scrunched his forehead. "What sticks in my craw is why she'd want to protect a psycho like this. I don't believe it's someone she knows…" A chuckle rumbled from his chest, and the grizzled lawman shook his head. "If it is, I hope she takes him off her Christmas card list."
----
Chapter Eleven
"They've called a meeting of the elders," Sorina whispered to Ravyn as they made their way to the meadow where the weekly ritual would be held.
"From all the covens?" Ravyn asked in alarm, also keeping her voice low. She didn't want anyone to overhear.
There were twenty-some-odd covens scattered around the United States and Europe. Ravyn had met some of the other covens' witches, but the only elder she knew was Vanora, the elder of her own group. Whenever the elders called an unscheduled meeting, things were particularly bad. Had they discovered what she'd done? Surely not. Vanora would have called her in immediately.
Sorina shrugged. "Don't worry about it. I'm sure they'll just discuss the 'horrors of the outside world.'" She gnawed on her lower lip, her blue eyes clouded with worry. "Though maybe they'll implement more rules restricting our association with mortals."
Ravyn knew Sorina was concerned about effects to her engagement. Her loves of a normal life and Justin were much more important to her than her heritage or witchcraft. From the time they'd been children, Sorina had taken to the coven's teachings with a sort of nonchalance, as if being a witch was an afterthought. For Ravyn, being a witch was who she was, everything she was. Ravyn had never felt comfortable in the mortal world. She was out of place there, an imposter. While a child, living in the mortal world with her mother had caused her pain and anguish, and she'd learned early that she didn't belong. The coven was her haven, her only source of peace.
Sorina fit into the coven and the mortal world equally. In school she'd been popular and well liked. The other kids had tolerated Ravyn only because she was Sorina's sister. But being the sister of Sorina didn't always protect her. Once, when Ravyn was in the sixth grade and Sorina was in third, Ravyn had found an injured cat on the playground. She had knelt beside the animal, trying to help, and had placed her hands on it, willing it to heal. The cat had died anyway. Some of the kids came upon her and began screaming that she'd murdered the animal. She'd cried, and they'd made even more fun. She could feel herself losing control, wanting to hurt them… and Sorina had intervened just in time, calming both her and the other children. But from then on, anytime Sorina wasn't around, Ravyn's classmates taunted her.
She'd been chubby as a child, and after the cat incident, in addition to poking fun at her for her weight, they'd added cat killer to their insults.
There'd been one boy she thought was different: Brandon Tollers. He had black hair and blue eyes and looked just like John Stamos. Ravyn knew that he wasn't like the others, and that if she told him the truth, or at least part of it, he'd make the others stop. One day she'd found him sitting alone in the cafeteria. She'd slid in the seat across from him. Heart pounding, partly from looking into those blue eyes and partly from what she was about to do, she'd explained that she had powers, could do things other kids couldn't. She'd stopped short of using the word witch, but she'd attempted to explain what had really happened with the cat after making him promise he wouldn't tell the others her secret.
"You believe me?" she'd asked hopefully.
"Sure," Brandon had said, and Ravyn felt like a weight had been lifted. Things would be different now.
And they were. The kids tormented her even more, poking fun at her for thinking she was "magic." One day, she'd gone to her desk and found a pile of dead flies on top. "We want to see you bring them back from the dead!" one of the kids shouted. Brandon had told her secret. Had made things worse. His betrayal was
----
Chapter Eleven
"They've called a meeting of the elders," Sorina whispered to Ravyn as they made their way to the meadow where the weekly ritual would be held.
"From all the covens?" Ravyn asked in alarm, also keeping her voice low. She didn't want anyone to overhear.
There were twenty-some-odd covens scattered around the United States and Europe. Ravyn had met some of the other covens' witches, but the only elder she knew was Vanora, the elder of her own group. Whenever the elders called an unscheduled meeting, things were particularly bad. Had they discovered what she'd done? Surely not. Vanora would have called her in immediately.
Sorina shrugged. "Don't worry about it. I'm sure they'll just discuss the 'horrors of the outside world.'" She gnawed on her lower lip, her blue eyes clouded with worry. "Though maybe they'll implement more rules restricting our association with mortals."
Ravyn knew Sorina was concerned about effects to her engagement. Her loves of a normal life and Justin were much more important to her than her heritage or witchcraft. From the time they'd been children, Sorina had taken to the coven's teachings with a sort of nonchalance, as if being a witch was an afterthought. For Ravyn, being a witch was who she was, everything she was. Ravyn had never felt comfortable in the mortal world. She was out of place there, an imposter. While a child, living in the mortal world with her mother had caused her pain and anguish, and she'd learned early that she didn't belong. The coven was her haven, her only source of peace.
Sorina fit into the coven and the mortal world equally. In school she'd been popular and well liked. The other kids had tolerated Ravyn only because she was Sorina's sister. But being the sister of Sorina didn't always protect her. Once, when Ravyn was in the sixth grade and Sorina was in third, Ravyn had found an injured cat on the playground. She had knelt beside the animal, trying to help, and had placed her hands on it, willing it to heal. The cat had died anyway. Some of the kids came upon her and began screaming that she'd murdered the animal. She'd cried, and they'd made even more fun. She could feel herself losing control, wanting to hurt them… and Sorina had intervened just in time, calming both her and the other children. But from then on, anytime Sorina wasn't around, Ravyn's classmates taunted her.
She'd been chubby as a child, and after the cat incident, in addition to poking fun at her for her weight, they'd added cat killer to their insults.
There'd been one boy she thought was different: Brandon Tollers. He had black hair and blue eyes and looked just like John Stamos. Ravyn knew that he wasn't like the others, and that if she told him the truth, or at least part of it, he'd make the others stop. One day she'd found him sitting alone in the cafeteria. She'd slid in the seat across from him. Heart pounding, partly from looking into those blue eyes and partly from what she was about to do, she'd explained that she had powers, could do things other kids couldn't. She'd stopped short of using the word witch, but she'd attempted to explain what had really happened with the cat after making him promise he wouldn't tell the others her secret.
"You believe me?" she'd asked hopefully.
"Sure," Brandon had said, and Ravyn felt like a weight had been lifted. Things would be different now.
And they were. The kids tormented her even more, poking fun at her for thinking she was "magic." One day, she'd gone to her desk and found a pile of dead flies on top. "We want to see you bring them back from the dead!" one of the kids shouted. Brandon had told her secret. Had made things worse. His betrayal was
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