The Bone Coven Chronicles: The Complete Series Read online

  When Dorian dropped to his knees, I wrapped my hand around Laura’s arm and tugged her toward the door. But when I pulled on the handle, it wouldn’t give way. Grunting, I strained harder, tears of panic springing into my eyes. The door wouldn’t fucking budge.

  “Go. Leave this place!” Dorian’s voice thundered in the small space. Wind whipped around us, the cold burning into my skin. The demon rushed from side to side, growing in speed and size until it engulfed every inch of the crypt

  My veins throbbed in my neck. It was happening again. Dorian’s spell didn’t work.

  “Dorian, forget that,” I shouted over the roar of the demon. “Help me pull!”

  With one last look at the demon, Dorian whirled and joined me at the door. The three of us yanked against the hard stone, our eyes clenched tight as it barely shifted under our combined weight. We pulled again and again, the demon roaring behind us. My arms began to ache with every frantic pull, but finally, the door gave way.

  The fae stood outside of the crypt clapping slowly as we tumbled into the cool night air. His lips were twisted into a cruel smile, one that set off a fire of anger in my belly. When the clapping ceased, he pushed a large metal key into the crypt’s lock and twisted it shut, sealing the demon inside.

  “Well done,” Belzus said in a singsong voice. “Though it is a shame your banishment rune doesn’t work against this creature.”

  “Was this some sort of trap?” I snapped, curling my hands as I strode toward him. The shadow magic swirling through my veins urged me to throw my fists right into his face and beat him to a bloody pulp, but I forced those feelings down. “Some sort of trick to get us killed?”

  “On the contrary.” Belzus barely flinched when Dorian threw his bright orange wards around him, trapping him in place. “Am I to understand you’re taking me to the Bone Coven?”

  His voice was pleasant and calm, grating on my nerves. Obviously, he’d known this would happen if he showed himself. Otherwise, he would have kept hidden in the shadows. So, what was he playing at? It didn’t matter. He wouldn’t be going anywhere once he was locked up behind magical bars.

  “You bet your ass,” I said, lifting my chin. “Belzus, whatever your last name is, you’re arrested for the murder of blood mages Sylvia Anderson and Mark Spencer. And for the attempted murder of all of us.”

  Belzus merely smiled.

  Chapter 16

  The Bone Coven headquarters was a lot different than it had been prior to three months ago. Back then, the council members, as well as some Enforcers (not Dorian, unfortunately for him) called a large mansion in Cambridge their home. It had been the building where they lodged, held their meetings, and stored grimoires of all the currently-known bone spells.

  Unfortunately, all of that had gone up in flames when the vampires had attacked. No one really knew what had caused the fire, though we all had our suspicions. The vampires themselves, wanting to cause chaos. Or perhaps Vincent, the Lead Enforcer who had been pulling the strings all that time. Perhaps to cover his tracks or perhaps to anger the coven even more.

  Regardless of the reason, the building was gone, and now the council members lived on the top floor of a high-rise, clustered together like a family. There were only five of them now, so they each had their own room. It was a hell of a lot different than what they were used to. They’d fallen back on earth to join the rest of us.

  The newly-appointed Magister, who had been the previous Summoner, greeted us when the elevator pinged and slid open on the top floor. His eyes lit up when they landed on the fae, eagerness and excitement rippling across his usually stoic features.

  “And who do we have here?” he asked, rubbing his hands together.

  “I am Belzus, guardian of Forest Hill Cemetery,” the fae answered before Dorian could brief the Magister on what had happened. We’d called ahead to say we were bringing in the blood mage killer, but we hadn’t said more than that. It was kind of difficult to carry on a conversation while holding wards around a fae who was a hell of a lot stronger than he looked.

  “Yes, I’ve heard of you,” Magister Salvatore said with a nod. “No need to wear your glamor here.”

  The fae smiled, and in an instant, the dirt-caked gravedigger no longer stood sandwiched between me and Dorian. In his place, a youthful man stood tall, thick chest puffed out with a look of pride flickering in his gold-flecked eyes. His cheekbones were high and sculpted into his bronze face, and the tips of his ears were slightly pointed. And his hair. Soft golden locks that looked as smooth as silk. Even though he’d shown me a flicker of himself before, I’d never seen a fae like this up close. And I felt as if I couldn’t speak.

  “Much better.” Magister Salvatore gave the fae a quick bow. “Now, I’m sure you understand we need to lock you up. My Enforcers have informed me they have evidence to suggest you were involved in the murder of two blood mages. Until we can confirm or deny these accusations, we need to keep you under observation.”

  “What the fuck?” I said with a frown. “We have video footage that shows him dragging the body through the alley. He had a demon waiting for us in the cemetery. If that’s not evidence enough, then I don’t know what is.”

  “Zoe,” Dorian said with a sharp look. “Don’t.”

  “Don’t what? Don’t ask why the Magister is treating this fae like he’s some kind of royalty?” I curled my hands into fists. “We just risked our lives trying to bring him in.”

  But Dorian only sighed and clenched his jaw. It was against protocol to show anything but the utmost respect and total deference to the sitting Magister, but I’d never been particularly good at that side of the whole Enforcer thing. Not back when the previous Magister had been in charge and certainly not now. Things had improved—slightly—when the council changed hands, but there was still so much they didn’t bother to do right.

  And I didn’t know how to change that other than speaking my mind any time I could.

  The Magister held up a hand and smiled. “It’s fine, Dorian. It wouldn’t be a visit from Zoe Bennett if there wasn’t some input from her, as harshly as she might like to put it. As for your questions, I’ll answer those as soon as we’ve shown the prisoner to his quarters. We have a nice warded room on the floor below reserved for prisoners like him.”

  After we showed the Magister the video footage, he paced across the floor, running his hand along his jaw. He was silent for a few moments, just staring at the blank screen, as if it held more answers than the actual tape did. A moment later, he sighed and perched on the edge of the chair, looking pretty unconvinced.

  “Despite his youthful appearance, Belzus is an old fae. He’s been guarding that cemetery for longer than this coven has been headquartered in Boston. In not a single one of those years has he ever shown violence.” The Magister shook his head and frowned. “I’m finding it difficult to wrap my head around what you’ve shown me.”

  “He’s dragging the body in that video. There’s blood all over him.” I knew I was pointing out the obvious, but it had to be said. I didn’t care how long he’d been stalking around a graveyard, that didn’t change what the evidence showed.

  “Yes, I did see that, Zoe. I’m not arguing what’s on the screen.”

  “Don’t forget he was ready for us,” Dorian added. For a moment, my heart lifted at his words, hearing him take my side. I hadn’t been certain he would, what with the way he liked to stick to the rules. “He knew we’d come looking for him after we saw the video, and he knew Zoe would go straight to the crypt where she banished that demon.”

  “Fae cannot summon demons.” Magister Salvatore steepled his fingers under his chin. “But I’ll admit, that doesn’t mean he didn’t do something else to get it there. They’re masters at trickery, after all.” With a sigh, he closed his eyes. “We need more than this if we’re going to hand him over to the Blood Coven. They’ll sentence him to death, and I want to be certain we have the right killer before we destroy the fae who guards those graves.”
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  “But—” I started, but the Magister held up a hand to stop me.

  “That’s my final word on the matter,” he said. “Now, tell me about these demons. You say they aren’t responding to your banishment spells?”

  “That’s right,” Dorian said. “That makes several in the space of a few days. The first few were in an auto repair shop. The other in the crypt. None of them responded to the standard banishment spell but Zoe didn’t try her—”

  He cut off suddenly, catching himself before he could say the words that would destroy my entire life. Because I knew what the end of that sentence was supposed to be. Shadow magic. My heart flickered in my chest, and my mouth went dry. We’d just come far too close to revealing my true nature to the council. And if they found out? Well, there was no telling what they would do.

  The Magister cocked an eyebrow. “Zoe didn’t try her what?”

  “Well, we both tried,” I said quickly. “It didn’t respond to the two of us combined.”

  “That certainly is out of the ordinary,” Magister Salvatore said, “though not completely without precedence. A few of these demons appeared during the war if I’m remembering correctly. I didn’t face them myself, but I heard rumor of them.”

  I leaned forward. “If there were some in the war, then someone must have figured out a way to banish them, right?”

  “I don’t believe we did.” He turned his gaze on Dorian, his eyes suddenly sharp. “Instead, it was the vampires who conquered them. Their venom was the only thing that could break through the magic that kept them from being banished.”

  The vampires. Sucking in a sharp breath, I felt myself reach for Dorian’s hand before stopping short. That really was not the kind of news I wanted to hear today. I could go the rest of my life without seeing another vampire, and I’d be happy. Not including Dorian, of course.

  “Vampire venom,” Dorian said with a nod. “I’m assuming that means I could fight them.”

  “Well, you are a vampire,” Magister Salvatore said. “But hurry fast. If there are multiple demons in our world, the veil is threatened with every moment that ticks by.”

  Chapter 17

  “I’m not sure this is a good idea.” A wintry wind rushed around us as we stood before the stone crypt. In my pocket, the old metal keys jingled, a sound that echoed in the heavy silence of the graveyard. We’d managed to confiscate the keys, though Belzus seemed eerily intrigued that we wanted them. He was probably glad we’d decided to confront the demon again, assuming we would finish what he’d started. To be on the safe side, we’d left Laura at home. Just in case. I wouldn’t let my best friend end up the next target of the fae’s blood mage killing spree.

  “It’s definitely not a good idea,” Dorian said, agreeing with me for once. He turned my way and his tall form blotted out the bloated moon, transforming his muscled shoulders into a dark silhouette. “But, do you have any better ideas? You heard the Magister, and you know he’s right. The longer these demons stay in our realm, the weaker the veil gets. We need to banish them sooner rather than later, and if this is what it takes? Then, that’s what we have to do.”

  What exactly did it take? That was the question I’d been asking the entire way here. Vampire venom, the Magister had said, but that was just the what. The how was still cloudy as hell to me.

  “Here’s what we’re going to do,” Dorian said in a low voice. “We’ll go in together. You cast a bone ward to keep it from attacking. I know it’s not your strength, but we’ve been practicing. Just remember what we’ve trained. Then, when I say I’m ready, drop the wards. I’ll use my speed to rush forward and bite it.”

  My mind spun as I processed his words. “Dorian. This sounds like a terrible idea. My bone spells are weak as hell and I—”

  He shifted closer, taking my left hand in his. “You only have to keep the wards around the demon for a moment.”

  “But how do you bite something that’s made of shadows?” I asked, shivering against his touch. “It’s not like they have a solid form.”

  “The Daywalkers did it in the war.” He pulled the bone chalk from his pocket and traced the rune on my palm, the gentle touch tickling my skin. When he finished, he closed my hand into a fist and pressed it against my heart. “We can do this, Zoe.”

  Dorian was right. According to the Magister, the Daywalkers had bitten demons during the war, but that knowledge didn’t stop the sharp prickle on the back of my neck. There was still so much we didn’t know about what was happening here. My partner sometimes liked to think of himself as invincible, able to heal no matter what happened to him. But a demon could harm him far worse than any other creature could. He might have an eternal lifeline, but he wasn’t indestructible.

  And that was a huge difference I hoped he didn’t forget.

  As I stepped forward to unlock the door, Dorian’s hand fell onto my shoulder and squeezed. We hadn’t spoken about the blood-filled kiss since it happened, but it’d been replaying in the back of my mind all this time. Did he regret it? Did he want to do it again? Questions I yearned to ask but couldn’t. At least not now. Not only because we were about to face a mage-immune demon but because I was terrified of what he might say.

  “You okay to do this?” His voice was soft and much more understanding than it usually was. “I know the wards aren’t your strength, but I’m not going to push you about your shadow magic anymore.”

  My stomach squeezed tight as I turned to face him. “There’s something I never told you. Something you should know about my powers. At first, I didn’t say anything because I was scared of what it meant. And then, I just kind of hoped that it was something that would go away. To be honest, it kind of has, but I haven’t given in to my power that way since. So, I don’t know what would happen if I really let go.”

  “You know you can always tell me anything, Zoe,” Dorian said. “And I’d much rather you shared what’s bothering you than keep it bottled up inside. Maybe I can help.”

  “I really don’t think you can, Dorian.” My eyes flicked to the ground before moving back to his face. “Remember when we were in Vincent’s house, and my power kind of exploded from me?”

  He nodded. “I would never forget that moment. You’ve never looked fiercer. Or more terrifying.”

  “That moment is why I can’t let go. While it scares me that it convinced me to kill Vincent, this is what I’m really terrified of.” I stepped closer and placed my hand on his heart. “It filled my mind and took control. I wasn’t truly aware of what I was doing. After it had banished the demons, it asked me to turn my power onto you. It asked me to destroy the vampire. You, Dorian. My magic tried to turn me on you.”

  My breath stilled in my lungs while I waited for Dorian’s reaction. I’d been scared to tell him this, but I knew it was time. He needed to know just how dangerous I was. Would he pull away? Would he decide I wasn’t worth all this trouble?

  Dorian was silent, his eyes locked on my face. My blood swirled in my veins as my body shifted closer to his, my soul drawn to him in a way I didn’t understand. After a moment, he reached up and curled his hand around mine, pressing it tighter against his chest. “What you aren’t acknowledging is that you resisted. You didn’t destroy me. At least, not as far as I can tell.” His lips cracked into a smile.

  “So, that doesn’t freak you out?” I asked.

  “If it were any other witch in the world who heard that command in her ear, then I might be a little concerned.” He tweaked my chin. “But you, Zoe? I trust you with my life.”

  My heart went still, and my lungs lost all air. Every other sight and sound disappeared in the blink of an eye, replaced by only the man standing before me. My chin burned where he touched my skin, and my fingers were tense where he held my hand against his body. Even though he was a vampire, and his heart could no longer beat, I swore I could feel it banging wildly in his chest.

  My free hand fell heavily to my side, my fingers slipping against the metal rung. The keys crashed o
nto the ground, knocking me out of my reverie. With a sharp breath, I stepped back. Not because I wanted to get away from him, but because I was suddenly overwhelmed by just how close I wanted to be.

  “Thank you for the vote of confidence,” I mumbled awkwardly as I grabbed the keys from the ground. They rattled in my shaking hands, giving away just how flustered I was.

  “You seem nervous,” Dorian said with an amused curve to his lips.

  “Well, you’re about to try biting a fucking demon,” I said. “Makes sense to be nervous if you ask me.”

  “Of course.” Dorian smiled as he slowly took the keys from my hands. “Maybe I’ll unlock the door. The sound of those keys is going to wake the dead.”

  Shivering, I nodded and let him take over, even though I half-hated myself for it. Why couldn’t I act like a normal girl around this guy? It wasn’t like we hadn’t spent an inordinate amount of time together. He shouldn’t get me so flustered by a few words that probably meant nothing to him.

  But they meant everything to me.

  When the lock clicked open, I had to shove those thoughts aside. It was time to face the demon, and I couldn’t let my mind get caught up in anything else. Closing my eyes, I reached deep inside of me for a power that wasn’t mine to control. Bone magic. The power of the earth. Because I was a shadow mage, I would never be able to yield it the way a bone mage could. But I’d been practicing, and my parents had both been members of the coven. There was a small amount of it within me, enough that I could manage a spell as simple as a ward. Sometimes.