only for himself. A bond with a group, yes, but Zephyr stood alone at the end of the day. What had encouraged him to enter the military?
I gazed at his side profile as he slept, his chest already rising and falling with sleep. I shifted closer, telling myself there was a draft through the cave, and I wanted his warmth. But as I pressed myself to him, I couldn’t ignore that being next to him soothed part of me, even as it sent the other part into chaos.
Soon, sleep pulled me under.
***
“Where are they now?” Zephyr’s voice woke me up, an alarmed tone ringing out. He was back in the cavern, his voice echoing off the stone.
A tinny voice came out in response on a speakerphone. “Sweeney and Johnson have been hiding together. They’ve done scouts and surveillance. It looks as though the demons are trying to take up residence on the beach. It’s their easiest route of access due to the water. It means they have all that openness behind them to escape if the need arises.”
“Well, the need should arise,” Zephyr answered tersely. “We should be out there fighting them, Alex, not burrowed underground.”
“Trouble in paradise, Zeph?” Alex teased.
“No. Things are actually…” He paused, and I tensed, wondering how he might describe our situation. “Better.”
“Good,” Alex said. “Keep it that way. But we’re still laying low.”
“Alex, it's been four days.”
“I know, but we need more time. They need to not expect us to come. They have more numbers.”
“And we have more weapons,” Zephyr argued. “We have backup if we need it.”
“For now, the demons aren’t touching the humans. They’re content to just have the beach, but they’re avoiding the northern part of the island. The portals must be weaker there.”
I bit my lip, slowly waking up, as I thought about my shields.
“The northern side is the most residential area,” Alex said. “So I want to make sure no threats wander there. But, Zephyr, I will keep my family safe, no matter what. It’s not always our place to fight a battle.”
Zephyr snorted. “You ordered us into a fight over the summer.”
“Because they threatened my mate,” Alex growled. “Take orders, Zephyr. You’re my second. The demons are getting stronger. They’re sending out stronger demons alone to take over stores. They’re using their humanoid disguises again. They’re finding ways to blend in. It’s too dangerous, and I can’t risk you or Adalyn going out into that just yet when we’re all spread out. The island has its own defenses against these things, but we don’t. Not yet.”
“I know,” he sighed. “I know. But we’re running out of food as well. Are we at least safe to get some more? I get that you’re somewhere safe, and most of us are, but we’re literally underground, Alex. I haven’t seen daylight in four days.”
Alex paused. “I’ll keep you posted on restocking, okay? I can’t make any promises. Here, the triplets want to say hi. Greta also wants to speak to Adalyn.”
At that, panic rose in me, and I scrambled to hide under the covers, pretending to be asleep, when Zephyr came back into the bedroom area.
“I know you’re awake,” he sing-songed. “Come on, Auntie Addie. The triplets want to see us.” Before I could hiss that I was avoiding my grandmother and the judgment that she would bring when she saw where I was, three voices began calling my name from the phone.
“Auntie!” Hallie called. “Where are you? Are you still sleeping?”
“My dad says people who sleep lots are lazy,” Marie laughed.
“We want to see you!” Joseph called.
I threw back the duvet covers with a shout, surprising them, as I grinned, taking the phone from Zephyr. Then he climbed onto the bed next to me, both of us cramming our faces into the small FaceTime window.
“You two look cozy,” Harper noted with a smile.
“Uncle Zeff and Auntie Addie aren’t upset anymore!” Hallie cheered. I shot Zephyr a glare, but he only returned it, as if to say hey, there are two of us here who caused arguments .
“Auntie Addie, we’re on vacation,” Marie told me, but Hallie nudged her aside.
“No, we are not. I heard Daddy telling Mommy that we’re not .” She leaned in close to the camera. “It is Joseph’s fault.”
“Hey!” The little boy cried. “Mommy!”
“Hallie, stop teasing your brother.”
“But he did! I told him something bad would happen if he played with Marie and me, and it did .”
We all paused as the triplets began to squabble. But it was Zephyr who piped up.
“Hey, kids,” he said, getting their attention. “Did you ever hear the story about the magical fairy and the great, grizzly bear?”
“Fairy?” Marie asked. “Like, with wings?” Her face lit up.
“Wings, a wand, magic, all of it.”
I handed the phone back as he distracted the triplets with a made-up story about a fairy who helped a lost bear find his way through an enchanted forest. My heart softened as his voice rose and fell, his arms going wide in big gestures, imitating sound effects for magic and big bear stomping.
Alex had propped the phone far enough that I could see the five of them all huddled together on a white, plush rug. Joseph sat on Alex’s knee, and Hallie was curled into Harper’s lap, while Marie leaned forward with eagerness to listen better.
But in the background, sitting in an armchair, was my grandmother.
And in her eyes weighed a disappointment so heavy I felt it in my chest.
Throughout Zephyr’s story, I couldn’t stop glancing at where my grandmother watched me. She didn’t care about a magical fairy. She cared about the wolf she now knew was in a witch’s sanctuary, and her witch granddaughter who had brought him into it.
A pit grew in my stomach the longer Zephyr narrated the story.
“You said the fairy was called Hallie, named after me,” Hallie pouted. “You changed it three times!”
“That just proves how good a listener you are.” Zephyr’s laughter was a brief reprieve from the tension I could feel. But as soon as he said the end to the kids, finishing them off with a happy ending where the bear was led to an ever-growing meadow of flowers where the fairy cast an animation spell to make all the sunflowers dance around him.
“Auntie Addie,” Joseph mumbled sleepily. “Mommy says you can do magic. Are you the fairy?”
I glanced at Harper, who only smiled and shook her head, indicating he might not understand witch . I never had quite learned how to talk to children yet.
“You know, kiddo, I am like the fairy. I’ll find you a meadow of flowers when we can all hang out again soon, okay?”
“I’d like that.” His little face was so bright it made my chest ache. Harper’s eyes slid to Zephyr, and a look of amusement crossed her face. When I turned to him, I found his eyes already on me. He averted them quickly, clearing his throat.
Zephyr was older, almost thirty. Did he ever think about children? Did he think the military life would keep him from being a present father?
I wanted to know so much about this impenetrable man.
“Harper, Alex.” My grandmother’s voice cut into the happy call. “Could you take the triplets somewhere else? I would like to speak with my granddaughter.”
My grandmother had never used this tone with me, and the use of it dropped dread into my stomach. I didn’t dare look away from her as she approached the camera as soon as Harper herded the triplets away. Alex gave Zephyr a long, hard look before he went out of view. Greta walked towards me, looking older than I had ever realized. She walked with a slight hunch. I had seen her resting on a long, wooden cane now and then, but her face looked more lined with age.
“Ma’am,” Zephyr said, nodding. He swallowed nervously, but as far as I could remember, he had been casual and friendly with her over the summer. Yet, now, with the weight of her stare carrying even through the screen, he shifted. Even I did.
“I would like a moment with my granddaughter.”
“Yes, ma’am,” he said, sharply nodding.
“Alone.” She scoffed. “Or as alone as we can be with this insufferable form of communication.”
“Of course.”
He ducked out of view of the phone, and rather than hover, he disappeared into the cavern with the pool. I flashed him a warning look to not enter it, but he just shrugged. I didn’t hear the sound of a splash, at least.
“Gramma—”
“Let me speak.”
Her voice was sharp, commanding. I fell silent.
“I do not have an issue with the shifters. They have protected us and fought both for and with us. Harper means the world to me, like a second granddaughter, and she is in love with a shifter and has a beautiful family. I support her.
“But she is not a witch, Adalyn. You are. And you have obligations and duty both to yourself and your family.”
“Gramma, I couldn’t help it,” I insisted. “We were instructed to get someplace safe with whoever we were with.”
“I know.” She nodded. “Again, that is not my issue. My issue is where you decided to take that shifter.” Her eyes flashed with danger and displeasure. “You have purposefully brought a shifter into our most sacred home, Adalyn. The old caves are not like the Emporium where anybody can go in and be around our history or learn from books. Those caves are sacred , where we gather to continue asking for the regenerative properties the pool provides. Where we can honor the earth and thank our brethren for the gifts they have bestowed upon us, the magic we carry down through generations. Azure Cove is the home for witches, Adalyn.”
“I know,” I said. “I know—”
“I did not tell you about it so you could bring a shifter into it.”
“Zephyr just—”
Gramma shook her head. “I told you about that place because Zephyr was causing you heartache. Once, our bloodlines were united, Adalyn, but they caused the problems first. Coming back here to protect us this summer does not make up for every wrong. I accepted Alex because of Harper’s happiness. But I cannot accept that you have taken Zephyr to such a coveted place.” She paused, shaking her head. “You must ask for forgiveness lest they think your loyalty wanes.”
I hung my head, nodding. As a child, I had asked my mom how witches could still be together as a coven if we were so spread out.
We are always watching over one another, dear child , she had told me with a smile. We are always there for one another, ready to accept any sort of help that might be required .
And right now, in these caves, I felt the weight of my coven watching me.
“I will ask for forgiveness, Gramma,” I said, and then corrected myself. “Matron.”
Her chin lifted slightly as she looked at me. I knew to be grateful a phone screen separated us. A witch’s stare was not something to take lightly. I would be on the ground, apologizing, begging for forgiveness instantly if she was in the room.
“Do not forget,” she said. “One day, you shall walk in my footsteps. You must know all and everything about our lineage. Including Zephyr’s place within it.”
“What place?” I asked.
“Child,” she said. “There is much for you to understand, but he must prove himself to you before you find out. Let him fight with you, let him learn that you two must be side-by-side if you are to ever co-exist. That is the only way I will accept him around you.”
“Gramma, nothing is happening with Zephyr and I.”
She only gave me a hard, long look.
Shame crawled through my chest. I felt as though my sins against my kind were branded on my forehead: I had taken a shifter into our most sacred place and slept with him—twice. I had submitted so eagerly, so unburdened. I had let him take everything away from my mind, leaving me only with a delicious mix of pleasure and pain that lingered like a craving.
“Apologize,” my grandmother reminded me. “And when we leave our places of safety, you and I will talk long and hard.”
“Yes, Matron,” I answered before bidding her goodbye and hanging up.
***
I wandered into the pool area, but Zephyr was nowhere to be found.
For a second, I panicked until I realized he couldn’t get very far. Spelling the front entrance shut where we had come through also spelled any other exit shut. My grandmother had mentioned the caves went deep through the mountain to emerge onto another trail, connecting the Green and Waterfall Trails as earth and water, but I couldn’t imagine Zephyr had found that other entrance. But then I pictured him, shifted, a wolf prowling through the tunnels. I shivered at the thought.
It only pushed me onward into the room where Zephyr had kept himself busy trying to work out the language. In a small wooden box was a stack of more candles, crystals, salts, and liquids I would need. I sat cross-legged before the middle wall, reading the lines of writing, depicting the tale of how the Lindell coven came to be.
It was a story I knew well, and I read it once, letting myself be filled with the knowledge of my coven before I closed my eyes.
Around me, the candles lit. The liquids and salts I had created a barrier with flared, and soon, a ghostly, translucent glow surrounded me. Like glowing glass, I was protected, in my circle.
When a foot scuffed outside my circle, I paid it no mind. The shifter could do what he pleased. Right now, my grandmother was right. I needed to apologize and reconnect with my brethren.