Destined (War of the Covens 2)

“Are you ready?” She grinned, the dimple in her cheek flashing invitingly.

How could he say no?

He smiled back at her. “After you.”

It felt like cold gel sliding and clinging to his skin as he walked through the pane. He could no longer see Caia. There was only darkness, but he could feel her hand still clasped warmly in his. The gel-like feeling disappeared, and as he kept walking, the darkness dissipated to white light. He stopped, blinking as the light glared brighter, bringing his arm up to shield his eyes from the intrusion.

“Lucien,” he heard Caia whisper.

Cautiously he brought his arm back down and blinked open his eyes.

Whoa.

They stood in an enormous space. In front of them were a couple of security gates and three guards. It wasn’t hard to guess they were warlocks trained in defensive magik. Beyond the gates was a huge reception area—there was even a cute receptionist behind the circular desk. And behind the desk to the right of the foyer were floor-to-ceiling windows that curved along the right side of the building instead of steel and brick.

“Oh my …,” Caia said, and Lucien echoed the sentiment as he realized they were looking out on to water, and beyond that a beautiful cityscape. And towering behind the bridges and stunning architecture was the top of the Eiffel Tower.

“You made it.”

They both turned to see Marion, grinning like a child as she sidestepped the security gates.

“Paris?” Caia shook her head in amazement.

Lucien watched as her mentor smiled smugly. “The River Seine, to be exact.”

“Wait.” His stunned gaze flew to the windows. “We’re on the River Seine?”

Marion chuckled. “Compliments of two of our finest magiks. An earth and air magik worked together to create the Center in another plane that exists within Paris. We can see them.” She pointed to the outside world. “But they can’t see us.”

“Wow.”

Lucien nodded. “You said it.”

“I’m so glad you made it.” Marion grabbed hold of Caia’s elbow and escorted her through the reception. “First things first, introduce you to Marita and Vanne, and then show you to your rooms. And then in the morning, I’m going to introduce you to another water magik I picked out for you, Mordecai. He shows amazing promise. Mordecai will show you around the classes I want you to take part in while you’re here. Communication spells, martial arts, water element lectures, glamour class, natural materialization … Oh, and we have altars to all the individual gods here. I’m sure you would like to see Artemis’s and Gaia’s. Oooh, maybe …”

Lucien trailed at the back, drinking in their modern yet rich surroundings, taking in all the excitement Marion had planned for Caia. He smiled as Caia glanced back at him, her eyes wide with the exhilaration of being somewhere she could really try out her magik. With that quick glance, she turned back to listen to Marion, leaving Lucien behind.

And that was exactly what he was afraid of.

5

Sizing Up

The witch and warlock that stood before her were not exactly what she'd been expecting.

Throughout Marion’s chatter, Caia had been completely aware of her and Lucien’s surroundings as they entered a large elevator near the rear of the massive reception area. The back wall held three elevators, and Marion led them to the middle one that needed a security code to open it.

As soon as the doors glided smoothly apart, Caia could see why. She was guessing this was the “presidential elevator,” clad in mahogany and gold, sparkling-clean mirrors reflecting three of each of them. Marion explained that this was the only elevator to the Head of the Coven’s suite.

When the elevator stopped and the doors opened, Caia’s eyes widened. Before them stretched a long, wide corridor, decorated richly in butter creams and gold. The carpet felt like clouds beneath their feet, and here and there sat pieces of Louis XIV furniture and rich, dark oil paintings favoring the Italian Renaissance. More surprising, however, was the lack of doors, except for the large double doors at the very end of the long corridor. Furthermore, ten magiks stood vigilant guard, five against either wall, dotted along the hallway in exact formation.

Those colossal double doors, which would not have looked out of place at the Palace of Versailles, had swung open to reveal a breathtaking room furnished with eclectic taste. But it was neither the furniture nor the decoration that caught Caia’s eyes this time. It was the magiks in front of her.

“Caia Ribeiro.” Marita gave a tight smile, nodded at her before shifting her attention to Lucien. “Lucien Líder.”

Caia gulped and looked up at her Alpha whose eyes were narrowed on the couple. Was she supposed to curtsey? Lucien was doing his usual, calculating their characters, judging how to respond. The brief nod he gave revealed that whether he liked them or not, Lucien would respect the Head of the Coven and her “mate.”