Nightmares (The Coven, Book 1) Read online

  The members of her coven all thought nothing of it, but Avery was certain the missing pages and the end of the magic a hundred years ago, were connected. For some reason, she was convinced it wasn’t a good connection.

  Her strange feeling of impending doom hadn’t eased over the past two weeks. Instead, it had grown into a persistent niggle at the back of her mind. These odd little mysteries didn’t help it either.

  “These Books aren’t much different than ours,” Sandra said.

  Avery lifted her head to look at her cousin. Sprawled across her bed on her stomach, Sandra kicked her feet in the air. Her golden hair was pulled into a French twist that showed off the perfection of her features.

  Sandra’s room was done in mostly white from the carpet to the pristine bedspread and furniture. The gossamer fabric hanging from the four-poster bed was red. Candles, perfume, makeup, nail polish, and hair clips cluttered her white bureau. The red stones dangling from the top of the large picture window overlooking the ocean cast beams of light across the cream-colored walls. A large TV hung on the wall across from the bed.

  “Of course they’re not,” Rosie muttered around the pen in her mouth. “They’re from the same time periods, and all the families were very close. They all pretty much experienced the same things.”

  “Why aren’t the guys helping us with this?” Isla inquired.

  “Do you want to be in the same room with Mario and Eric if they have to sit and read?” Rosie asked.

  Isla’s tiny nose scrunched. “No, I don’t.”

  “I think we could all use a little break,” Avery said.

  “I think a break is a good idea,” Rosie declared. “I know I could use something to eat.”

  The door burst open and bounced off the wall with a loud thud.

  “Be careful!” Sandra snapped.

  Mario and Eric deftly ignored Sandra’s scowl as they entered the room. Shawn strolled in behind them, his permanent look of bored disdain fixed on his face. “What are you guys doing?” Eric asked.

  “Do we look like guys?” Isla retorted.

  “Not at all,” Alex said as he sauntered into the room and stopped to kiss Landon’s cheek.

  Arms swept around Avery’s waist, causing her to cry out as she was lifted and spun around. Her laughter trailed away when Reid kissed her. For a second, she forgot all about the rest of the coven as his lips moved over hers in a slow, claiming caress.

  She spent her days at the hospital with Lila, Karen, and Tina, but she’d spent nearly every night of the past two weeks with Reid either at her house or his. Usually, the rest of the coven was with them, but they’d gone to the movies a couple of times and spent a night alone at the beach where she sat between his legs, and he held her in his arms.

  They hadn’t discussed their relationship or what was happening between them, but it was the closest she’d ever come to having a boyfriend, and the more she got to know him, the more she liked him.

  She enjoyed listening to him talk about photography and had gone with him to take pictures of the sun setting behind some cranberry bogs. During the day, he worked construction with Shawn at the company Shawn’s dad owned. They’d started working there the summer they turned sixteen and also worked there Saturdays during the school year and on school breaks.

  She’d finally worked up the nerve to ask him if he thought something dangerous might be out there and revealed what her mom told her. “Our parents have never mentioned anything like that to us,” he’d said. “I’m sure if they believed we were in danger, they would warn us. I don’t know why your mom said that, but we’re safe.”

  “She was probably trying to scare me into joining the coven,” Avery had replied.

  That had to be the reason if Reid and the others all believed they were safe, but it didn’t feel right. However, not much had felt right since her powers were awakened. While she felt as if her awakening had given her a missing part of herself, she also felt like she’d climbed onto a raging bull and was barely holding on to the pieces of her life.

  When Reid broke the kiss, Avery laughed as he set her on her feet.

  “Ugh!” Mario stuck his finger in his mouth. “You two make me sick!”

  “You and me both,” Eric said.

  Avery stuck her tongue out at them as she leaned against Reid’s solid chest and he wrapped his arms around her. “Bite me,” Reid said.

  “Bend over and I will,” Mario replied with a grin. He laughed when Reid gave him the finger.

  “What are you ladies up to?” Shawn asked as he leaned against the wall.

  “Going over these Books,” Isla replied.

  “It sounds as if we came at the right time then,” Mario said as he draped his arm around Isla’s shoulders. She shoved him away. “What?” he asked innocently, and Isla rolled her eyes.

  Last week, curious as to how they handled the whole witch/nonwitch thing, Avery had asked the others if they dated. Rosie told her they dated outsiders on a regular basis. Avery still found it odd they referred to any noncoven member as an outsider, but that was the way they saw the world.

  To them, there was the coven, and then there was everyone else. They may associate with people outside the coven, but they never completely opened up to them. Avery wondered if they would ever marry or have children, but she didn’t ask them about it.

  “What are you guys up to?” Rosie asked the others.

  “Not much,” Alex answered. “We thought you might like a break.”

  “You read our minds,” Isla said.

  “Good,” Reid said. “We brought some pizzas; they’re downstairs.”

  “Great!” Rosie cried and bounced out the door.

  “Don’t you dare eat all my pizza!” Mario yelled as he chased after her.

  Avery laughed as Reid took her hand and they followed the others downstairs. The tantalizing aroma of pizza hit her as soon as they reached the bottom of the steps. Mario and Rosie were already fighting over the pizza with everything. Standing off to the side, Sandra was shaking her head in disgust.

  “Come on, Rosie. I’m a growing boy!” Mario yelled as Rosie slid three pieces onto her plate. “You’re killing me.”

  “I’m a growing girl,” Rosie retorted and turned so he couldn’t snatch a slice from her.

  “The only things growing on you are those!” Mario cried as he pointed at Rosie’s voluptuous chest.

  Rosie glowered at him. “What’s the matter? Upset you’ll never get to see them?”

  “Hardly.” Mario snatched up the box and strolled over to the chair in the corner with a smug smile on his face.

  Avery couldn’t help but laugh as she claimed a slice of cheese pizza. It was times like these when she enjoyed being a part of the coven. The easy camaraderie and teasing reminded her of a large, tight-knit family, but she could already see the two sides forming.

  “We still need to finish going through Avery’s Books,” Landon said as she blotted the grease from her pizza with a napkin.

  “Landon, we’re trying to eat here,” Isla griped. “Can’t you ever just relax?”

  “No one, except for me, wants to be responsible for the ceremonies, rituals, and Books. You all run and hide whenever the subject comes up,” Landon said. “You want the power but none of the responsibility that comes with it.”

  “We can work on the Books tomorrow,” Rosie said.

  “I have to go home tonight,” Avery reminded her. “And I can’t come back tomorrow.” And there was no way she was leaving her Books behind for them to study without her. They weren’t the most exciting things to read, but they were hers.

  Reid’s eyes were slate gray with anger when they met hers, but they returned to their pure silver color while he gazed at her. “All right, we’ll work on them over the weekend then,” he said.

  “Fine,” Landon relented.

  With that resolved, Avery tried to relax, but she found it difficult to do. Over the past couple of weeks, she’d learned more about crystals, he
rbs, special holidays like Samhain, and rituals, but she’d only used her power a couple of times since she was awakened and just for small things like charging crystals and once to find her lost sneaker. It simmered inside her like a pot waiting to boil over, but as much as she welcomed it, it also frightened her.

  “Do you guys find it odd we’re all so close in age?” She’d been meaning to ask the question for a while but kept forgetting.

  “Nope,” Mario answered around a mouthful of pizza.

  “You’re disgusting,” Isla told him.

  He grinned at her as he took another big bite that left cheese hanging from his mouth. Isla rolled her eyes but didn’t comment.

  “You don’t find it odd at all?” Avery asked in disbelief.

  They glanced at each other before shrugging. “All our parents are only a couple years apart in age, and they were all married on the same day,” Landon said.

  Avery sat upright as Landon revealed this. “They were?”

  “Yeah, they had a big wedding on the beach. Didn’t your dad ever tell you about it?” Reid asked.

  “No,” she said. “He never talked about when he lived here or said much about my mother.”

  “Why does that not surprise me?” Sandra muttered.

  “Enough, Sandra,” Reid warned. To her amazement, Sandra shut her mouth.

  “Within the next year of the wedding, all of us were born,” Rosie said.

  Avery’s brow furrowed as she studied them. “Do any of you have siblings?”

  “No,” Alex answered.

  Avery was growing more perplexed and agitated by their impassive faces. She understood why her parents never had more children, but why hadn’t theirs? And why didn’t they question any of this?

  “Why not?” she asked.

  “We’re not asking our parents about their sex lives,” Isla huffed.

  “Gross,” Mario groaned.

  “I’m trying to eat here!” Eric protested.

  “But don’t you find it strange that none of them had any more children?” Avery asked.

  “I’m sure they had their reasons,” Alex said.

  As the newest and least experienced person in the coven, she’d kept most of her questions to herself, but Avery was growing impatient with them and all the unknowns they’d never bothered to question.

  “Don’t you think it’s strange there are ten of us, and there were ten witches in the last coven that existed?” she asked.

  “Coincidence,” Shawn replied; it was the first time he’d shown any interest in a conversation. He usually stood impassively by, not speaking to anyone unless they talked to him first.

  “Never really thought about it,” Mario said.

  Avery restrained herself from asking if they ever thought or questioned anything. She had no business prying, but so many things were odd to her; the missing Book pages, the fact the magic abruptly ended a hundred years ago, that none of their parents had any other children and the bizarre way their parents’ powers were awakened all added up to questions she wanted answers to. However, they hadn’t considered any of it.

  Maybe they were right and none of it mattered. They’d been doing this longer than her, but she felt it did matter. She couldn’t ask her dad about it. The last time she tried, he gave her the same answers they had. He didn’t know, and he’d never questioned it either.

  She was being ridiculous, she decided as she took another bite of pizza. There were many unanswered questions in this world, and some things were just the coincidences Shawn said they were.

  CHAPTER 18

  “What are you doing?” Lila demanded.

  Avery poked her head into Lila’s living room and grinned at her. Lila had spent a month in the hospital, one in which she endured a couple of setbacks, endless tests, exams, and physical therapy. She still wasn’t walking on her own and relied on a wheelchair to get around, but she was making progress, and the doctors finally released her yesterday.

  “You’re the one who wanted a party when you got out,” Avery reminded her.

  “I did,” Lila agreed with a smile.

  Landon strolled past Avery with a bowl of popcorn in each hand. Alex followed with a case of soda and some water bottles. Standing by the TV, Rosie clicked through the horror movie selection as she bit her bottom lip and tapped her foot. She finally settled on a movie about ghosts before plopping onto the love seat.

  “Come on, everyone,” Avery called into the kitchen. “We’re all set.”

  She waited for Reid, Tina, and Karen to finish pouring the rest of the snacks into some bowls before strolling into the living room. She settled onto the floor with her back against the couch where Lila lay.

  Reid sat beside her and leaned over to kiss her; he slid his arm around her waist and drew her against his side. Avery caressed the contours of his face and the faint stubble lining his chin before resting her head against his chest. Beneath her ear, the solid beat of his heart made her smile as his sandalwood scent filled her nose.

  She’d only known him a month, and they still hadn’t discussed their relationship, but she didn’t think they had to. They were together; he was hers, and she hoped he knew she was his too, because she was starting to fall for him.

  No, she’d already fallen. Never had she felt about anyone the way she felt about him; just seeing him brightened her whole day. The days they didn’t see each other, they still talked for at least an hour.

  Avery glanced at the people gathered in the room. She’d invited the entire coven to Lila’s welcome-home party, but only Reid, Landon, Alex, and Rosie accepted. The others gave excuses why they couldn’t be here, but Avery sensed an underlying hostility in them. They didn’t like that she had close friends outside the coven, but that was too damn bad as she wasn’t giving them up.

  The rest of the coven had been more open to her friends and they’d all hung out a few times. They’d even gone to visit Lila in the hospital a couple of times. Tina and Karen were still a little uncertain about Avery suddenly bringing in a new group of people, but they all got along well, and they especially seemed to like Rosie.

  Alex turned off the lights when the movie started. Avery tried to relax against Reid, but a current of tension raced through her. She didn’t know why, but she’d been edgy all day. Nothing about the clear, beautiful day was upsetting, but the foreboding feeling gnawing at her all month had intensified today.

  Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath. Her heart swelled when Reid stroked her hair, and some of her tension ebbed as she lost herself to his gentle embrace. His scent and warmth lulled her until she was drifting between sleep and wakefulness.

  Panic suddenly squeezed the air from her lungs. Bolting upright, she glanced around the room. She was sure something was watching her, but like that day in Reid’s house, she saw nothing in the shadows of the room. She wished Landon had never told her about the existence of other worlds.

  “What’s wrong?” Reid whispered as he rested his hand on her shoulder.

  Avery inhaled a shaky breath as her heart pounded and adrenaline coursed through her body. The hair on her neck and arms rose, and she twisted to see if someone was behind her, but she saw no sign of the menace her body was braced for.

  “Are you okay?” Lila asked.

  “Yes,” she whispered in a strangled voice.

  Reid frowned at her. Feeling like a fool, she turned away from his scrutiny and sat back. Everyone was staring at her, but eventually, they turned their attention back to the movie. When Avery clasped Reid’s hand, his reassuring strength calmed her. The fingers of his free hand traced her cheek as he pushed a strand of hair behind her ear before leaning over to kiss her cheek.

  “Are you sure you’re okay?” he whispered in her ear.

  Not trusting herself to speak, Avery smiled tremulously at him. His fingers lingered on her face as his silver eyes burned into hers. Unable to stop herself, Avery kissed him again. He cradled her cheek in his hand before pulling away to kiss the tip of her
nose.

  Avery smiled at him before settling against his side again. The movie went by in a blur that wasn’t fast enough for her liking as she continued to search the corners of the room for something watching them. She was grateful when Rosie hopped up and turned on the lights.

  “What’s next?” Rosie inquired.

  “Board game,” Karen suggested.

  “Poker,” Alex said.

  “How about a séance?” Lila asked.

  “That sounds like fun,” Tina said. “We’ll need candles.”

  “There are some in the kitchen,” Lila said.

  “I’ll get them.” Avery jumped to her feet and hurried from the room.

  She searched the kitchen before discovering four teacup candles and a box of matches in the drawer beside the sink. Avery tried to ignore the tremor in her hand as she worked, but she dropped the matches on the floor when she pulled them from the drawer with the candles.

  She shut the drawer with a bang, and everything inside it rattled. Get it together, she scolded herself. You’re being a neurotic idiot over nothing!

  “Did you find them?”

  Avery jumped at the question and spun to find Reid leaning against the doorframe. He looked so handsome and relaxed while she felt like she’d grabbed a live electrical wire.

  “Ye-yes,” she stammered and held the candles up. “Is a séance going to work?”

  He came forward to claim the two red and two white candles from her. “All white would have been better, but it might. Are you sure you’re okay? You seem a little jumpy.”

  “Fine,” she murmured as she bent to snatch the matches from the floor.

  When she rose again, he set the candles on the counter and planted his hands on either side of her hips. Instinctively, her hands rose to his chest before slipping around his neck. He leaned into her as he nibbled her bottom lip before slipping his tongue into her mouth to kiss her.

  Avery’s muscles turned to mush, and he kept her standing with a knee between her legs. Laughter from the other room pulled them apart; a keen sense of loss shot through her when their connection broke.

  He cupped her cheeks in his palms, and she saw herself reflected in his eyes while he searched her gaze. “I’m falling for you, Avery Miller,” he said.