Bewitched, Bothered, and Bitten (24 page)

“Why didn’t you let her hug you?” he asked, still speaking so softly only I would be able to hear him.

Tilting my head back, I put my mouth to his ear. “I’m pretty sure any hugs she gives me will be so she can figure out which two ribs she needs to stick the knife between when she stabs me in the back.”

He shook his head. “You say that as though it were a joke, but I think it’s frighteningly close to the truth.”

I shrugged. “It is the truth and there’s nothing I can do about it until she openly defies me.”

I tapped the truth amulet on Finn’s wrist. Since I hadn’t had the tools or time to create a new one, I thought it was somewhat poetic that I would use a truth amulet Belinda made to find the witch who had betrayed her. Since I wasn’t sure who I could trust in the coven, I was glad that Finn possessed the power needed to use it.

“Just remember to tap your wrist if the amulet turns orange when a witch is speaking.”

Finn tilted his head in acknowledgement.

I took one deep breath to steel myself for the confrontation that was soon to come. Finn laced his fingers with mine and, immediately, the calm I felt lying in bed with him this morning returned.

“Ready?” I asked.

“If you are.”

“I guess we’ll find out soon enough,” I murmured.

We walked through the open French doors into the meeting room and my eyes were instantly drawn to Sharon and Beatrice, who were the only other witches there. It seemed that the other seven elders were not as eager to undermine me so quickly after my ascension.

“Hello, Sharon, Beatrice. I appreciate you both arriving so early.” Since my polite words seemed to unnerve Janice a few minutes ago, I decided to continue with the same serene, politically correct attitude I’d often envied in Belinda.

Sharon didn’t bother with niceties. “What is he doing here?”

“Do you mean Finn?”

I had to bite back a smile when her mouth pinched tightly as though she were making every effort to control her response. Damn, maybe Belinda had been more like me than I thought, only instead of using sarcasm to irritate people, she killed them with kindness. This was going to be fun.

“Yes,” Sharon hissed.

“He is attending as an envoy of the vampire council.”

“You brought a vampire
here
, to Coven House?” Beatrice gasped.

“Yes. Actually, several more will be here later.”

“You can’t do this!” Sharon exclaimed. “You didn’t even ask the elders for approval.”

Okay, this was becoming less fun and more of an annoyance. “It may not be approved by the elders, but it is happening.” Maybe it was time to throw out some bait and see who bit. “A lot of people I care about were hurt or killed last night and someone in this coven is responsible.”

Beatrice gasped and Sharon’s face grew ashen.

“Are you suggesting that a witch betrayed the coven?” Beatrice asked, aghast.

“I’m not suggesting it, it’s a statement of fact. I found a Hangman’s Talisman in a book that Belinda obtained from the library in Coven House. Though I haven’t had a chance to examine her belongings, I’m certain I’ll find another somewhere among them. The Faction wouldn’t have been able to track us otherwise.”

“Dear Goddess,” Beatrice whispered.

“Surely you can’t think that one of the elders would do such a thing?” Sharon asked, her voice a great deal more subdued than it had been a few moments ago.

I studied her, unable to determine if I was seeing guilt or shock in her expression. “Until I find the traitor, I’m not taking any chances.”

Finn shifted beside me, turning slightly away, but I remained focused on the two witches in front of me.

“An elder would never do such a thing,” Sharon insisted. “Right, Beatrice?”

“Absolutely not.”

Something in Beatrice’s tone caught my attention, but, before I could decipher what it was, she sighed and spoke. “Let’s go check on Janice and Constance in the kitchen. I’m sure they’re making the coffee too strong.”

They skirted around Finn and me. I listened until the sound of their footsteps faded away, then asked Finn, “Did you notice anything strange?” I asked him.

He moved me further into the room, glancing over his shoulder to ensure we were alone. “I’m not sure if it was both of them or only one, but the amulet turned orange when they were speaking to you.”

A chill ran up my spine. It was very possible that I’d been standing a few feet away from the women responsible for Belinda’s death. The icy dread was engulfed by a surge of rage and power. I wanted to lash out and destroy the witches that I’m sure were huddled in the kitchen discussing ways to get rid of me. A part of me wanted to luxuriate in that dark impulse, to imagine all the ways I could hurt them and make them pay for what they had done to Belinda and to me. The realization filled me with fear. Was this what my father felt before he fell to the temptation of black magic?

Finn’s hand came up to rest on my shoulder. “Kerry, you need to try to calm down. You’re eyes are glowing.”

I closed them and focused on slowing my breathing. I had to maintain control. This wasn’t the time or place to unleash hell on the traitor. I needed to be patient, bait the trap, and let the witch who betrayed us fall into it.

When I had a firm grip on my emotions and my powers, I opened my eyes. “Let’s get this done.”

While I got my things set up on the table at the front of the room, Finn called Conner and they discussed the best areas to place the vampire and werewolf security. With Lachlan out of commission, Calder should have been here, but he was still drained from all the energy that healing Ricki was taking out of his body. Chloe stepped in to represent the pack until Calder was back on his feet. I assumed the male wolves would give her trouble, but they seemed positively cowed by her presence. I sensed there was a story there, but I would have to wait until things were calmer to get it.

Conner, Lex, Finn, and Gabriel would all be in attendance at the meeting. I had purposefully left out the fact that the entire vampire Council would be here when talking to Sharon and the other elders earlier. Just as I had neglected to tell them that some of the werewolves were coming as well. I wanted to get a reaction, a strong one. If they were angry or off balance in another way, then the traitor was more likely to make a mistake and reveal their perfidy.

Fifteen minutes before the meeting was scheduled to begin, men and women began to trickle in. Though attendance wasn’t required, it was considered bad manners to miss the first meeting with a new High Priestess after her ascension.

Last night, I assumed a great deal of the coven members would refuse to come to the meeting. Over the years, many of them had fallen on a spectrum in regards to their treatment of me. Some pretended I didn’t exist or demonstrated polite tolerance. Others were outright nasty.

However, I was surprised at the turn out. By my count, at the 10 a.m. start time, all but five witches in the coven were there, almost ninety of them. As everyone shuffled to their seats, chatting quietly or even crying almost silent tears, I noticed three more women arrive.

Though Belinda often started the meetings promptly at their scheduled time, I decided to wait five minutes for people to settle and compose themselves. Finn moved to the back of the room where I could clearly see him from my position in front of the members.

I lifted the bell used for rituals and meetings and rang it three times, signaling to the coven that it was time to begin the meeting.

Before I spoke, I muttered a spell to help my voice carry throughout the room so I wouldn’t have to raise my volume.

“Thank you all for coming. I am here with a heavy heart, as I know you are as well, at the loss of our fallen High Priestess. Because of the circumstances of her death, I’m afraid we cannot allow ourselves to grieve today as we usually would. There is something we must discuss as a coven and it was Belinda’s wish for our future. I’m sure you all know that she was working to achieve a peaceful relationship with both the vampires and werewolves in this area. Unfortunately, she could not bring this to Coven House before her death. As her successor, she shared with me how beneficial she felt this would be for our people and I agreed with her.” I paused to take a breath and allow this to sink in.

Someone near the front of the room muttered, “Only because you’re going to bed with one of those bloodsuckers.”

I felt my brows lift. “Excuse me?”

It didn’t surprise me in the least when Janice March rose to her feet from her place with the elders. “You are blatantly violating coven edicts. Just because you are the High Priestess doesn’t mean you can do whatever you want.”

I reminded myself to breathe rather than imagining her bursting into flames where she stood. In my current emotional state, it was a dangerous image to consider. It was also tempting.

“I agree that, as High Priestess, I should not expect to break coven law with impunity. However, I know many of the witches here agree that several of our laws and rules are outdated and need to be changed. If we establish a relationship with the vampires and werewolves, I don’t see how my choice in mates would matter.”

The room fell completely silent. I couldn’t even hear anyone breathe. Then I realized what I said and felt my heart start pounding. My eyes flew to where Finn was standing at the back of the room. He was leaning back against the rear wall, a small, satisfied smile on his face. Well, at least he didn’t look like he wanted to run away.

Murmurs began at the back of the room, moving forward, bringing my attention away from Finn. Conner, Gabriel, and Lex were entering the room with Chloe.

“You dare bring them into our sanctuary!” Sharon screeched.

I lifted my hands and the room began to calm except for Sharon, Beatrice, and Janice. Though I expected Constance to be outraged, she looked confused rather than angry.

“Please quiet down for a moment,” I requested. “I think you’ll find the terms that Conner and the MacIntire pack have offered to be fair and unobtrusive.”

Finally, even the elders stopped yammering as the vampires and werewolf made their way up the center aisle to the table where I stood.

“This is Conner Savage, one of the Council members. All I ask is that you listen to what he has to say and carefully consider his words. Most of you know how Belinda felt about healing the rifts between our communities, but I’m sharing with you my feelings as well. It is time to put aside all the anger and frustration of the past centuries and work together. Even though Belinda and I had the support and protection of the vampires and wolves yesterday, our High Priestess was lost. If we, as a coven, remain separate, I fear we won’t be able to protect ourselves from whatever plans the Faction has for us.”

For a moment, I thought I had gotten through to them. Most of the younger coven members were nodding in agreement as I spoke, but, as soon as I shut my mouth, the elders and several of the older witches began shouting objections as one.

I stared at them and wondered if I could generate enough power to cast a spell that would make them all shut up for a few minutes. Or maybe even for a month or two.

I sighed and met Finn’s eyes. He looked as exasperated as I felt, but also amused. Unfortunately, because so many people were speaking at once, there was no way for him to use the truth amulet I’d given him. In regards to finding the traitor, this meeting was a waste. Maybe, at the very least, I could get a majority vote from the coven agreeing to an alliance with the vampires and shape shifters.

I pushed up my mental sleeves and waded in.

“I
’
m so glad
I’m a werewolf,” Chloe stated as she drank from her beer. “None of that, let’s take a vote shit. As beta or alpha, I tell them what’s going to happen and, if I’m feeling generous, I might listen to their politely worded concerns. If some pup threw a tantrum the way that Sharon woman did today, he would have needed a trip to the infirmary and a few days to recover.”

I snorted, staring into my own glass of wine. “Goddess, if only it were that easy. I can imagine the response if I tried to implement that kind of leadership. It would turn into a bloodbath.”

After my introduction of Conner, the meeting had gone downhill quickly. Finally, it had been Sally Abrams who forced the vote over the elders’ strident disagreement.

“My sister died at the hands of the Faction, or have the elders forgotten that?” she asked, her eyes glittering with anger and unshed tears. “You stand there and argue about coven laws that are five hundred years old rather than listen to someone who could help us. Our fallen High Priestess is dead and you carry on these petty, small-minded arguments because you don’t like her choice of successor. What’s more important to you? The rules or the members of this coven?” She paused, her chest heaving with each breath. “If your answer lies with laws and tradition, perhaps you should consider stepping down from your position. Elders are supposed to be advocates for the other members of the coven.”

It was then that the elders fell silent. They had to. If they continued to argue, they looked exactly like the catty women they were. Conner spoke for ten minutes and answered questions for another thirty. Chloe chimed in with what she could, explaining that the alpha of the MacIntire pack had been severely injured while protecting Belinda. That alone probably earned enough votes from the coven for a majority agreement to an alliance with the vampires and werewolves.