Amaretto Flame (11 page)

“She forbade it?” I stopped now at the foot
of the stairs.

“She doesn’t even want us calling you,
Livvy,” Everett said, his voice even lower. I couldn’t believe it.
I had never questioned Ivanna’s ability to govern the coven before.
She had always done her best to ensure our safety, but now…she was
punishing the whole coven because she was holding a grudge against
me. Wasn’t this a hundred times worse than what I’d done?

“Yeah, well we’ll see about all that,” I
said, flipping the phone shut. Righteous anger flowed through my
veins as I locked the front door and jogged down the steps and the
cobblestone walk. It scared me that I doubted Ivanna, but at the
same time, she was responsible for the safety of my brothers and
sisters, and she was making the wrong choice. Let her get mad. Let
her punish me in some other way, but I was going home.

I drove like a maniac, cursing the many miles
between Staves and Eagleton. The only thing I could think about was
the fact that Max was attacked. If his attackers were Venator, he’d
been within an arm’s reach of the deadliest people to walk the face
of the earth; magick-users who thought nothing of torturing humans
and Wise Ones.

A few years after I arrived in Eagleton, a
rumor reached us that there was a possible Venator hideout nearby.
Perry and a few of the men from another coven went to check it out.
When they arrived, they found it completely empty. Whether the
Venator tribe was weak and had heard about Wise Ones coming, we
never found out, but Perry had brought back some of the trophies
he’d found there.

The Venator were true to their name; they
were hunters in every way. Sometimes they killed their victims
right away, and sometimes they turned them into slaves, but the
victims always died and it was always painful. I snuck into one of
the storage rooms a few days after Perry’s return and found those
trophies; bloody locks of hair fastened to wooden plaques,
high-priestess necklaces with teeth threaded onto the chains, and
other horrible memorabilia.

Possibly the worst were the hides. Years
back, many Wise Ones received tattoos when they dedicated their
lives to the Goddess and to the magick. Whereas the Venator wore
the hunter’s arrows, the Wise Ones were given Goddess symbols; a
full moon between two crescents, waxing and waning. Many of them
took it a step further and received their coven symbol inside the
full moon. These were the Venator’s favorite souvenirs of death.
They’d cut the skin off their victims and dry it before affixing it
to a plaque bearing the silver hunter’s arrow.

Most Wise Ones had stopped getting tattooed,
preventing themselves from becoming an easy target. The images of
those trophies haunted me, and a chill ran through me. As I got
closer to Eagleton, my heart pounded more forcefully against my
ribcage, but the anger seethed on. Ten minutes before reaching
home, as I turned onto a quiet, country street that was tree-lined
and shaded, I realized there was going to be a problem.

A few hundred feet in front of me, Ivanna’s
silver sedan pulled out from the side of the street and into the
middle, where it stayed, reflecting the pebbles of light that made
it through the trees. Immediately I knew that I wasn’t going to be
allowed to go home today. I didn’t slow down until I was
dangerously close to her car, and I slammed on the brakes and threw
my own car into park. Getting out, I slammed the door and stood,
waiting for the reason I was being blocked.

Ivanna stepped out of the driver’s side at
the same time Everett stepped out of the passenger-side. Crossing
my arms over my chest, I glared hard at both of them.

“What?” I asked. “Are you going to stop me
from going to Eagleton?”

“Absolutely,” Ivanna said without hesitation.
“Your place is in Staves right now. You’re overreacting and you’re
not thinking clearly,” she added. “Much the way you did when you
were sent to the orphanage.”

“I get it, Ivanna!” I stepped forward. “I
know I messed up. And maybe I am overreacting but you can’t be sure
who Max’s attackers were. I need to be home. Postpone the
punishment until we figure out what’s going on.”

“Olivia, there is no need for you here right
now. The grounds of Eagleton are safe and it’s highly unlikely that
the attackers were Venator. Max is still alive and well.”

“You heard what Lillian said,” I replied
hotly. “Just because Max wasn’t hurt doesn’t mean they weren’t
Venator…and it doesn’t mean they won’t come here. It doesn’t mean
that everyone is safe.”

“Olivia, if and when we need you here, I will
let you know. Until then, you’re going to face the consequences you
brought upon yourself in Staves,” Ivanna pulled her sunglasses up
to look at me with her dark eyes. I shook my head in disgust and
glanced at Everett.

“Livvy,” he said slowly, “we’re all fine. I
know you’re worried, but we’re safe.”
I frowned at him and addressed Ivanna again. “Do you know that
nothing is going to happen to any of them?” I gestured toward
Everett. “Can you swear it to me on fire, water, earth and air? Can
you, Ivanna?”

“Don’t be melodramatic, Olivia. You know
reading the future is not my talent, but you also know that I would
give my life to keep our family safe.” I saw a real flicker of hurt
in Ivanna’s eyes. It disappeared as quickly as it came, though. I
stepped forward a bit more so that I could look her directly in
those eyes.

“Ivanna, if you can’t swear it, then you have
absolutely no excuse for keeping me away. You aren’t
justified.”

“I don’t have to be justified. I am your
high-priestess,” her voice took on that magickal tone as she lifted
her chin, “and I am telling you that if you do not turn around
right now and go back to Staves, your bonds to the coven will be
forfeit.”

I was frozen in place for a long moment.
“Unbelievable,” I said, looking back and forth between her and
Everett. When coven bonds are forfeited, not only do members find
themselves out of the families, but sometimes they find themselves
deep in a feud with former coven members. Usually, a coven member
would have to do something absolutely unforgivable for this to
happen. Until the day I’d messed up and given the boy our number, I
was closer to Ivanna than any other woman on the planet.

While Charlotte had behaved as our mother,
Ivanna was my older sister, my confidante, my mentor. She
unashamedly displayed me as her favorite, and even asked my advice
on most coven decisions. Never in all the time I’d been in Eagleton
had she spoken to me this way, and while there was some deep hurt
within me, what I mostly felt was white hot anger.

I tensed my jaw and forced myself to uncross
my arms. Ivanna’s glare never faltered and I could see that she
most certainly meant her threat.

“Fine,” I said quietly and coldly, “but if
something happens to any of you because of this…I will never
forgive you, Ivanna. I’ll leave the coven freely and I will never
come back, and for the rest of my days on this planet, I will
never, ever forgive you.”

I turned, heading back to the car. I heard
Everett say my name a few times, but I ignored him. I wanted to run
to him and scream, cry, demand to know how I had suddenly found
myself on the outside looking in, but my pride refused to allow
that. Tears pooled in my eyes as I got into the car and threw it in
reverse, squealing tires as I spun around.

The ride back to Staves was a blur. I didn’t
want to go back, but there was nowhere else for me to go. When I
was almost there, I realized it was probably best anyway. While my
original intention with the job was to piss Ivanna off, it would
serve a different purpose in keeping me occupied. I wasn’t prepared
for Jackson to be at the house when I arrived, but there he
was.

The black jeep was in my spot, and he was
leaning up against the driver-side door, his arms crossed casually.
I pulled up behind him, groaning, and rubbing tear stains from my
cheeks quickly. I got out of the car and he waved, turning up the
corners of his mouth. When he looked at my face, his smile faded
and his face was washed in a look of concern.

“Hey, are you okay?” He asked. I walked past
him and toward the gate.
“I’m fine,” I said. “Rough morning, that’s all.”

Despite my attempt at a brush-off, Jackson
fell into step behind me and followed me through the gate.

“I’m just not feeling well,” I added, walking
up the porch steps quickly. I hoped he’d take the hint and leave,
but when I turned back to look at him, he was directly in front of
me. Drawing his brows together, he studied my face.

“You look upset,” he said. Whether it was the
fact that he noticed me being upset or the concern on his face,
tears welled up in my eyes again and I looked down at my feet,
shaking my head.

“No.” I cleared my throat. “I’m fine,
thanks.”

He was quiet for a few beats and then he
said, “Listen, I came by because I wanted to apologize for what
Paula said last night. She can be…harsh sometimes.”

“Oh, please. Don’t apologize. It’s no big
deal,” I said, glancing up at him. His eyes were brilliant in the
sunlight, and although I wanted nothing more than to get inside the
house, I couldn’t help staring for just a moment. My pause gave him
time to move forward. He put his arms out hesitantly, and then he
was wrapping me in a hug. I gasped when I felt the little shock
again, but when I inhaled, it was the scent of him – warmth and the
leather of his jacket, and the faint, clean smell of cologne. His
arms held me tightly, and before I knew what was happening, my arms
responded by encircling him and my forehead was pressing against
his chest.

I clung to him for a moment, just reveling in
the contact and the warmth, but then I remembered my place on the
planet and I backed up quickly. As if he were reluctant, he
sluggishly removed his arms and turned up a corner of his
mouth.

Embarrassed, I stammered, “What was that
for?”

“You looked like you needed it. Apparently, I
did too.” He smile broadened and then he turned to leave. After
descending the steps, he turned back to me. “Hey, do you think we
could do something together sometime? I’d really like to get to
know you better, Olivia.”

I blinked, remembering Jenny and Erika’s
warning. “I don’t know. Maybe,” I said.

I was rewarded with another smile, and then
he said, “I’ll see you at work.” In another moment, he was gone and
I was left to my own feelings. Surprisingly, I did none of the
things I’d expected to do when I arrived back at the house. I’d
wanted to pound out my fury on the treadmill in the exercise room,
maybe blast some loud and heavy music. Instead, I picked up my work
uniform, threw it in the washer, got something to eat, and then
cleaned up the kitchen a little.

Throughout these chores, I was able to keep
my brain silent, but when I ran out of things to do, my thoughts
came rushing in without mercy. My anger at Ivanna had dulled to a
throbbing madness, and I was determined to think of some way to
protect my family. I couldn’t shake the bad feeling I had that
something was about to happen. If Lillian’s oracle was right, the
Venator were searching for something or someone, and the only
reason I could think of for them to do this was that this person or
thing they wanted was of great benefit to them.

Between these frightening thoughts were the
vivid memories of the way Jackson’s arms had felt around me. Jenny
had hugged me, but I hadn’t felt the shocking sensation with her.
Jackson was the only male human I’d ever really been in contact
with physically. He was the only male I ever hugged – not counting
my time before Eagleton – other than my coven brothers, and their
hugs had been very different.

When I thought of him, I felt…odd. My heart
raced and a smile threatened to overtake me, even in the face of
all that was wrong right now. I’d discovered since coming to Staves
that there was a lot I’d missed out on; a lot I didn’t know, but I
wasn’t stupid. It was clear to me that I liked Jackson Vance. I
tried to analyze that. What about him was so attractive to me?
Sure, he was gorgeous and seemed to be a genuinely sweet person,
but there was something else. I kept thinking about the way he
refused to take a shot alone. Maybe something about the
vulnerability in that appealed to me. I sighed in frustration with
myself.

By the time I had dressed for work, I’d
already decided that I had to put my crush on Jackson out of my
mind. It wasn’t smart to encourage it for a number of reasons.
First, I would be leaving as soon as I could get it through
Ivanna’s thick skull that I needed to be in Eagleton. Second, I
didn’t want to be one of the girls Jenny and Erika had mentioned
when they talked about Jackson – the girls he was ‘involved’ with
but gave up the moment they confessed they had feelings with
him.

Finally, it was plainly evident that me
getting close to Jackson wouldn’t be accepted by some of my
co-workers; ones that were devastatingly beautiful on the outside
and still insecure enough to point out someone else’s faults.
So that was it. No more Jackson Vance.

Sunday night at Stallott’s was dead. The
greater majority of regular customers had work the next morning, so
we were all able to breathe a sigh of relief. My sigh was deeper
because Sunday night meant Renee was back to being the bartender
and Paula and Rick weren’t required. The downside of this was that
there were few things to keep me occupied, so my darker thoughts
from earlier kept returning, as well as my overwhelming need to
glance toward the stage.

With all the glasses clean, and just a few
customers to wait on, I expected a quiet night. Imagine my surprise
when I turned from wiping down a booth to see Everett coming in the
darkly-tinted door. I was immediately embarrassed when his eyes
found me and took in the skimpy uniform. Jenny noticed him a moment
later, and raised her eyebrows, fluffing her hair with her hand.
“Oh look. It’s my future husband. Who is that baby-faced hottie
eyeballing you from the door?”