“Zoey.” She turned around to greet me, and I schooled my expression to hide how affected I was. Every one of these women held a different sort of beauty, and I vaguely wondered if that was a characteristic unique to someone with Magick in their veins.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Zoey.” I offered her a tight smile - my small attempt at playing nice with our house guests.
My gaze caught on the plants she had been handling, the small purple heads and soothing smell served to remind me of simpler times - times when things were less complicated.
“Lavender?” I hedged the question, knowing full well that I was correct.
“Yeah.” Her chocolate brown eyes shone up at me, and I could see why Corinne always spoke so fondly of her. There was absolutely no sexual tension between us, and I had a feeling that Zoey was one of those genuinely nice people.
“They’re good for protection.” She offered, followed by a self-deprecating shrug. “And combating mosquitoes.”
I grunted noncommittally as I left her to her perceived task.
“I’m sorry about your grandfather.” Her voice followed me towards the front door, and I tried not to stiffen under her words - tried and failed.
I didn’t offer her a reply - couldn’t really, and chose to simply step inside, the setting sun warming my back.
I halted my tracks, allowing the sounds of a semi-full house to wash over me. The sounds of a shower running as someone stuck their head out their bedroom door, yelling something about conditioner down the hall. Pop music floated down the stairs. A door banging.
For one horrifying moment, I realised that this was probably what it was like to have a house full of girls, and the thought of only being blessed with female children with Corinne was frightening.
I moved through the house slowly, scanning the furniture and everything in between. The Vedman had shifted my home. Things were no longer in the place that they used to be, and while I wasn’t opposed to changing things around, I had to fight the urge to fight Corinne on it. Rationally, I knew that this was her home - that she had every right to move things in an order that she felt comfortable with - but the new setup made me feel starkly uncomfortable. The last time anyone had moved anything in this house - truly moved the ornaments and shifted the furniture - was when my mother was still alive.
I couldn’t even argue that the new layout didn’t look good, if anything, it looked better, but it was strange seeing it look one way when I had grown accustomed to it looking another way for so long.
I shrugged off my misgivings as I took the stairs to check on Ravi. That, at least, was a constant that didn’t make me feel uncomfortable.
Corinne
I had called, and Zoey had come.
I knew that this was ultimately what family was all about - what the Club was all about - what the Bratva was about - but it was still an odd feeling to call for help and to have someone listen - to have them come.
Brenna had already taken charge, demanding that the Club arrive early for my wedding because, according to her, we needed to ‘close our ranks.’ When Marie seemed to agree that having everyone here would give us a better chance should the Voodoo Clan retaliate, I relented, allowing Brenna to send out the call.
Zoey called her grandmother before she had even arrived, and now we waited with baited breath as her grandmother dug out some of their ancestral books - their own Book of Shadows. This was not something a Witch could simply google - not something we could simply meditate on - and so in our time of need, we turned to the elders.
I had tried to ask Zoey what the cost of the information would be, but she had simply shrugged me off, as if even the mention of it was an affront. But I knew that her community would demand payment from her - knew that it would be expected - and I could only hope that the cost was not too high.
The bubbles rose around me as I leant back against the tub, willing my mind to work through the puzzle pieces that lay before me. The water warmed and soothed my body, as if she too was aware of the worries that weighed me down.
With nothing left to do but wait for Zoey’s grandmother, we all slid away, content to do our own things.
Marie had taken it upon herself to create a honey jar for my new home, filling it with a concoction of items, and spelling it in a way that would ensure that this home was filled with sweetness and love.
I already knew where I was going to put Marie’s honey jar when she was finished - there was a small display shelf in the den that would be perfect. Even alone, I smiled at the thought of what Dimitri would say to our new ‘ornaments’. So far, he had been surprisingly great about the Club being here, but I wasn’t certain that would last once Maxine arrived.
That was how Dimitri found me, in the tub, contemplating all the ways I could have prevented this. I had allowed my anger to control my actions - to fuel my spell, and that had made the curse all the more powerful because it had been filled with emotion.
His tall frame obscured the already fading light that splayed in from the window as he crouched next to the tub, bringing his gaze eye-level with mine.
“Hey.” I smiled as I blushed slightly under his attentive gaze. I wasn’t used to anyone paying me attention in quite the same way Dimitri did, and truthfully, I don’t think anyone else would ever measure up.
His lips quirked up into the ghost of a smile.
“Why is one of your Witches digging up our garden, Little Vedman?”
That’s what Zoey was up to.