Page 21 of Our Covenant

“You’re letting this new perceived threat get to your head.” I point a finger at him, then move on to Fox. “What do you think?”

Fox slouches on the couch with his legs spread wide. “If she’s gotten under Maddox’s skin like this, I think we owe it to him to look into her before we make any plans to transfer to the family leaders.”

Usually, Fox airs on the side of caution when it comes to Maddox’s concerning behaviors. While the episodes come less often than when he lived with his parents, he can easily slip into mania during stressful situations that are compounded by exams and coven expectations.

“I need a drink,” Thorne says, leaving the room. Without a unanimous vote, there’s no point in arguing.

“I think I’ll join him,” Fox declares, leaving without another glance at Maddox, who is still as pale as a ghost.

“I’m not losing it, Ash. I swear.” I can see Mads’s own disbelief.

“I know, man.” I sling an arm over his shoulders and together we follow Fox and Thorne.

I don’t drink, but I can at least supervise the inebriation that may or may not set them into action. Whoever this woman is, she doesn’t deserve to have three very drunk—and horny—powerful witches show up on her doorstep. We’ll have to make our introductions another way.

11

FOX

Maddox sent Elsbeth’s picture to our group chat, presumably to remind us to keep an eye out for her because he’s sure she’ll be coming for Asher and me next. If that’s the case, she’s in for a boring hunt. I go to the same gym as Thorne—usually on opposite schedules—and outside of the coven, I only have acquaintances. I learned a long time ago that my mother was the exception that would never be repeated, so dating or befriending anyone else would be under scrutiny.

After we calm Mads down with several shots of tequila, Asher takes him upstairs and puts him to bed. Thorne and I sit out on the back patio sharing the last of my good weed. The crisp fall air keeps the cherry bright red in the dim, moonless night. We’ll live in the manor until we are married off, then our sons will inhabit the old house. I hate thinking about that duty for any child I may have. This life would never be chosen by anyone expected to live it.

“She hasn’t answered my text.” Thorne exhales a thick cloud of sour smoke then passes the joint to me.

“Do you really believe she’s dangerous?” I take a long drag, the burn in the back of my throat clawing down into my lungs.

“Nah.” He shakes his head, the old, wooden Adirondack chair creaking against the movement. “She’s sexy, but harmless.”

We fall into silence, taking in the apple orchard beyond the garden gate. It’s a dark wall creeping closer as my senses dull to the drug and alcohol. The gnarly, knotted limbs catch the shadows as the breeze passes through them. As kids, we camped in the center grove when the fruit was heavy but the harvest hadn’t robbed them bare.

I can still smell the late, sweet blooms and the sickening sugar of rotting apples that nourish the soil. Thorne would tell us scary stories around the fire that he hadn’t yet mastered. In the middle of the night, when we finally settled down to sleep, his fingers would scurry across the nylon tent to make us jump. Then came the rustling of Maddox’s sleeping bag as he inched closer to mine when he thought everyone had finally drifted off. By morning, he’d be nestled into my bag, having carved a place for himself in the middle of my back.

Maddox was smaller than all of us back then. His abilities were weak until he hit the tail end of puberty and after years of his father trying to force them to manifest. Now, he’s taller than me, stronger than Thorne, and his power over nature is like nothing the coven has ever seen before. But through the years, his paranoia has remained—rooted deep by his parents and their own struggles for power within the coven hierarchy.

“Besides, even if she did have some sort of magic that she could control, she’s no match for the four of us.” He nudges my arm, silently asking for the joint.

“The snakes are already in the coop, if you know what I mean.”

“Alric is more like a hydra. Cut off his head and six more grow back. If we’re going to deal with him, we have to have good cause. Last thing we need is to make him a martyr.”

He’s not wrong about that. Alric has done too good of a job convincing the whole expanse of coven members that he has seen the decline in influence, power, and wealth. It’s maddening to have to field questions knowing he was the spark that lit the fire of scrutiny. It’s become more alarming by the year how he’s convinced everyone that he is more than just invincible. The elders of the coven are split on whether to trust him or not. Though, I’m not sure that divide will be strong enough to withstand his influence long-term. It seems like he turns even the most stubborn witch the longer he’s given room to speak.

“If Elsbeth is up to something, maybe we should turn her attention to Alric. Let both problems snuff the other out. Who ever survives will be dealt with ‘final boss’ style,” I joke, taking another long drag and holding it in my lungs until I feel the ache.

“Yeah, that won’t backfire at all. Besides, if we do let Elsbeth take out Alric, we’ll have more to answer for to the coven. Could you imagine your dad finding out some college girl took out a powerful member of the Hawthorne line and we did nothing to prevent it . . . or help?”

He finishes off the last of the joint, filling the air around us with gray smoke, then puts out the burning paper in the last sip of his beer.

My father wants Alric gone more than we do, but Thorne is right. Trading one threat for another would cause panic within our community. Other leaders from around the country would quickly want an explanation or move in to take our places as the East Coast seat of power. And with the dwindling amount of magic we’ve been harvesting, we wouldn’t stand a chance in a war.

“Fine. But we really need to find a way of neutering him before his head gets too much larger.” I lean back in my chair and watch the stars get eaten up by passing clouds. The waning crescent of moon in the sky smiles down with her wide, toothy grin that feels like the old gods are silently mocking us. As if this game is for their amusement and we are just the newest characters to be introduced. I might be higher than I thought.

Thorne’s hand brushes over mine and I roll my head in his direction. Moonlight and the breeze dance through his hair like a halo. “All things natural and unnatural must see an end.”

He’s repeating something his great grandfather used to say, but I fear that the end Alric will see is ours. I keep that to myself and instead return the wisdom with a tight nod. We let our highs take hold of our limbs until Asher comes outside.

“Time for bed, you two,” he says, hooking an arm under Thorne’s shoulder and hoisting him to his feet. “You’re lucky I don’t leave you out here to freeze.”