I’m still wearing my engagement ring, and if anyone asks about it, I plan to tell them I bought it for myself and I’m wearing it so I don’t get hit on. If anyone really knew me, they wouldn’t buy it for a second. But it’s sadly believable enough that it’s easier to fake a relationship than it can be to deal with persistent men who still can’t grasp the concept of what no means.
But that’s where being a witch comes in handy. I’ve cursed a great many men at bars who got a little too handsy.
“You’re still here.” Evander’s voice echoes through the large room.
“I am, though I’m about to leave. Or fall asleep. This place is nice for napping.”
“I’ve found many students in here, fast asleep, when they should have been in my class.”
“I remember both of us falling asleep in the restricted section more than once.”
“It was always your fault,” he laughs. “You’d get us into some sort of trouble, and we’d have to break a few rules to get out of it.”
“As the older student, you should have kept me under better authority,” I laugh back and stand, stretching my arms above my head. My back cracks and I pick up the books, not remembering where they came from. “It’s quiet in here today.”
“It’s a library, Callie. It’s supposed to be quiet. And don’t you dare jinx me. I’ve gotten through almost a full month’s worth of planning for the new school year.”
“Are summer classes done now?”
“We just finished on Friday. There are a handful of students staying through the summer, but most have gone out into town for the day.”
“That’s where I’m going after this.” I push the books to the center of the table, knowing it’s better to leave them there than to attempt to put them back and get them in the wrong spot. The Academy librarian is very passionate about her job.
“Did you find what you were looking for?”
“Of course not.” I go down the spiral staircase, stopping a few feet in front of Evander. “Though, I can only imagine angels would be rather secretive about the only way to kill them.”
“I would too. And not to be a downer, but do you think you’d stand a chance against them?”
“I actually do,” I say honestly and hope I don’t come across as too braggy or just plain stupid. “Julian told me that being half…half what I am makes me just as strong as the others who don’t have as notable parents,” I say and hope Evander’s following. I’m fairly certain we’re alone, but I’m being extra careful, just in case.
“Though if your dear old uncles were to find you…”
“Yeah, then I’d probably be a goner before I even knew what was coming.” I let out a breath. “I had a lot of good memories here.”
“Stop it,” Evander orders, nudging me with his arm. “Don’t talk like you’re never coming back.”
“Neither of us can guarantee they’ll lighten my sentencing.”
“I’ve been doing some research on the subject,” Evander says, which doesn’t surprise me at all. He’s one of the smartest warlocks I know and enjoys reading and researching anything he can. “You can voluntarily remove yourself from the coven.”
“Really?”
“Yes. No one is forced in, and by going directly to the head of your coven, you can quietly be removed. A formal report will be written to the Grand Coven, and if they deem it necessary—which they usually do—spells will be put in place to prevent you from entering the Covenstead.”
“Oh,” I say, and just the thought of saying I want to cut ties with the coven, with this space, hurts. “Would that hurt my chances of getting back in?”
“No. It’s the reason why you left or got kicked out that determines how you will be dealt with. Some witches switch covens so they can marry into another. Others foolishly want to practice alone. You are breaking Witch Law by being with a vampire, but I believe we can prove he is an ally to us, not an enemy.”
“Thank you,” I tell Evander. “He is, and a vampire as old as Lucas is a wealth of information.”
“It will get it sorted out.” Evander smiles, but I see the doubt in his eyes. “I’ll continue to search through the books for answers on the question at hand too.”
“You don’t have to do that. It’s not the most fun way to pass the time.”
“But it passes it, and it’s my turn to stay overnight with the summer students tonight.”
“Well, in that case, knock yourself out.”
“You know I enjoy my research.” Evander laughs and opens the door to the library for me. My boots click on the stone floor as I walk through the hallway leading away from the library. The Academy is wonderfully gothic, with dimly lit halls and large, roaring fires in the common rooms. This place was home for so long, and it hits me again that if I hadn’t been placed with the Martins, I might not have ended up here.
Funny, how everything works itself out.
By being placed with the Martins and being sold to a research lab in the Midwest, and Grim Gate was the closest magical academy.
By being alienated from my family, getting an invite to Penny’s party freaked me out, caused me to drive to Chicago for the first time in years, and then end up in Lucas’s bar.
Now we’re getting married.
“Is that her?” a student whispers, ducking into the hall as Evander and I pass by a common room. I give a small wave.
“You have quite the reputation around here,” he says, eyeballing the students. “If things were different, I’d ask you to come here and teach.”
“Teach what? Risk Taking 101? How to Get Away with Breaking Rules?”
“On second thought maybe you aren’t to be trusted with the minds of our future.” Evander laughs. “Though stories of your days at Grim Gate circulated even before you saved us all from demons.”
“Do people talk about Lucas?” I ask. I haven’t before, and for good reason. While most of the coven was willing to testify on my behalf, I know there are older families who still hate vampires as much as vampires hate witches.
“Not in front of me, if they’re smart.” Evander slows. “You’ve always marched to the beat of your own drum, Callie, which I’ve always admired. Others admire it too. Envy it, even. Have faith, sister. They tried to kick you out once and it didn’t stick. I don’t think it will this time either.”
I twist and give Evander a hug. “Stop by when you can. And let me know what I have to do to leave the coven.”
I spread the newspaper out in front of me and take a sip of the terrible coffee Suzy’s Café is known for. With everything else going on, I’d almost forgotten that Lucas was considering buying this place until we had second thoughts about the issues it could cause with the two of us being together.
Though once I’m officially out of the coven, I won’t have to hide my relationship which will be such a relief. I already have to hide who I am, and secret relationships and identities are not fun, regardless of how they make it seem in movies.
I flip right to the obituaries and crime section in the paper and quickly scan through them, looking for anything out of the ordinary. The girl from Newport is still missing, and now there is a reward for any information that leads to her discovery.
Pulling out my phone, I do a quick internet search. Newport is about an hour away and is much bigger than Thorne Hill. They have lots of shopping and even a university. It’s a nice town, with a higher-than-average median income. The crime there is low, coming in second to Thorne Hill, that is.
With half the town being magical, we have enough wardings on our houses and businesses to keep most petty crime at bay. We’re always ranked as one of the safest towns to live in, not only in Indiana, but all of the Midwest. It’s funny, really, considering all the demons attracted to this area. Bodies turn up without explanation, but break-ins and theft are pretty much unheard of here.
You’re welcome.
Our low vampire population in this town deems it a “safe” place to live as well.
I lean ba
ck, annoyed with the slow internet connection here. If Lucas does take over, I’m having him install high-speed internet with free WiFi for everyone to use, like we do at the bookstore.
Finally, my search loads, and I read through an article about the missing girl. She was last seen going into work for a 10 to 6 overnight shift as a nursing assistant at a nursing home in Newport. She stopped at Starbucks on the way, and her car was found in the parking lot of the nursing home. Her purse was missing, but her coffee was still in the cup holder, and was still full, making the police assume she drove straight to work and got snatched as soon as she opened her car door.
There’s nothing specifically supernatural about this. People get kidnapped by humans all the time, and it’s usually someone they know. Poor girl. I hope she’s found, though I know the chances of finding her alive at this point are slim to none.
Though if anyone knows about just barely getting by on impossible odds, it’s me.
I go back to the search and bring up the site for a local newspaper in Newport. The headline is about the search for the missing girl. I drum my fingers on the counter as I wait for another part of the page to load.
“Shit,” I mumble. A homeless man was found on the side of the road with his internal organs removed.
Now that has supernatural death written all over it.
The door to the café opens and a Thorne Hill police officer walks in. He’s young and I don’t recall his name, but I’ve seen him in the mornings at Curlew’s getting coffee. He sits at the counter, ordering a late lunch. I bite my lip, mind racing.
If bodies are turning up around Newport with organs missing, there’s a chance he could know more about it than the public. Police talk to each other, right? Warn neighboring towns about potential crime and all that.