Easy Bake Coven (37 page)

My entire body tingled with energy and I felt as if I could float away. The air caressed my skin, leaves and mossy wetness from the dew hours earlier coated the inside of my nose, a kaleidoscope of colors swirled on the back of my eyelids, and everything about me seemed weightless. I was more connected to the natural elements of earth than I’d ever been. I could feel them and had the impression they could feel me too. I looked around at my friends and everyone had a similar dazed expression after the ceremony. One thing was certain: we weren’t an easy bake coven any longer.

Silent, and with wobbly legs, we marched single-file back into the house. There was too much to stimulate the senses outside. We returned to our original positions. I stretched out on the floor in relaxation pose and let myself grow accustomed to the hypersensitivity I was experiencing. The carpet at first felt rough and scratchy against my body, but after a few moments, I no longer noticed it touching me. I could smell remnants of Cheney on my skin, sandalwood and morning dew. I drew in a deep breath, holding on to the scent. The sound of everyone breathing and their heartbeats filled the room with a constant white noise. This was going to be distracting.

“Selene, you’re floating again,” Jessica said.

My eyes flew open and I hit the floor hard. “Shit, that hurt,” I said, rubbing the back of my head. “Am I going to have to spend the rest of my life consciously trying to keep my feet on the ground?”

“You’re going to be a queen, sweetie. I think, regardless of whether or not you’re physically floating, the answer to that is yes,” Devin said with a hand over her eyes.

“You know what I mean.”

“Your control will increase and the side effects will lessen. Give it a couple hours,” Grandma said. “What is everyone feeling?”

“Like my head is a piñata at a birthday party,” Leslie said miserably.

“Everything’s really bright right now and all of you are swimming in colors. I think I’m about to throw up,” Katrina said.

“Those are auras. They’ll help you recognize different creatures in the Abyss. It’s a very effective tool,” Grandma told Kat.

“My ears are ringing,” Jessica said, shaking her head like she was trying to get water out of them.

“Like I was hit by a bus then backed over,” Devin added.

None of them had anything I was experiencing. Yet all of their side effects went with their individuals gifts. Perhaps I’d gotten off lucky. None of my side effects were painful.

“What about you, Selene?” Grandma asked when I didn’t immediately volunteer the information.

“Well, you all can see the floating. On top of that I have heightened senses of smell, hearing, touch, and sight. I don’t know about taste, but I suspect it wasn’t left out.”

“How heightened?” Grandma asked.

“I can hear everyone’s hearts beating and every breath you take. I can smell each of you clearly and distinctly—as well as Cheney from when he was here. The carpet feels like sandpaper against my skin. Everything is sharper than before.”

“Those aren’t side effects,” Grandma said seriously, making me look at her.

“What are they?”

“Elven traits. I didn’t know what would happen when you invoked. Apparently it made those abilities keener than they had been. Who knows what you could do now?” She bit her lip. “Lord, have mercy on us all.”

“What does a red aura mean?” Katrina asked, but we all knew the answer. I was pissed. off.

“Gram, I love you, but if you keep this up, you’re going home. I’ve had enough. I’ve taken all I can and it’s about damn time you show me a little respect. I’m not evil, and if you don’t know that, you’re an idiot.” Angry energy built in me with each word that spilled from my mouth. “Please don’t make me cut you out of my life. Cheney and I have enough to deal with. We don’t need this from you. Try not to be a bitch.”

Gram lifted from the ground and floundered uselessly in the air. The thought that I could do anything I wanted tempted me and seduced my rage. I could throw her out of the house, throw her against the wall, or set her back down, and she could do nothing to stop me. Maybe I would leave her suspended.

Cheney walked into the room and assessed the situation calmly. The girls watched me with wide eyes, but none of them spoke, possibly out of fear I would do the same thing to them.

“Sit me down immediately,” Grandma demanded in her most authoritative voice.

“Make me.”

“I’m your elder—”

“Like hell you are.”

Cheney took a seat in the chair behind me without speaking, obviously content to let this little fight play out.

“Last chance, Edith. What’s it going to be? You can apologize, or Cheney will take you home, and I will remove you from my life.”

She stared at me, scouring me for any signs of guilt or wavering. Finally she sighed. “Fine. I apologize. You do not appear to be evil.”

I put her back on the floor even though it was a terrible apology. “For the record, if I was evil, I could’ve killed you any number of times just now.” I turned on my heel and strode out of the room. It had been way too much togetherness for one day. I needed space. I lay in the soft bed, relieved the sheets didn’t hurt my skin. The smell of Cheney and me permeated my senses. I felt cocooned and safe.

A few moments later Cheney came in. I could hear his soft breath and strong heart. “How are you doing?” The sound of his voice to my new hearing covered my body in goose bumps.
God, I hope I don’t stay like this. How’s a girl supposed to function?

“I’m fine.”

“Really?” he asked, lying down with me. “You’re awfully quiet for someone who’s fine.”

“I lost my temper,” I whispered, feeling guilty despite my self-righteousness.

“Perhaps it needed to be done.”

“I threatened her life.” Burning hot tears filled my eyes, but I’d be damned if they were going to fall.

“She shouldn’t have pushed you that far.”

“And if I killed her, would you still defend me?”

“Yes.”

My sigh filled my ears. “You don’t mean that.”

“I know the person you are. I see it every single day. If you ever killed someone, it would be because you had no other choice. You wouldn’t have hurt her. You were pointing out that you could, and she would do well to remember it. Very elf-like.”

“My friends are probably scared out of their minds.”

“I don’t think so. They let your grandmother have it once you left. I don’t think she expected that reaction. You have a good group.” He paused. “How did you do it? Were you channeling the anger?”

“No, we all invoked the spirit today so our powers would be stronger. I don’t think I have a problem using mine on people anymore.”

“Sebastian will be pleased. What other changes have you noticed?”

I explained the super senses to him and he smiled. “The way you describe them they sound almost full elf. You’ll get used it. They won’t seem so harsh after a while.” He lifted my hair so he could see my ears.

“Are they bigger?” I hadn’t even considered the possibility.

“No, the same perfect little ears I have always loved.” He kissed my ear lightly and a series of electric shocks took place throughout my body. My fingers dug into his shoulders as my breath caught. I opened my eyes. “What was that?”

“It appears all of your senses are heightened.” Cheney half smiled, his eyes dancing.

“I wonder if it would be like this with anyone or just you?”

“We aren’t going to find out,” Cheney said, kissing me gently. The sensation was compounded by a thousand. Our lips felt like they blended together and we were one. Sparks flew between us with no barriers and my entire body tingled with energy that felt like Cheney. Did he feel this way too?

“Do you feel like this every time we kiss?”

“How do you feel?”

“Like you are under my skin.”

“A lot of sparks?”

“Exactly.”

“Yes.”

I kissed him again, a little harder, testing how much I could take. “How do you stop?” I asked before kissing him harder still. His mouth was warm and slightly sweet.
I might never leave this bed again. Wars are for suckers.

“It isn’t easy,” he said, pushing away from me and disappearing from the room.

It immediately felt like my clothes had been ripped away and I was left standing in the snow. My body screamed for him. It was hard to form an intelligible thought. I wanted to curl into a ball and wail. I focused on keeping myself from crying. Where had he gone? Seconds later, he climbed back in bed.

I threw myself into his arms, relief washing over me and my head clearing. This was bad. If I couldn’t function when he wasn’t touching me, how was I supposed to live?

“Hurts, doesn’t it?” he said softly, fluttering kisses over my face. “Try twenty-six years of it.”

The full weight of my leaving him washed over me. People had mentioned that he’d changed, but I didn’t understand. I had never felt pain like that and it was only for seconds. “How did you keep from losing your mind?”

“I thought I had a couple times. But you have to survive, so you push this part of yourself to the back of your mind. It gets easier. Honestly, it was more difficult after I found you. You were so close, but you wouldn’t let me near you. That was the closest I ever came to completely losing control. My primal instincts threatened to take over completely.”

I thought of all the times I went back and forth on him. Kissing him—then running . . . Pulling him closer, only to shove him away. It must have been excruciating. “Was it always like this with us?”

“The binding made it stronger.”

His words absorbed into me. Magic. Was none of this real? Were we the product of a spell? I didn’t like the thought so I dismissed it from my mind. I was happy with Cheney. “I’m sorry.”

“I don’t want you to be sorry, but I’m glad you understand.”

“How am I supposed to function? What I feel right now terrifies me.”

“Arousal plays a big part in the pain. I left at maybe the worst time so you could understand. It won’t be that bad, I promise.” He kissed me deeply one more time and I melted against him. “Now, no more kissing or we’ll never make it out of bed.”

“I can think of worse things,” I muttered, kissing his neck.

“If you keep that up, you can’t see Sy alone tonight. You have to learn to master it.” The idea of spending the rest of my life clinging to Cheney, while appealing, was also a bucket of ice water. Slowly we went from kissing to holding one another to holding hands and finally just to lying next to each other. I felt the loss, but it wasn’t consuming. It was more like a knife sticking out of me rather than chunks being torn away. I could deal with it.

Sy took me to a bar with a few people scattered around in the shadows and rushed me back to a curtained-off area behind the counter that looked like a storage room. He stopped in the middle of the room and turned back to me.

“You want to talk in the closet?” I asked and he immediately shushed me, eyes focused on the door. I took a deep breath and waited. He had the same golden hue to his skin as I did, but that was where our similarities ended. His crew cut was a glistening blond and his eyes were the color of gunmetal.

“Wait here,” he said, and he went back out into the bar. A moment later he returned with that bounty hunter, Femi, in tow.

She looked around, ears twitching. “I can honestly say I expected more. Why do you spend all your time in a pantry?”

Sy ignored us and moved a stack of boxes out of the way, revealing a door. He pulled out a skeleton key and motioned at us

“I knew you lived here,” Femi said as she walked through the door.

Sy flipped the lights flipped on, revealing a warm, cozy area very much like a studio apartment. He sat on the couch, and I took the chair while Femi wandered around the room.

“Now, what was so important that you insisted we had to speak tonight?” Sy asked, leaving Femi to snoop.

“I need your help.”

“Anything, coz, you know that.”

I hoped he would say that. “Well, Cheney’s going to challenge his father for the throne.”

Sy stared at me, and Femi stopped, looked back, and whistled. “I haven’t been able to really figure out the fae yet,” she said, “But that’s sort of a big deal, isn’t it?”