Coven (23 page)

Seth reclaimed my attention. “And as far as
what happened just now? Yes, I did use a calming magic on you. You
seemed nervous and I wanted you to feel better.”

Staring at his aura, I could see his colors
dancing around, vibrant and pure. There was no malice in him
whatsoever. All the vibes from him signaled how important I was to
him. Protection and safety were key to him and it made me feel good
to know that he cherished me so much.

Glancing over at Jett, I had to school my
features so I wouldn’t laugh. His aura represented that of a young
girl with the biggest crush she’d ever had. Attraction positively
sparked off him, one hundred percent directed at me. It was so
strong his aura practically reached out for mine, as if it wished
to meld with its other half. It was hard for me to resist his pull.
While I was incredibly attracted to him, he scared me, as well. In
truth, they both did.

It was time for honesty. “Everything has
happened so quickly. Doesn’t it feel that way to either of you? I
barely know you. This is still my first week here, yet I’ve done
more in this one week than I ever expected to do in a
month—especially when it comes to relationships. Sometimes I feel
like things are flying at me like bricks and all I’m doing is
trying to dodge being hit.” I sighed. “I don’t know if that makes
any sense. I guess I’m just trying to say, none of this feels
normal.”

“If you’ll stop freaking out and listen to
us, I think we can maybe explain some of the connection the three
of us are having. But Kenna, darlin’, you gotta come inside for
that to happen.”

Maybe I really was losing my mind, standing
out here in the middle of nowhere arguing with both of them. I
trusted them. Otherwise I wouldn’t be here.

Jett held his hand out and I slipped mine
inside, embracing the fiery sparks that raced up my arm at the
contact. I liked when he touched me. It made me feel
. . . beautiful . . . as if how he felt about
me traveled through him, to me, on a cellular level upon
contact.

Wouldn’t my dad love testing
that
out
that in his lab? I could see it now. “Hey Dad, can you please
explain the chemical reaction between my boyfriends and me?” He’d
probably die of a heart attack on the spot. No, he’d kill the boys
first, then die of a heart attack.

My thoughts were interrupted as we stepped
inside the dark space with its earthen floor. A ball of witch light
appeared beside me as Seth lit the space for us in a bluish glow,
revealing bare wooden walls. In one corner was a rock fireplace,
big enough to have been used for both heating and cooking. Other
than that, all there was to see was massive tangles of cobwebs
hanging from the ceiling and in the corners of the room.

“Wait. What’s that?” I asked, pointing to a
ladder leaning against the wall.

“There’s a small loft up there, just big
enough for a bed. I imagine it used to be the sleeping
quarters.

“I can’t even imagine living like this,” I
replied, turning around in a circle.

“Were you expecting something more plush?” A
cool air swept through the cabin, removing all the cobwebs, and
immediately the room was bathed in warm light as a fire burst to
life inside the fireplace, though it gave no warmth. A very cushy
looking couch, loaded with bright throw pillows in blue and purple
hues, was pushed in front of it. End tables were at each end, with
warm light glowing from the lamps there. Pictures of ocean scenes
dotted the walls, along with marine décor that reminded me of his
parents’ restaurant.

“This looks incredible!” I said, completely
amazed. “I could stare at this forever. Shoot, I could live out
here.”

Jett beamed at me, obviously pleased with my
reaction.

“There’s only one problem,” Seth
announced.

“Really? What’s that?”

He waved his hand across the space. “All of
this is just an illusion. If you tried to sit on that couch your
butt is going to hit the dirt floor. If you want to actually be
able to use things, then you need me.”

Immediately the room Jett had created
disappeared, replaced item-by-item with furniture and accessories
in warm earthy tones. The fireplace, however, remained dark.

Glancing at me he nodded. “Fire is
your
specialty.”

Raising my arm, I let a fireball dance in my
hand for a moment before dramatically throwing it into the rocky
hearth where it exploded into a ball of continuously burning flame,
taking the ever so slight night nip out of the air.

“Well, aren’t you just all fancy?” Jett
sneered at Seth before going over and plopping down on the
couch.

Seth laughed. “Jett has the power of
illusion—he can make people see things that aren’t really there. I
have the power of manifestation, meaning I can actually make things
materialize. Both have their uses.”

Guiding me to the sofa, I sat next to Jett,
while Seth settled in on the other side of me. It still amazed me
that he could make things appear like this. “What else can you guys
do?”

Seth shrugged. “We both can move objects, as
I’m sure you can, too. That seems to be pretty standard witch
magic.” I nodded, agreeing with his assessment. I’d never met a
witch who couldn’t do that. “Jett’s main powers stem from air. He
can move it, use it, bend it to his will.”

I snickered, thinking of old cartoons from
my youth. “Does this mean you’re one of the last Air Benders?”

Jett stared at me and shrugged. “Where do
you think they got the idea for the show?”

Full out laughter escaped me. “Not from you,
I’m sure.”

“No, but it would’ve been awesome if they
did.” He smiled and winked at me, letting me know he was okay with
my teasing. That gesture, warmed my heart more than anything. It
made him seem less uptight, somehow.

“Seth is an Earth witch,” Jett
announced.

“Really? Like you can make things grow and
stuff like that?”

He nodded. “I can, if necessary.”

“Wow! That’s so amazing! I want to see.”

“When we go outside in a bit, I promise.”
Resting his hand lightly on my leg, he stroked it. It was such a
casual, gentle move; but it set my body on fire—as if flames were
licking me up from the inside out. I’d never experience such a
physical reaction like this before. It was both heady and
terrifying.

“What else can you both do?” I asked,
forcing the words out of my suddenly dry mouth.

“Well, you already know Jett gets
premonitions,” Seth said. “And I can animate objects and make them
levitate”

“Wait, but you do too, right? Have
premonitions, I mean. You both had that weird dream about me—twice.
That’s got to be something magical.”

Seth shrugged. “I’d never experienced it
before I dreamt of you.”

“Which is why I think we all need to test
our magic out together,” Jett piped up. “There is obviously
something else going on between the three of us, and I want to find
out what it is. Kenna, tell us about your abilities.”

Sighing, I focused on the magic running
through me. “Well, as you know, fire is my main natural power. It
tends to be my go-to ability—the thing I’m most comfortable with.
It’s a power I inherited from my dad. I think, based on his past,
that I can say he’s probably one of the most powerful fire demons
in existence.” Looking back and forth between them, I hedged on
telling them this next part; but then decided if we were going to
trust each other, I might as well take the plunge. “I also have a
certain rare ability. I’m mentally connected to my dad, and
depending on the distance, I can speak to him through that link
whenever I want.”

“Are you saying he can read your mind?” Jett
asked, and I was pretty sure his face paled slightly.

I nodded. “That’s exactly what I’m
saying.”

Both boys groaned.

“What?” I asked, confused as to why this
might be upsetting to them.

“So your dad knows about everything that’s
going on with the three of us?”

I laughed. “If my dad had any clue of that,
both of you would be dead and I’d be sitting back in my old house
in the middle of Opal Creek National Forest.”

“But you just said . . .”

I cut Jett off. “I said he could read my
mind—if I let him. My dad likes having his privacy—thank
goodness—and taught me, from childhood, how to place mental
barriers so that no one has access to my mind without permission.
Privacy is very important to him.”

“Thank heaven for small miracles.” Jett
breathed out, visibly relaxing. “So what else have you inherited
from your dad?”

“I’m not really sure.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean my dad has powers he doesn’t even
know about. His dad, Damien Cummings, was a very evil man, a demon,
who sacrificed many witches and warlocks to build his strength. He
would kidnap those with the most power, drink their blood and then
suck their magic from them using the power of a Demon Kiss.”

“I’m familiar with the magic you’re speaking
of,” Jett said, letting me know immediately that his coven was
involved in the same kind of behavior. That scared me.

I brushed that thought aside and continued
on with my story. “When my dad finally had the chance to fight my
grandpa, my dad did the same to him, absorbing all the magic of
those witches—and I’m talking hundreds, maybe even thousands. He
was extremely powerful before, but scary-powerful afterward. Then
things went wrong with my mom, when the Awakening was taken from
her, and she became a demon. She couldn’t take it and went
completely crazy in the head. She couldn’t comprehend anything. So
my dad had two choices—kill her, or take her magic. There was only
one choice really.”

“So he’s currently the vessel for your mom’s
magic, too?” Jett sounded surprised and I nodded.

“My magical traits come from many places,
including both my parents, but anything actually passed down to me
came strictly from my dad. Now that my mom is completely human,
that makes me a “mud blood” I guess.” I couldn’t help my slight
giggle as I smiled at the reference.

“A ‘mud blood’?” Seth looked just as
confused as Jett.

“Oh, come on! Don’t tell me you’ve never
read or seen Harry Potter? I lived completely away from society and
even I’ve read the books and seen the movies.”

“Never seen it,” Jett said.

“Me, neither,” Seth added.

“Well, that’s it. This relationship must end
immediately.” Standing, I brushed my hands over my clothes and
headed toward the door.

“And where exactly do you think you’re
going?” Jett asked, zipping around to bar my path.

“I’m going to find some real witches to hang
out with, now that I know you two are impostors.”

Grinning, he stepped closer, sliding his
hand against my cheek and rubbing his thumb there. “We’ll watch the
damn movies if that’s what you want.”

Smiling, I nodded. “That’s what I want. And
I want you to watch them with me so I can see your reactions.”

“Works for me.” Seth nodded. “I can easily
add that equipment out here.”

“Can we leave it like this?” I asked,
glancing over at him. “I mean, will it stay this way when you
aren’t here?”

“Sure. It’s here until we tell it to
go.”

“I like it here; and I can see that you’re
both fond of it, too. I think it should be our own special place we
can come to and escape it all.”

“Wait a second,” Jett said, halting me.
“What do you mean when you say you can see we are fond of it,
too?”

I laughed. “In your auras. It’s plain as day
that something about this place relaxes you both.”

“You can see auras?”

“Yeah, it comes in really handy when trying
to avoid certain kinds of people.” I eyed him, waiting to see if
he’d catch my meaning.

“Hang on now. That’s why you kept staring at
me that first day we met, isn’t it? You were trying to read my
aura.”

“I was. And it was messy, messy, messy—all
angry red with this black streak that snaked through it. I thought
it looked exactly like this.” Reaching out, I pushed his sleeve up
slightly, to reveal the coiled snake wrapped around his bicep. “I
was worried about you. And then you were so mean to me.”

Sighing, he dropped his hand away, linking
fingers with me. “I’m sorry. I was angry, and more than a little
jealous. I’d dreamed about you. That dream said you were coming and
would be mine. Then you showed up and not with just any guy, but
with my best friend, who was obviously taken with you—and you with
him. And even though he had a dream, as well, I’m afraid I tend to
lash out irrationally on occasion. And though I still feel like I
was helping you out when you first got here, you’re right. I
could’ve gone about it better. If you’ll let me, I’ll spend the
rest of my life making it up to you.”

He leaned in closer, but I placed my hands
over his lips. “Jett, I know I agreed to all this, but can we
please take things slow? I’m not used to it and it’s all so
overwhelming.”

“You set the pace, darlin’. We will follow
your lead. In fact . . .” His sentence dwindled off as he
left my side and pulled Seth away for a private chat. Laughing at
whatever he said, Seth twirled his hand in the air, conjuring
something and then placed it in Jett’s hand. Jett was grinning as
he rejoined me.

“I figured since you can see our auras and
use it to gage our emotions, it’s only fair that we get to do the
same with you. Turn around.”

I had no idea what he was talking about, but
I dutifully did as he asked, surprised when he fastened a necklace
around my throat. Glancing down, I noted the plain black cord
decorated with a few beads and findings. In the middle of the beads
was a teardrop shaped silver filigree pendant with a blue green
stone in the center.

“What’s this?” I asked, fingering the pretty
stone. To my surprise it began changing colors at my touch. “Oh my
gosh! Is this a mood necklace?” I couldn’t help my laughter.