Coven (29 page)

Practicing using my defenses, I focused on
those mental walls my dad had worked so hard to teach me to build.
I forcefully shoved them up, blocking out Jett so well that the
vision faded from my ceiling. Finally, I felt at peace—alone.

But I wasn’t. A white apparition slowly
appeared, getting brighter and brighter until Dee Dee was clearly
visible.

“This room is full of all kinds of strange
energy tonight,” she said softly.

Sighing, I nodded. “Yes, it is.”

“What is happening here?” She floated closer
and appeared to sit on the edge of the bed.

“I don’t want to talk about it,” I replied,
still feeling moody.

“It is those two boys, is it not?” Her
sympathetic expression caused some of my ire to melt away.

I nodded.

“Forget the dark one.”

Gaze narrowing in on her, I spoke. “You
don’t like Jett. Why not?”

She shrugged. “It is not a matter of me
liking him, only that I feel the other is more your match.”

“Why? What makes Seth better?” Could she
really see something I couldn’t?

“His soul is more gentle. The other is
filled with all the negative energy.”

“He’s getting better,” I replied, not sure
why I suddenly felt so defensive about Jett.
Well, he was,
I
added wryly to myself, but that was before he bound us all together
by force. I wondered if there was any way to reverse the spell.
Maybe I could ask Bels.

It wasn’t even that I hated the idea of
binding our powers. I completely agreed with the fact that there
was something special between the three of us. I just didn’t feel
that an imposed binding was the right way to keep us together to
fix our problem.

Jett, however, was a force to be reckoned
with. He was rash and didn’t think things through before he did
them. Although, the fact that he knew exactly how to bind our
powers without our consent did suggest that he’d been possibly
planning this for a while. A fresh onslaught of anger burned
through me, fizzing and popping like a bag of Pop Rocks candy
dumped into my bloodstream.

“Regardless, the other is the better
option.”

I’d almost forgotten Dee Dee was sitting
there.

“He loves you.”

I sighed. “They both do. And I love both of
them, even if I’m hating on them a bit right now.”

“What has happened?” Again she pressed for
answers.

I wasn’t falling for it. “I really don’t
want to talk about it.” I was exhausted, both mentally and
physically. I simply wanted to sleep, and my eyes were finally
growing heavy. “Sorry Dee Dee, I’m just so worn out.”

Her light started to fade away, but I was
pretty sure I was gone before she even completely disappeared.

~~~

A full night’s sleep and a hot steaming
shower did a lot to improve my mood. The next morning I practically
bounded down the stairs to get some breakfast, the smells wafting
up from the kitchen making my mouth water.

“Well, look who finally decided to get up?”
my mom teased, and my attention immediately focused on the pretty
purple pendant hanging around her neck.

“Yeah, last night kind of wore me out.”

“Too much scary at the Corn Maze?” she asked
with a laugh.

“Truthfully, yeah.” Only it wasn’t the
haunted corn maze that was terrifying me, but two boy’s hell-bent
on claiming me.

“I have to say, I’m glad you’re home. It
seems like you’re gone all the time these days—with all the games
and activities, not to mention those two young men who seem
determined to occupy your every waking moment.”

“Well, you don’t have to worry about them
today. I have no plans other than spending time with you and dad.”
I glanced through the window toward the shop. “Speaking of dad,
where is he?”

Mom smiled as she dished a plate of eggs,
sausage and toast and slid it across the giant granite bar toward
me. “He’s getting a surprise.”

“A surprise?” I asked, my interest
piqued.

She glanced toward the giant grandfather
clock gracing the nook of one wall. “Just eat. He should be back
any moment.”

I took a bite, considering her words, and
pointed my fork at her. “You’re being awful sneaky this
morning.”

“I thought you liked sneaky people.”

I sat up straighter. “Hey now, what’s that
supposed to mean?”

“It means you are always sneaking in and out
of here. One second you’re here and the next you’re gone. I’m glad
you’re enjoying your new life, but it sure makes me miss getting to
see you all the time.”

Oddly, I felt guilty. This was the woman
who’d spent most of her life meticulously homeschooling and
teaching me about real life. “I’m sorry if I’m gone too much,” I
apologized. “I don’t mean to be.”

“I’m not upset about it. I just miss you. It
was nice having you home all the time and doing things
together.”

“Well, like I said, today I’m all yours. My
homework is done for school tomorrow, and I don’t have anything
else pressing.”

That wasn’t entirely true. In all reality, I
probably should go speak to Jett and Seth, but for some reason I
didn’t want to. I was content to let them suffer for a while
longer.

“As much as I will enjoy having you around
today, I’m afraid I won’t have you all to myself.”

“What do you mean?” I asked, confused.

The sound of car doors slamming and the hum
of voices filled the air. “I think your dad is back with your
surprise,” Mom said with a smile, wiping her hands on a towel and
gesturing for me to join her.

Standing, I glanced toward the back door
just as it flew open and Grandma Milly entered the kitchen,
followed by my Grandpa Hex and my dad, both carrying luggage.

“Grandma! Grandpa!” I cried, rushing to hug
them.

“Aw! There’s my Firecracker!” my
great-grandma said, holding out her arms as I flung myself into
them. “How’s my girl?”

“Great, now that you’re here,” I replied,
smiling as I hugged her tightly.

“I’ve missed you. Now stand back and let me
take a look at you.”

I did as she asked and she glanced at my
mom, clucking woefully. “You’re every bit as pretty as your momma.
Better watch out for this one, Portia. The boys will be running
after her.”

Mom laughed. “You’re too late. They already
are.”

“Come give me a hug, Lollipop,” Grandma
said, calling my mom by the nickname she’d given her.

“Hey there pretty thing,” a deep voice said
and I turned to stare at my Haitian step-grandpa who was smiling
widely at me.

Moving toward him, he dropped the suitcase
he was carrying, catching me in a huge bear hug. “How you doing,
sweetheart?”

“I’m just so happy you’re both here.” A
thought suddenly struck me and I pulled away, glancing at my dad.
“Wait! Does this mean you’re going to try to introduce mom’s magic
back to her?”

Dad shook his head. “We aren’t quite ready
for that yet, but we are going to try reintroducing the jinn
powers. Those particular tests with your mom’s blood went much
better than the others.”

I glanced at Mom who looked like a mixture
of anticipation and worry. “I’m so excited for you,” I said, going
over and linking my arm through hers. “I’ve listened to Dad talk
about how amazing you are for all these years, and now I will
finally get to see it in action.”

Mom snickered and shook her head. “You’re
dad has always exaggerated my abilities. Don’t get your hopes up.
I’m positive I will be a little rusty.”

“I don’t even care. I’m excited to get to
share this with you. Are we doing it right now?”

Dad chuckled. “How about we get our guests
settled in and let them eat some breakfast and get a nap first?
They have been on a plane most of the night.”

“Sorry,” I said. “I’m pumped.”

“No need to be sorry. We all are—even me.”
Mom smiled.

~~~

“Everything looks good to go,” Grandpa Hex
said, taking a turn looking at a slide with Dad and Kyle.

“I agree,” Kyle said, glancing at my mom. “I
think we’re ready to try this if you are.”

“I have one request,” Grandma spoke up.

“What’s that?”

“I’d prefer if she was reintroduced in a
circle of protection, just to be on the safe side.”

“I think that sounds smart,” Dad replied,
glancing around at the others. “Does anyone else have a problem
with that?”

No one answered.

“All right. Let’s move this party to the
ritual room.”

“How long will it take?” I asked, totally
caught up in the excitement.

“It shouldn’t be long,” Grandpa answered.
“Last time we did this, your mom was evaporating in the middle of
the night, before I even had a chance to run any tests on her.”

“Yeah, she told me that my dad tried to eat
her that night.”

Dad grimaced. “In my defense, I wasn’t
exactly myself at the time.”

“I know you would never hurt Mom.”

“Do you?” he asked, pointedly.

I held my arms out wide. “I’m still alive,
aren’t I? I’d say you have a pretty good track record going.”

“I agree,” Grandma said, smiling at her
grandson-in-law. “We’ve all mistakenly judged you in the past,
Vance, and you consistently proved us all wrong. I think it’s safe
to say you’ve earned our respect and trust.”

Dad seemed surprised at her words. “Well,
thank you, Milly. That means a lot.”

The doorbell rang, interrupting our
procession to the ritual room.

“I’ve got it.” Jaunting into the large entry
hall, I made my way to the massive door, opened it, and found Jett
and Seth standing on the other side. “You’ve got to be kidding me,”
I muttered under my breath as I stepped outside, shutting the door
behind me. “Now is not a good time.”

“Come on, Kenna. You can’t stay mad at me
forever,” Jett said.

“You wanna bet?”

“He’s right. We need to figure out how to
work around this,” Seth piped up.

“Well, we wouldn’t have to be working around
anything had someone bothered to ask for our consent before he
stuck the three of us together for eternity, now would we?” I was
beyond irritated.

The door opened quickly behind me and I
turned to find my dad scowling at the three of us. “What’s going on
here?”

“Sorry, Dad. Jett and Seth came over to try
and smooth over a disagreement we are having.”

“Vance,” Grandma’s voice floated through the
house. “Hex says we need to get this serum going—now that it’s out
of the cooler.”

“Be right there,” he called over his
shoulder, his gaze never leaving mine. “Now tell me what is going
on right this minute.”

“What did you hear?” I asked, knowing that
he had to have heard us talking.

“Something about the three of you being
stuck together for eternity?” His gaze narrowed as he stared at the
guys.

“Well, you see there was this argument last
night and the three of us were fighting . . . sorta. I’m
not exactly sure if we were fighting or more like just having a
disagreement, anyway—.”

“Oh, hell. I so don’t have time for this.
All of you get inside. We can discuss this after the ritual with
your mother.” He held the door open wider and everyone entered. He
turned and stared at the boys. “I’m letting you both join my family
for this, but I don’t want any interruptions from either of you.
Afterward, we will sit down and the three of you are going to tell
me exactly what is going on. Do you understand?”

They both nodded. “Yes, sir,” they replied,
almost in unison, and dad looked at me. I nodded, as well.

“Okay. Follow me.”

Entering the ritual room, I realized that
with the eight of us here, it was more like we were practicing with
a real coven. The solitude we’d lived in for so long hadn’t
afforded us that opportunity in the past; so, to me, it seemed
weird to do magic rituals with more than one or two people
present.

“Your house, your ceremony,” Grandma said,
smiling at my dad, and he took his place at the head of the round
table covered with the purple tablecloth. A pentagram made out of
crystals was formed in the middle of it and a white pillar candle
lay in the center.

In each of the corners, more candles were
set on large candelabras, each one representing a different
element, earth, air, fire, and water, as well as North, South, East
and West.

“I call on the Watchers of the North,” Dad
said, raising his voice as he called each of the elements. As he
did so, each corresponding candelabra burst into flame.

Raising his athame, he walked around
everything and everyone in the circle three times, chanting out a
cleansing ritual.

“Our powers unite for protection,

“Our powers unite for peace,

“Our powers unite for purification,

“So mote it be.”

When he was finished, the power in the room
hummed strongly between us, and it was easy to feel the heavy
influence of magic in the air. For this moment in time, we were all
bound together. I couldn’t help glancing at Jett and Seth,
wondering if this was my future—to see them ever present across the
ritual circle from me for the rest of my life.

“Are you ready?” My dad asked my mom gently,
resting a hand on her shoulder.

She nodded. “As ready as I’ll ever be.”

“Just remember, there’s nothing to be afraid
of. If you have a bad reaction to it, then I’ll simply suck the
power from you. You’re safe here. Nothing can hurt you.”

She nodded. “I know. I trust you.”

“Have a seat over here, then,” Hex said,
pointing to the chair that had been brought inside the circle and
my mom did as he asked. Hex quickly gathered his medical supplies
and began preparing her for the IV he was going to use to
administer the jinn cells.

“What’s happening?” Seth asked, scooting
closer.

“They’re going to try to reintroduce my
mom’s jinn powers to her,” I explained softly. “If this works, they
may be able to try giving back her other powers, as well.”