I clenched my teeth.Part of the coven. Their sister.It still stung to hear it.
“You didn't see them, Ronan. Something about the whole scene was just… off.” I had no love for the Bay Coven, nor them for me, but something about Norah’s rejection went beyond all that. It wasn't sitting well with me.
Now that I’d had some distance from it, I could see it more clearly. Our conversation on the porch, the tea… In fact, other than my fight with Delilah and Reva’s final goodbye, almost everything about my visit had felt staged.
“A witch was murdered,” Ronan said. “One of their own. They've gotta be spooked.”
“I could almost buy that, but I'm telling you, there's more to it. It's like… I don’t know. Like they're all afraid of Norah.”
Ronan shrugged. “She's the alpha, right?”
“She’s theelder,” I corrected. “And it’s her house. But witches aren't like shifters. Covens are big on equality—one voice, one vote kind of shit.”
“Except,” Asher pointed at my face, his mouth stretched into a smug grin, “when it comes to you. You getnovotes."
“Yeah, well. They don't see me as a witch.” I smacked his hand away, ignoring the momentary spark I felt at the brief contact. “They've made that pretty clear.”
Asher grunted. “Nothing says get the fuck out like the ‘don’t let the door hit you in the ass’ ward.”
“Thanks. I was wondering what that ward meant.”Asshole.
Snuggling deeper into my sweatshirt, I swallowed the lump in my throat, blinking back tears. I had never wanted to join the coven, but maybe some part of me liked knowing the door was open if I ever changed my mind.
Now, I was truly a witch alone.
As if he could read my thoughts, Ronan slid his warm hand around the back of my neck, casting my skin in shivers. “You're not alone, Gray."
“Clearly,” Asher chimed in. “Ronan can’t keep his hands off you more than five minutes without getting twitchy.”
“Keep talking, demon,” Ronan warned, “and I’ll twitch my boot right up your ass.”
I forced a smile. I appreciated Ronan’s support in all its many forms, but he didn't understand. Despite his loyalty to our friendship—and apparently to Asher—demons were solitary by nature; I suspected that was why Ronan took off like he did, disappearing for days at a time, or why he sometimes slipped into a melancholy so deep and dark I feared I’d never be able to drag him back into the light.
Sometimes the human world got to be too much for a demon.
Me? I was solitary by circumstance, not by choice.
“Game night!” Sophie announced, bouncing into the living room with a bottle of Absolut. “Drunk charades. Am I brilliant, or am I brilliant?”
“You’re totally brilliant,” I said. “But I’m pretty sure we need more people to play charades. Also, I have to work in an hour.”
“Ooh, I know this one!” Sophie pointed the bottle at my face, her grin lighting up the room. “Boring-ass bitch who desperately needs of a fun night off.”
“Wow. You really are brilliant.”
“Call Waldrich and tell him you’re sick. I’ll get the glasses…”
Tears clouded my vision as the random memory passed, the reality of her death slamming into me all over again. Half my heart was missing. And she hadn’t just died of natural causes, or fallen on a wet sidewalk, or lost the battle to some crazy disease. All of those things would’ve been terrible, but they were actual reasons.
This? Some senseless murder? Someone hadtakenher from us. They’d come into our home, found her sleeping in bed, and snuffed the life out of her.
The air rushed from my lungs, and my knees buckled beneath me, threatening to send me sprawling. But just before I crashed to the pavement, two pair of strong hands grabbed my arms hauled me up.
“Gray?” Asher’s face was a blur before me, but I didn’t miss the flash of concern in his eyes.
“She’s okay.” Ronan leaned in close, his strong arms enveloping me, his voice warm and comforting in my ear. “Just breathe, Gray. Just breathe.”
I couldn’t though. That was the thing.
