The Aether Witch (The Coven: Elemental Magic Book 6) Read online

  Emersyn was curled into a tiny little ball, smushed between his body and the wall with her head just beside his shoulder. Her golden eyes glistened with fiery light as she watched Katherine work. Tears spilled over her long lashes and down her cheeks. My mother stood at the window, looking out on the city with a massive dagger strapped to her thigh, like she was expecting trouble at any moment. My father sat at the foot of Deacon’s bed with his hand resting on Emersyn’s foot. A shimmering golden glow radiated out of his palm and into her skin.

  I sighed and leaned against the doorframe, and the wooden floor creaked. My parents glanced up at me and frowned. They started to move, but I held my palms up.

  I’m okay. Stay with them, I said into their minds.

  They nodded and resettled into their roles. My father, the emotional supporter, and my mother the warrior.

  I’d thought Deacon was on the mend. After all, it was his persuasive Devil magic that had made Emersyn take a shower a couple hours earlier. He’d been awake, with vibrant purple eyes and warm magic. I’d thought we were in the clear. I wasn’t sure what happened.

  I wished there was something I could do to help, but I wasn’t a healer.

  My heart sank, and the ice in my veins spread deeper and deeper. It just wasn’t okay. He’d been perfectly fine one second then clinging to life with one finger the next. It happened so fast…and any one of us could be next. I didn’t know what danger lay ahead of us on our quest to fulfill Salem’s Prophecy, though I knew it wasn’t going to be easy. We’d already been told the demon attacks were worse than they’d ever been before. So bad that apparently no one slept in pajamas. They had to be ready to fight at a second’s notice. During the day, we’d get our breaks, but we had to suffer through four more nights.

  Would we make it through Samhain without losing someone? I didn’t know. I didn’t want to find out. I couldn’t shake the feeling that Deacon wasn’t going to be our last close call. Would it be Tennessee? With every hour that passed, the fear that he’d be taken from me grew deeper and deeper. I closed my eyes and tried to push those thoughts away. They were a slippery slope into madness, and I seemed helpless to stop them.

  Heat spread through my chest. The floors creaked behind me, and then the smell of fresh rain swept over my shoulder. Tennessee’s warm hands slid over my shoulders and squeezed. I felt his breath on my neck and the heat of his body against my back, burning through my thin tank.

  He leaned his temple against mine and whispered in my ear, “Is he doing any better?”

  No. It looks like he’s worse, I whispered back into his mind.

  “Come on, you need to rest.”

  I opened my eyes and glanced up into his mismatched eyes. Is it wrong to rest when he is suffering?

  He shook his head. “There’s nothing you can do for him standing in his doorway. He’s in good hands now, and we need you at full strength if we have any hope of succeeding.”

  I sighed and spun around to bury my face in his chest. What makes you think I’m not at full strength now?

  “You have a comb stuck in your hair, Kitten,” he said softly with a little chuckle and wrapped his arms around me. “And I know you. Your heart beats with mine now.”

  I groaned against his skin. “It got tangled.”

  “Come on, love. I’ll get the comb out while you tell me what’s on your mind.” He slid his hands down my arms then took my fingers in his. He stepped back and pulled me down the hall. “Talk to me.”

  His eyes twinkled like stars in the night sky. His black hair was wet and hanging in loose waves past his jaw. He was shirtless and barefoot, wearing only a pair of low-hanging black jeans with rips in the knees. Somehow his skin looked tanner than normal. He stood straight, and his ab muscles tightened then flexed. The heart-shaped crystal on his chest shimmered with a soft pink glow that pulsed to the same beat I felt in my chest. The vines scrolling over his shoulder and all the way down his right arm to his wrist were a dark, deep red. He smiled and it made my heart flutter.

  He was beautiful…and I was a disaster.

  “Tegan?” He bent down so our eyes were level. “Talk to me.”

  “Why was he better but now worse?”

  He let go of my hand and opened the door at the end of the hall, then pulled me inside. “That happens sometimes with severe demon stings. We get a little worse before we get better. It’s the demon venom fighting back. It means the healing is beginning.”

  Oh. I frowned and shut the door behind us. The room he’d led us to was small and only had one bed in it, tucked into the corner. The lights were off, but a few candles were flickering with life over by the bed. The moon’s glow cast the room in a soft blue tint.

  “But Katherine and Larissa are here now, and I have faith in them, so you should too.” He sat down on the bed and propped himself up against the wall, then he motioned for me to join him.

  “What if you’re next?” I whispered before I could stop myself. It was the one thought capable of destroying me.

  He opened his mouth then shut it again. He stared at me for a long moment then motioned for me to join him on the bed again. This time I raced into his open arms. I sighed and let the warmth of his skin chase the ice inside me away. I couldn’t help the fear growing. Those feelings I used to call my spidey-senses were tingling, but now I knew they were the instincts of a High Priestess. I sensed things others could not…and the fear of what I felt was tearing me apart.

  My body trembled and my skin felt like ice. I tried to focus on the strength in his arms and in his power. For a long few minutes, we sat there in silence, just holding on to each other.

  What if this is the last time you hold me like this?

  “You’re my soulmate… I will hold you like this for the rest of eternity, whether we are on Earth or beyond.”

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  COOPER

  I hated watching other people’s dreams.

  Hated it.

  No one else seemed to understand this. They all assumed I was cool with it, with the gift the Goddess had given me. I didn’t like it. I’d just gotten used to it by now. I’d come to terms with it. If anyone gave me the opportunity to change my gift, I wouldn’t hesitate to take it.

  Because dreams were personal. They were…private.

  And not all dreams were helpful, or even meant to be helpful. Some dreams were simply dreams. Random thoughts meshed into one visual experience. And now my sister and my adoptive brother wanted me to intentionally spy on my Coven-mates’ dreams. My closest friends…their deepest thoughts. I wasn’t excited about it, and I was more than a little nervous about what I’d see.

  My only saving grace was that they’d all given me permission to do it, so they couldn’t get mad at me if I saw something they didn’t want me to.

  Well…that saving grace and Larissa’s harmless sleeping potion.

  I lay down in the twin-sized bed in a room the size of a closet and tucked myself under the blankets. Then I unscrewed the vial and swallowed its contents. Instantly my eyes grew heavy and burned. My body felt like a ton of bricks. Here goes nothing.

  It was weird to be awake in a dream. Cassandra always insisted I wasn’t actually awake, but I never bought it. If I was sleeping, I wouldn’t wake up feeling like I’d pulled four all-nighters in a row. Concentrate, Cooper. I pushed all my other thoughts away and focused on my task.

  Show me the dreams of my Coven-mates.

  At first, everything was pitch black. But then light flashed by in little colored flecks, like a disco ball or kaleidoscope. My pulse grew quicker, and butterflies danced in my stomach.

  And then I saw a bright blue cloudless sky. I frowned and looked around. I was in some kind of garden, except it felt wild and alive. There were no fences or any signs of human interference. Just wildflowers of every color growing as far as I could see.

  A gust of wind rustled through the plants, bringing with it the most intoxicating smell I’d ever smelled. I inhaled to soak in as m
uch of it as possible. The flowers swayed to the right and held there. I didn’t know if I was somehow high off the smell, or if the plants were waiting for something.

  “Oh, you sneaky little shit,” a familiar male voice yelled out. “You’ve got home field advantage!”

  I spun to my right just as Royce emerged from between massive pine trees that towered over us like skyscrapers. Ah…this makes sense. Royce. Flowers. And he does usually smell really good. Royce was grinning from ear to ear as he sprinted through the garden. Every few feet, he’d duck down and whisper to the flowers then nod his head like they were talking to him.

  The ground rumbled, and I wobbled to keep my balance. The plants in front of me swayed, and then a massive green dragon shot into the sky. Dragons? Was that useful information? Was this something I needed to see? Did we need to call the dragons in for help? It had to be because why else would Royce be dreaming it? Unless the dream was more about Royce’s gift with flowers? I sighed and shook my head. I had no idea how I was supposed to know.

  And who is the green dragon? Do I even remember meeting a green dragon in Issale? I supposed one could have been green. I was too busy watching Silas and King Kothari. I looked up at the dragon in search of any detail that would tell me which one it was, but it slid behind a cloud. When it came out the other side, it was black as night. Its tail now had a long red spike at the tip, and its wings were curved more. Six legs with massive talons hung from its body.

  That’s a demon.

  It dipped low to the ground and flew right toward me. Big glowing red eyes narrowed, and then fire rained out of its mouth. I dove for the ground and rolled out of the way. When I got back to my feet, the garden was gone. Flames towered above me and all around me. Bright oranges and reds flickered and burned everything in sight. The sky was black. Smoke billowed up into the clouds.

  I raised my arm to shield my face from the flames. The air scorched a path down my throat. Voices shrieked and screamed for help nearby, but I couldn’t see anyone. All I saw were brick buildings surrounding me in a circle. I stood in the center of an open field. Shadows moved in the distance. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw pink lightning shoot into the sky. A lone figure stood amongst the chaos.

  A witch! I sprinted toward them. Demons dropped out of the sky and lunged over my head. The ground trembled then split open like an earthquake. Thick slug-like creatures slithered from between the cracks oozing with white slime and foam. My stomach rolled. I wanted to take my sword out and fight, but this was only a dream.

  “Get everyone out!” the witch screamed to someone I couldn’t see. She spun around, and a bright blue light flashed from the center of her chest. She raised her right hand, and the same blue glow shined like a spotlight in the darkness. “DANIEL!”

  I knew that voice, that face. Constance.

  Black demon blood covered the entire left side of her body. Her blue eyes were wide with fear. And then she saw me. “Demons. There’s too many. We won’t survive. The border isn’t strong enough.”

  “It’s just a dream, Constance,” I tried to reassure her.

  She gasped and stumbled back, pointing to something behind me. I spun around to see what it was, and my heart stopped. My body turned to cement, frozen in place.

  No. What does this mean? This can’t…this can’t be right.

  Emersyn stood alone in the dark field with her hands held out to her side and flames pouring from her fingertips. She stared at me with glowing gold eyes that looked like liquid metal and blazed with a heat hotter than fire. Her long platinum-blonde hair whipped around. The ends sizzled with flames. She took a step forward, and the ground turned to embers, like she was walking on flaming hot coals.

  “Em, nooo…”

  She screamed and threw a wall of fire right at me. I flew back and rolled several times. My heart pounded in my chest. What did that mean? Are we too late? Have we lost her to her dark side? Is this our future if we lose Deacon? I scrambled to my feet with every intention of talking to her, but she was gone.

  I was in a dark field in a land I didn’t recognize. Salty air swept over my face, and in the distance, I thought I heard the soft roar of the ocean. A bright full moon shined down on me.

  “I don’t want to go!” a young girl cried from behind me. “I don’t want to!”

  I gasped and spun around. The girl sat on the grass with her knees pulled up to her chest and her arms wrapped around her legs, holding herself tight. Long dark hair swayed in the ocean breeze. Her skin was dark and rich with color, even in the dim of night. She sobbed against her knees, and her whole body trembled.

  “I don’t want to, I don’t want to,” she whispered and rocked herself. She hiccupped then coughed. “I want to stay here!”

  The air beside her shimmered like blue glitter, like one of Willow’s illusions…and then a much older woman took its place. She wasn’t a real woman, at least not anymore. She was glowing from within and translucent. A spirit.

  I gasped. “Paulina?”

  The girl’s head snapped up, and my heart sank. It was Paulina, except she was a child. I was guessing she was about eleven in this dream, since that was how old she was when she moved to Florida to be with The Coven.

  “Oh, my Paulina,” the spirit sang and crouched down next to her. She brushed her ghostly hand over Paulina’s dark hair and smiled. “You must go.”

  “WHY?” Paulina snapped.

  All of a sudden, the entire field around me was filled with spirits. Hundreds of them…and they all bore the Mark of The Coven on their left arms. Cards at peace? My heart fluttered. I didn’t know what to make of this dream. It seemed like a memory of Paulina’s, and it seemed super personal. I didn’t want to linger here. I didn’t want to see her pain. She’d never wanted to leave her home in Puerto Rico—we all assumed as much—but seeing it was so much worse.

  I closed my eyes and shook my head. Show me something else. Something else.

  Something cold brushed over my cheek and I shivered. I opened my eyes then frowned. I was nowhere. I saw only darkness. An icy chill tingled down my spine. Something slithered around my feet with an evil kind of hiss. When I looked down, I found only thick black smoke. It moved like a shadow in the night.

  Nope. No thanks. I’m out of here.

  I turned and choked on a scream.

  Henley sat in front of me with her legs crossed under her. She stared straight ahead with wide eyes. Her lips were pressed together, and she gripped her knees. Then the smoke slithered over my shoulder, hissing and whispering in a language I didn’t recognize. I cursed and jumped back. Henley’s head snapped up to me.

  Her eyes were red.

  “Henley…” I whispered. It’s only a dream. Only a dream.

  Bright light ripped through the darkness. I covered my eyes with my arm and braced myself, then I heard a child laughing. Not just any child. Bentley. I dropped my arm just in time to see my little brother swinging on a swing, and then the dream changed to Bentley holding a pendulum. It swung back and forth, then the dream changed again. This time Bentley held his Hierophant’s locket in his palm, a neon turquoise glow against his fair skin and golden eyes.

  “Bentley?” I called out, hoping he could give me some direction. If anyone could communicate with me through a dream, it would be him.

  But the locket was gone.

  My brother crouched between two massive tree trunks and peered around like he was hiding. His dark brown hair was longer than I’d ever seen it. I reached forward to try and get his attention when he lunged out of the way. He landed a few feet away and tucked his hair behind his pointed ears. Wait, what? I shook my head and blinked, but then his ears were normal looking. I must be seeing things. My dreams must be overlapping.

  Bentley gasped and sprinted away from me. I chased after him and then we were in a library. I groaned. What the hell is going on here? I’d never seen dreams flip so much. Now Bentley sat at a large wooden table with his face buried in a stack of open books.
/>   “Bentley!” I yelled.

  He looked up and his eyes widened. He held one hand up and the Hierophant’s locked dangled from his fingers. It swung left and right, over and over. Everything else disappeared until all I saw was the locket, swinging back and forth. I frowned and stared harder.

  Light erupted around me. I wobbled and lost my balance, catching myself on a tree before falling over. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath before I reopened. Then I wished I hadn’t. The world spun. I pinched the bridge of my nose and waited for my vision to focus. Bentley’s dreams had been wild and overwhelming. I couldn’t imagine dealing with that every night and staying sane.

  I sighed and stood upright then looked around. I knew instantly where I was. Gulf Shores High School. Well, this is weird. Nothing seemed wrong or out of place. It was a typical bright sunny day in Florida. Birds chirped and flew overhead. Squirrels ran along tree branches. In the distance, students walked between buildings. No demons. No fire or smoke. No chaos and madness. I frowned. I had no idea why I was in a dream back at our school, more specifically at our lunch table in the courtyard.

  There had to be one of my Coven-mates nearby, because this wasn’t my dream. I turned in a slow circle and then choked on a scream.

  Deacon sat at the picnic table with his arms folded.

  “DEACON!”

  I couldn’t believe it. A grin spread across my face. If I was in his dream, then he couldn’t have been in too rough a shape. When Libby had been hurt, I hadn’t been able to get into her dreams at all. But there I was standing across from Deacon on a beautiful sunny day. He looked good. His skin had nice color, his clothes were all white and completely clear of any kind of blood. The glyph on his chest shimmered with blue light.

  “Holy hell, Deacon.”