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Straightening, I turn in his arms. He tightens them once more as I lean against him, my cheek pressed against his hard, muscular chest.
“I’m ecstatic about my parents being alive, of course. But I’m also concerned about their safety, worried about the witches starting a war, and afraid of failing in this whole ‘chosen one prophecy’ ordeal.”
“We’re going to work this out. Together,” he says. “Everything is going to be okay.”
I nod against his chest even though my mind rebels at his rosy outlook and placating words. He doesn’t know what the future holds. None of us do, except for maybe that damn seer who announced the prophecy in the first place and has been dead for probably a hundred and fifty years.
“I can hear your mind spinning,” Jesse says, rubbing his palms up and down my back. “We won’t fail. Not at this.”
I nod again, but this time, something in his voice makes me believe him. Jesse and I just found each other. Neither of us is willing to allow ourselves to be ripped apart. Not by witches. Not by war.
“I love you,” I mumble, and he kisses the top of my head.
After allowing myself one more moment of comfort, I pull out of his arms and start to pace.
“We need to come up with some kind of plan. We have to stop the witches before they light the fuse to start this war.” I stop pacing and meet his gaze. “Any ideas?”
“I might have one,” he says, taking my hand and pulling me toward the bed. Once we both sit on its edge, he tightens his grip on my fingers and rubs his thumb across my knuckles. “You could have Steph call and emergency council meeting and put everything out into the open.”
My mouth falls open. “You want me to openly accuse Desertwillow of planning to start a war?”
He shrugs. “If you call them out and the council forbids it… I don’t actually know the witch laws and punishments regarding going against a direct order from the council, but I assume they’d be steep. And if you shut Desertwillow down, any other covens planning to join them would be stymied, too.”
I think about that for a moment. He could be right. A direct order from the rest of the council could shut down Desertwillow. On the other hand, if their cause has more support than we realize, it could rip the council apart and send this war into overdrive without warning.
The question is, are the rewards worth the risk?
No war. Peace between the races. My parents could stop hiding. Jesse and I could settle into our life together without all this mystery, intrigue, and danger.
But if the plan doesn’t work? Warfare ensues, and it’s not just the witches and vampires who would suffer. There’s no way that could happen without humans catching wind of it, realizing magic is real, and losing their shit. It was bad enough when the vampires revealed themselves. This revelation could send them right over the edge, and they could bring their own armed forces into the fray.
That would be the end of life, as we know it.
Unaware of my internal battle, Jesse goes on. “If your parents can sneak into the meeting again, unbeknownst to the others, they could help you control the situation. They could prevent the coven leaders from leaving until everything is worked out.”
I meet his eyes again. “And Helena Kirkwood could just pretend to acquiesce, then go home to her coven and plan an attack, anyway.”
“She’s going to do that if we do nothing, anyway. At least this way, you have a shot at immobilizing her.”
He’s right. We can’t just ignore this and hope it goes away. His plan isn’t flawless, but it’s the best we’ve got right now.
“Let’s run it by my parents and see what they think,” I offer, and he wraps his arm around my shoulders, pulling me against him.
“This is going to work,” he says before kissing my temple.
“I hope you’re right,” I whisper back, then turn my head to meet his lips with mine.
After the quick kiss, we stand and walk out of the room, hand-in-hand. It’s a short trek to my parents’ room, and the door swings open before we have a chance to knock.
“We’ve been expecting you,” Dad says before stepping aside so we can enter. “Have you come up with any ideas?”
“Jesse has,” I say as Mom moves forward to join us near the door, “and it might just work.”
They listen intently as I explain Jesse’s plan, both of them nodding as I speak. When I express my fears of things not going our way, Mom reaches out to take my hand.
“We can do our part. We can keep the room sealed until you convince them. And if Helena refuses to back down, the council can threaten to ostracize her coven. If Desertwillow persists on this path, they would lose any allies they may have. Being cut off from the rest of the witch community is too high a price to pay for most covens. Desertwillow would be alone, making them more vulnerable and easier to defeat.”
“Would the council actually do that? Ostracize them?”
