“Ethan.” I turn, a smile coming to my face. “This is Ruby. Remember that letter I said I wrote to find witches in my coven…well, I sent it without meaning to and it worked.” My smile grows bigger. “She’s from my coven and knows—knew—Aunt Estelle.”
Ethan’s eyes go from me to Ruby to Hunter, who’s still wagging his tail as Ruby scratches under his chin, then back to me again. He’s overprotective of me, and a tad possessive, if I’m being honest. If a time ever comes when he meets someone new and doesn’t suspect them, hell probably has already frozen over. “How did she get that letter? I saw you burn it.”
“That’s how I got it,” Ruby answers. “The fireplace is spelled to send papers from the house to the academy.”
“It’s a good thing I didn’t burn anything questionable,” I add and sit back down.
“You can still burn things,” Ruby says. “You have to have an intention to send something magically that way. And if you wrote this intending on sending it one way or another, that was enough of an intention. And I’m sorry I didn’t come sooner. It’s…it’s been an interesting few weeks for me.” She inhales and turns her attention back to me. “I can’t imagine what it would be like to have your memories taken like that. No one should alter your mind,” she adds softly.
“Like vampires,” Ethan grumbles, coming up behind me. He rests one of his large hands on my shoulder.
“Vampires can’t hold witches spellbound,” Ruby says and chuckles. “You really don’t know anything.”
I let out a snort of laughter. “Total noob here.”
“We can change that.” She smiles again, brown eyes holding my gaze. “Slowly, so you don’t go crazy.”
“Yeah, I’ve had enough of that lately.”
“What do you mean?”
“It’s another long story, but basically, this—”
“Anora,” Ethan interrupts, sliding his hand down a bit. I know what he’s going to say; don’t blab my whole life story to this woman I just met. But if I’m going to go with her through the woods and find that door, then I have to trust her.
“It’s okay,” Ruby assures us both. “It’s good to be skeptical. And I should probably arrange something with the High Priestess before bringing you to the Covenstead. I’m curious, as well, if you’re in the book.”
“The book?” Ethan echoes.
“Any witch or warlock who is part of our coven has signed a book, stating such. If you’ve already signed, then you’d be free to come and go as you please,” she explains to me. “Once you can master the spell that opens the door.”
“Oh my god,” I whisper, feeling like I just got my letter to Hogwarts. Only this is real and it’s happening. “That would be amazing.”
“Don’t get ahead of yourself, babe,” Ethan says gently, and Ruby’s expression shifts, looking at Ethan as suspiciously as he’s looking at her. “If your name isn’t in the book, I wouldn’t rush to sign it. Signing something like that comes with a cost.”
“You’re not signing your soul away,” Ruby goes on, but there’s no humor in her voice and it’s then I realize how at ease she seems. She must be pretty damn good at magic because Ethan can look very intimidating when he wants to—and for good reason. “And you’re free to leave the coven at any time if you so wish.”
Reaching up, I put my hand on Ethan’s, giving his fingers a squeeze.
“Did you know about witches before you two met?” Ruby asks and Ethan’s fingers press against me.
“I’d heard of them,” Ethan says but doesn’t elaborate. If Aunt Estelle and others from the coven worked together to track and kill demons, then I’m sure crossing paths with demon hunters isn’t out of the question.
“Really? We work hard to keep our identities hidden.”
“Really.”
A few awkward seconds of silence pass before Ruby pulls out her phone, reading the energy shift in the room. “I’ll text you when I get a meeting with the High Priestess set up.”
“Thanks.” She passes me her phone to put in my number. “For everything.” I give her phone back and stand to walk her to the door.
“Of course. Like I said, I can’t imagine having someone alter my past like that.” Hunter follows us to the foyer. “Be careful, Anora,” Ruby says before she steps out of the door. My first thought is she means be careful with magic, but then I notice she’s looking right at Ethan.
Chapter
Two
Closing the door, I watch Ruby walk down the sidewalk and get into a small grey SUV. Once she’s on the road, I turn around, looking at Hunter.
“Holy shit,” I whisper. “I mean, holy fucking shit!” Buzzing, I go into the kitchen, finding Ethan at the sink, filling a glass of water. He takes a long drink, sets the glass down, and turns, face still set with worry.