Nightmares (The Coven, Book 1) Read online

  He grinned when he saw her and stretched his hand across the hall to her. Avery clasped it, and he leaned down to kiss her; she had to rest her hand on his hip to steady herself as his kiss made her legs go weak. He pulled away from her and brushed a strand of wet hair behind her ear.

  “Hungry?” he asked.

  “Starved,” she replied as her stomach rumbled.

  Reid led her downstairs and into the kitchen where his dad sat at the table with the morning paper in front of him. He lowered his glasses on his nose as he peered at them. “Well, hello, did you have fun last night?” he greeted.

  “Yes,” they answered in unison.

  He laughed as he neatly folded the paper. “Join me,” he said to Avery and gestured at the empty chair across from him. “Reid can make us breakfast. My name is Tom.”

  Avery smiled shyly at him as she slid onto the chair. “I’m Avery.”

  “Yes, I know.”

  Avery shifted self-consciously and tried not to fidget while he studied her. Reid looked a lot like his dad who had light brown hair, and piercing eyes that were more gray than silver. Reid put a towel in the center of the table before setting a pot of coffee, a carton of orange juice, some glasses, and coffee cups on it.

  Tom poured himself some coffee while Avery occupied herself with the orange juice. “How is your dad?” Tom inquired.

  “He’s good.” Avery sipped her juice to wet her parched throat.

  “Is he keeping busy?”

  “Yes.”

  Tom leaned back in his chair. “You look a lot like him.”

  Avery managed a weak smile as her gaze fell to the tabletop, but before she could respond, humming issued from the hallway. A beautiful woman with auburn hair strolled into the kitchen. When her gaze landed on Avery, she smiled, and her blue-green eyes glittered with warmth.

  “You must be Avery!” she exclaimed. “Reid and Landon have told us all about you.”

  Avery blushed as she glanced at Reid. He smiled at her before turning back to the pancake batter he was stirring in a mixing bowl.

  “My name is Deborah,” the woman said.

  Avery ducked her head before replying. “Nice to meet you.”

  Deborah kissed her husband’s head before returning her attention to Avery. “Did you sleep well?”

  “Yes, thank you,” Avery said.

  Deborah beamed at her. “Good. Reid, sit down, and I’ll finish making breakfast.”

  Deborah shooed Reid away from the counter before picking up the bowl of batter. A knot of longing filled Avery’s stomach while she watched Reid’s mother. Deborah hummed as she poured some mixture into a frying pan, and Reid sat at the table. Watching Deborah, Avery could see why Reid and Landon were so open and warm. This woman would never abandon her children or her husband.

  Avery’s gaze traveled to the window; she could see her mother’s Victorian higher on the hill. Why couldn’t Julie have been more loving? Why couldn’t she have cared more about her? Why couldn’t she have taken the time to cook Avery one breakfast in her lifetime?

  When anger and grief coiled in her stomach, Avery looked away from her mother’s house. Being so close to Julie was making her long for things she’d given up hoping for years ago.

  “How is your dad?” Deborah’s question tore Avery away from her morose thoughts.

  “He’s fine,” she answered.

  “That’s good. We miss him around here. It’s not the same without him, is it, Tom?”

  “No, it’s not,” Tom agreed.

  “What is your dad doing now?” Deborah asked.

  “He owns a very successful law practice,” Avery said.

  Deborah flipped a pancake, and the sweet smell of them filled the room as they sizzled in the pan. “That must keep him busy.”

  “It does,” Avery said.

  “Have you talked to your mom lately?”

  Avery stiffened when the conversation took a turn she didn’t like. “No.”

  “I was going to pay her a visit today; would you like to join me?”

  The idea of seeing her mother sounded as pleasant to her as a Brazilian wax, but she somehow managed to keep her face impassive. “I have to go home soon. In fact—” Avery glanced at her phone. “—I should go now. I promised my friend I’d visit her in the hospital.”

  “I’m sure she can wait. I know your mom would love to see you.”

  “Mom,” Reid interjected, “Avery really has to see her friend.”

  Deborah glanced out the window and sighed as she flipped another pancake. “Maybe next time. Won’t you eat some breakfast before you go?”

  “No, thank you,” Avery said.

  She was hungry, but she was desperate to flee this place of domestic bliss and all its reminders of everything she could have had if her mother were different. Oh well, there is no changing the past.

  “I’ll take you home,” Reid said.

  Reid climbed to his feet and stretched his hand out to her. Avery glanced nervously at his parents, but Deborah was focused on cooking, and Tom was engrossed in the paper again. Avery clasped Reid’s hand and followed him from the kitchen. She had a feeling his parents weren’t as unaware as they pretended to be, but she couldn’t resist touching him again.

  “I’m sorry for that,” he apologized when they were in the hallway.

  “Don’t be.”

  “My mom means well, but….” His voice trailed off as he stopped by the front door.

  “She’s friends with Julie.”

  “Yes, and she likes to fix things.”

  “Understandable.”

  He studied her before releasing her hand. “I need to see if Landon’s gotten her lazy ass out of bed before we go.”

  “Okay. I need to get my backpack.”

  “I’ll grab it for you.”

  Avery watched as he bounded up the stairs, taking them two at a time. Her pulse picked up at the way his jeans fit his lean, athletic build and long legs. When he turned at the top of the stairs and vanished, Avery focused her attention on the window next to the front door.

  Thick black clouds had rolled in to block out the sun and towered ominously in the air. Suddenly, the gut-wrenching feeling the clouds signaled the approach of something more than a thunderstorm on the horizon hit her.

  As if a vacuum had been turned on inside her, any happiness she’d been experiencing over Reid and her transition into this world of magic was sucked away. The hair on her nape rose; she felt eyes boring into her neck, but when she turned her head, no one stood in the hallway behind her.

  Still, she couldn’t shake the feeling that eyes were watching her from the shadows of the hall, and she couldn’t help but recall what Landon revealed about other worlds. She had the insane notion that if she stretched her hand forward, she could touch one of those worlds or feel some creature watching her from one of them.

  It took everything she had not to back away from the hall, but she refused to retreat from shadows. As a kid, she’d never been one for the boogeyman, afraid of the dark, or certain that monsters lurked beneath her bed or in her closet. But now, she was almost an adult and convinced something hovered nearby.

  This witch stuff is scrambling your brain. She tried to believe that, but her instincts screamed at her something was there and she should run, but run where? How could she possibly escape something she couldn’t see?

  CHAPTER 16

  A pounding drew her attention away from the hall as Reid left the stairs to stride toward her. “Landon’s still asleep. I swear she would sleep all day if we let her. Are you ready?” he asked as he handed her backpack over to her.

  “Ready as I’ll ever be,” she replied in a much lighter tone than reflected her mood.

  Reid clasped her elbow before opening the door for her. They stepped into the gloomy day as the first rumble of thunder shook the ground. The thick, ozone scent of rain hung heavy in the air as birds soared away from the clouds.

  Even the birds are fleeing something.
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  Don’t be ridiculous, Avery scolded herself as she climbed into the passenger seat of Reid’s Jeep.

  “Did you have fun last night?” he inquired when he’d settled behind the wheel and turned on the Jeep.

  “I did. Do your parties always go so late?”

  The party lasted until nearly two, and everyone had been more at ease with each other. For the first time, Avery felt accepted by everyone as even Sandra wasn’t as hostile and abrasive toward her. It was also the first party she’d been to that wasn’t a girls’ slumber party or a friend’s birthday, and she’d enjoyed it.

  “No, but last night was a special occasion. Our coven is finally complete,” Reid said as he pulled out of the driveway.

  A loud clap of thunder rattled the Jeep as they drove away from the approaching storm. Avery gazed into the side mirror as the eerie feeling something was wrong settled back over her.

  Hadn’t her mother said there was something evil out there and the coven needed her because of it? Had Julie been wrong, and now that the coven was complete, was something coming for them? Had they been better off without her?

  No, none of that made any sense. Her mother must have been wrong about there being something evil out there. Someone in the coven would have told her if they believed they were in danger. She was being ridiculous; there was nothing out there waiting for them.

  Julie said that because she was trying to scare Avery into joining the coven. Besides, if something threatening were out there, her dad never would have allowed her to do any of this. He wouldn’t have let Reid and Landon into their house.

  She could ask Reid about it, but she didn’t want to sound like an idiot by talking about strange feelings and the sense of being watched. The coven would know more than her if something was wrong. She was a newbie compared to all of them, and she’d let her mother get to her.

  Determined to ignore the uneasiness growing in her, she focused on a different question. “What was that dust stuff all of you used last night?”

  The sky burst open, and a deluge of rain battered the windshield. Unable to stop herself, Avery jumped when the torrent enshrouded them. Reid turned on the wipers and headlights, but they did little to combat the rain, and he slowed to avoid hitting anything.

  “As you know, each of us has our own crystal, but we also have our own color which comes from grinding our crystals to create the dust you saw. We use our crystals, dust, and colors to aid us in spells and ceremonies.”

  Avery concentrated on Reid’s words as the howling wind drowned out the rhythmic thump of the wipers. “What crystal and color does each person have and what do they all mean?”

  “My stone is hematite which is a silvery black color. It’s used as a grounder for excess energy and helps build self-confidence. My color, silver, represents moon magic, a peaceful state of mind, and helps reduce turmoil in a person. Landon’s stone is the amethyst, which she told you about. Her color is purple; it represents ambition and strengthens willpower. Rosie’s crystal is the rose quartz, and her color is pink, which helps overcome evil and represents love, honor, and friendship.”

  Avery remembered what Landon told her about the rose quartz and thought it suited Rosie perfectly.

  “Alex’s crystal is citrine, which can be used for creativity, inspiration, and relief from nightmares. His color, yellow, helps instill confidence, increases attraction, and aids in healing. Sandra’s stone is the ruby, which has the properties of love, passion, power, and courage. The color red represents love, strength, and physical vigor.”

  Reid paused to take a breath before continuing. “Mario’s stone is the green fluorite, which is also known as the students’ stone. It helps enhance mental concentration and knowledge retention. His color, green, is used for spells of luck, financial success, and cooperation. Shawn’s stone is the orange calcite, which Landon also told you about.”

  “I remember,” Avery murmured as she tried to retain all this new knowledge.

  “The color orange is used for encouragement and adaptability,” Reid continued. “Eric’s stone is gold. It helps attract spirits and strengthens independence. The color gold represents attraction and makes people feel more secure. The moonstone belongs to Isla. Her color is white, which adds to spiritual strength, breaks curses, and represents faith and purity.”

  Avery also recalled what Landon had told her about the moonstone. “I see.”

  “Because they’re so expensive, Eric, Sandra, and Landon don’t use their stones to create their dust. There is no way we could afford to grind up amethysts, rubies, and gold on a regular basis, so Eric replaces his with fool’s gold, Sandra uses bloodstone, and Landon works with purple fluorite instead.”

  “So my color would be blue then?” she asked.

  “Yes.”

  “What does blue represent?”

  “Sapphire blue, like your crystal and your eyes, has great power in resisting black magic and is used in psychic activation. We’ll have to find you a different stone to make your dust with too. We also use other crystals and stones when it’s necessary for spells and rituals, but those are our primary ones.”

  Avery took a deep breath as she massaged her throbbing temples. “I’m never going to remember all of this.”

  He squeezed her hand before returning his to the wheel. “You’ll do fine; it just takes time.”

  Avery nodded, but doubt ate her alive as she lowered her hands to stare out the window. “How did you find out you’re a witch—or are you a warlock?”

  “Witch is fine,” he said. “When we were thirteen, our parents told us the history of the founding families and gave us the Books of Shadows that belonged to our family.”

  “What are Books of Shadows?” Avery inquired.

  “They’re books that witches write spells, the properties of herbs, stones, and important rituals in. They also write down their experiences, family heritage, moon charts, and day-to-day lives. There’s a lot of history in them; most of it’s boring, but some of it’s interesting. I’m sure your mom and dad will give you their family Books soon too.”

  “Wouldn’t Sandra have the ones from Julie’s side?” Avery inwardly cringed at the idea of having to ask Sandra to see them.

  “No. In cases like that, duplicates were made so each member of the coven could have their own Books to study. Landon and I each have our own set.”

  “Good.”

  He smiled at her before focusing on the road again. “Landon and I are the oldest in the coven, so we were awakened first. Unless… when is your birthday?”

  “I’ll be eighteen on April thirtieth.”

  “So, we’re still the oldest, or at least I am by five minutes,” he said. “We turn eighteen on September sixth. As the oldest, we received our Books first, read through them, and found the ritual used to awaken our powers. We went down to the beach and helped each other do it.

  “When every other member of the coven turned thirteen, their parents gave them their Books, and everyone who was already thirteen would go to the beach with them to help awaken their powers. Mario was the last one, as his birthday is June twelfth. After everyone was awakened, we held a large initiation ceremony, and the rest is history.”

  “You were thirteen?” she squeaked.

  “We’ll help you learn everything you need to know.”

  She was grateful for his reassurance, but she didn’t think she’d ever catch up to them. There was too much to learn, and she was sure there wouldn’t be enough time for her to do it.

  CHAPTER 17

  Two weeks later, Avery folded her legs beneath her as she leaned forward to stare at the thick Book of Shadows in her lap. The scrawled writing was difficult to read and beginning to give her a headache. It took all her concentration to decipher the words in it. Every member of the coven had three to six Books; she’d received four from her dad and two from her mother. She, Landon, Rosie, Isla, and Sandra were going through the Books her dad gave her.

  So far, the only thing
interesting in the Book was a family tree. She’d studied the names of her ancestors and their birth and death dates. Her great-great-great-grandmother Lisabeth wasn’t a member of the coven that existed a hundred years ago, but her older sister, Celia, was.

  Unfortunately, Celia died at seventeen. A shiver ran down Avery’s spine as she realized her great-great-great-aunt was her age when she died. She knew people didn’t live as long back then, but she couldn’t shake the sense of foreboding creeping through her as she stared at Celia’s name.

  Celia’s coven was the last one entered in the Book and the tree until her dad penned his name with her mother’s and hers into it. Avery studied the lines and bold print connecting Celia to the nine other members of her coven; they were all the distant ancestors of the coven Avery belonged to.

  Why did the magic suddenly die with them? Until Celia’s coven, all members of the original families were inducted into their coven at the age of thirteen, and the covens were separated by generations, so parents and children were members of different ones.

  Her grandmother was eleven when her sister died, and the coven seemed to have collapsed afterward as her grandmother was never inducted. For a hundred years, none of the following generations possessed any power. The Books were stashed in attics until Landon and Reid’s mother felt drawn to a trunk at her parents’ house.

  Deborah was the first to uncover her Books again, and the rest of her coven went in search of theirs afterward. Otherwise, they never would have known about the existence of the Books. However, the Books did not explain the loss of magic or its sudden, inexplicable return. According to Landon, no one knew what happened to the powers the families possessed until Celia’s death and their parents’ strange awakening.

  Flipping through the yellowed pages of her Book, Avery stopped at a section where pages had been torn from the leather binding. It was another mystery no one had an answer for, and all of their Books had missing pages.