Chapter 7

“Isach said Ivy has been welcoming witches into her coven, right? Well, she has no idea I even exist.” Piper shrugged. “I can come up with a story about who I am, how my coven abandoned me… I can ask to join the Rose Coven. She won’t turn me away if I show her how powerful I am.”

Over my dead fucking body. I opened his mouth to protest, but Piper held up her hand to silence me. I snapped my mouth shut and curled my hands into fists.

“I’ll be able to gain access to the entire coven. I can figure out what’s really going on and report back,” she said.

“So, you want to be a spy?” Abby asked.

Piper nodded. “We already know there’s at least one witch who isn’t happy with Ivy’s leadership.” She glanced at Isach.

“Heaven Leigh.” Isach sighed.

“Wait. What?” Chloe raised a brow. “How does Heaven Leigh factor into this?”

“She was the one who warned me about Ivy’s plan.” Isach stood, planted his feet shoulder’s width apart, and crossed his arms. “She came to me for help, and I didn’t… I couldn’t. My only concern was for Abby and the rest of you.” He frowned.

“You want to save her,” Abby whispered.

Had everyone lost their damn minds? Piper wanted to play spy. Isach wanted to save the woman who’d tortured me. What was going on here? Our focus needed to be on killing Ivy. Nothing else. Colt’s idea to ambush her was starting to sound better by the second.

“Yes. If we’re taking Ivy down, I need a guarantee that Heaven Leigh won’t be harmed,” Isach said.

“You do realize this is the same witch who helped Ivy kidnap Chloe, right?” I took a menacing step toward Isach, hands still curled into fists. “The same witch who held us prisoner and starved me for weeks.”

“And that’s exactly why she warned me in the first place.” Isach turned toward me, jaw clenched. “She was trying to do something right to make up for what she’d done to you.”

“You expect us to believe she suddenly feels guilty and wants to help us?” Chloe asked with a bitter, incredulous laugh. “How do we know she’s not doing the same exact thing we’re talking about doing? For all we know, this is a ploy to gain our trust so she can report back to Ivy.”

“Then why warn me?” Isach swung around to face Chloe. “Why tell me the one thing that ensured Ivy wouldn’t get the power she wants?”

“Ivy plays every side all the time,” Sean said calmly. “I’m sorry, Isach. It’s admirable that you want to help Heaven Leigh, but I have to agree with Jax. We can’t know her intentions are good.”

“What if I can prove it?” Piper asked. “Let me be your spy. I’ll get close to Heaven Leigh, and I can determine if her intentions are pure.”

“No.” I shook my head. “It’s too dangerous. If Ivy finds out who you really are…”

“She’ll take your magic and kill you on the spot,” Isach finished for me. “You and your sisters are our greatest weapon. We can’t risk exposing you to Ivy. Not yet.”

Piper snapped her fingers, then waved her hand in front of her face and down her torso. She morphed from red hair and green eyes to jet black hair and hazel eyes. My eyes widened, and I froze. What the ever-loving hell? Had she really just changed her appearance with nothing more than a wave of her hand?

“Ivy will never even see my true form.” Piper smiled with a sweet sense of satisfaction. With another wave of her hand, she became platinum blonde with dazzling blue eyes.

“Whoa,” I whispered.

Despite my utter shock, I couldn’t stop my thoughts from wandering down a very inappropriate path, straight over a cliff, and plunging into some extremely fun—and erotic—role playing fantasies.

“I don’t know if that’s cool or creepy,” Abby mumbled.

“I vote for creepy,” Whitney said.

Piper laughed, and she slowly morphed back to her natural looks. “I can be whoever I want her to see.”

“Still seems incredibly dangerous,” I said. Because no matter what she looked like on the outside, she was still my soulmate, and I couldn’t stomach the thought of intentionally putting her in harm’s way.

“Well, does anyone else have a better idea?” Piper’s gaze swept over the room. No one spoke.

“If we do this, it means we’re playing the long game,” Trent said. “Which means Isach will have to stay hidden for however long it takes you to get information.”

“And this still doesn’t solve how we’ll eventually kill her.” Colt rubbed his hands over his face, then pushed himself to a standing position. “The longer this takes, the more risk to all of us. Are we really okay with that?”

“Do we have a choice?” Chloe’s voice was a blend of frustration and resignation.

“Then tomorrow, I’ll plead my case to Ivy and ask to join her coven,” Piper said. “I’ll gather as much information as quickly as I can, and we’ll use that to stop her for good.”

Isach nodded. “Start with Heaven Leigh. She’ll be your way in.”

Chloe excused herself and headed upstairs. Abby followed. I rubbed my hand over my face. As much as I was looking forward to eventually killing Ivy, I was not prepared for more weeks or months of strategic planning sessions and disagreements about how to handle things.

“We need to come up with your cover story,” Colt said.

I loved my brother, but I was exactly two seconds away from closing his mouth with my fist. He was much too excited about this plan, and I wanted to scream in his face, to make him understand how dumb the whole thing was. But I couldn’t necessarily do that without giving away my true feelings.

“I can tell her I’m a fairly new witch, that I was abandoned by my coven,” Piper said.

“Which coven?” Sean asked. “That will be the first question Ivy asks.”

“I’ll make one up.” Piper shrugged.

“And then Ivy will find out you’re lying. She’ll either know it’s not a real coven, or she’ll ask around until she learns the truth.” Sean crossed his arms and let out a heavy sigh. “Whatever we come up with needs to be airtight.”

“Which is exactly why this is the dumbest plan anyone’s ever come up with,” I muttered under my breath.

Dad glanced at me, brow raised. “You’re not on board with this?”

“Nope.” I yanked out a dining room chair and sank down into it. “It’s dumb and dangerous and it will blow up in our faces.”

“Then what do you suggest we do?” Wyatt asked.

I shrugged. “Colt’s idea to ambush her sounds good.”

Colt grinned.

“That’s equally as dangerous,” Piper said. “Besides, we’ve already established that there’s no way to get through her magical protections without her knowing.”

“Right, because letting you prance in there with some half-assed story is better?” I slammed my hand on the table, then stood. “She’ll kill you, Piper. What part of that don’t you understand?”

She narrowed her eyes, her green irises blazing. Her aura sparked with what I could only describe as electricity, the colors dancing between blue and white. Heat spread through me, making my limbs tingle.

“Then we tell her I’m a brand new witch, and I don’t have a coven.” Piper’s voice was much too calm for the rage that burned in her expression. “No way she can disprove that.”

“That can work.” Sean nodded.

I glared at my father. Of all the people in this room right now, I expected him to be able to see this was a suicide mission. Why was he pushing for her to do this?

“As far as stories go, that’s the best one.” Isach sighed. “You could tell her you recently suffered a loss, and you came into magic you didn’t know you had. Ivy won’t hesitate to welcome you into her coven.”

“Between that and a change in your appearance…” Wyatt nodded with approval.

“Have you all lost your damn minds? Or did everyone just wake up stupid this morning?” I threw my hands in the air. “Ivy’s smart, and she’s sneaky as hell.”

“What the hell is your problem?” Colt raised his voice, his anger directed at me.

“All of you!” I shouted. “She’s offering to help us, and we’re standing around planning the best way to march her straight to her death.”

“I’m not going to die, Jax.” Piper’s tone was soft but firm.

“You don’t know that.” I snarled.

“Hey!” Chloe breezed down the stairs. “If y’all are going to yell at each other, take it outside. The girls are sleeping.”

I stormed out of the house and straight toward the pool. I paced the length, each step only ratcheting my anger. I curled my hands into fists, flexed, then curled them again. How could no one else see how utterly dangerous this plan was? Why did no one else care about Piper’s safety?

“What the hell was that in there?” Wyatt approached, Colt close behind.

I faced them, a scowl firmly in place.

“Yeah, obviously Piper wants to do this. Who are we to stop her?” Colt asked.

I clenched my jaw so tight I expected to hear my teeth splintering. “We’re supposed to be the good guys, remember? Since when do we let anyone risk their lives like this?” I turned my attention to Wyatt. “What if it were Whitney who wanted to do this?”

Wyatt didn’t say anything. Yeah, that’s what I thought. I’d only just found my soulmate. No way in hell was I going to lose her to someone as vile and ruthless as Ivy.

“If it were anyone else, we’d talk them out of it. Just because we don’t know Piper that well doesn’t mean we should let her do something so reckless.” My fingernails bit into my palms, but the pain didn’t ease the terror clutching my chest.

“You don’t get to tell me what I can and can’t do,” Piper said.

I whipped around, eyes wide. “Why not? Someone around here needs to be the voice of reason.”

“Well, you’re right about one thing.” She lifted a brow, her expression smug. “You don’t know me very well, Jaxon.” The sass she infused into my name had desire tearing through me, and I both loved and hated how she could do that so easily. “I can hold my own against Ivy.”

My gaze lingered on her for a long moment before drifting toward Colt and Wyatt. Clearly, I was woefully outnumbered, and nothing I said to them was going to make a difference. I may not be able to change their minds right this second, but I was a hell of a lot sneakier than the three of them combined.

One way or another, I was going to convince Piper that this plan was all sorts of wrong. Then, I was going to do whatever it took to ensure she didn’t go through with infiltrating Ivy’s coven. As soon as I did that, I was going to need help convincing everyone else, because they all seemed sold on this idea. And I knew exactly who to enlist to help me—Abby.

***

Later that evening, I made dinner, mostly so I could distract myself from the fact that Piper and everyone else was still sold on the idea of her spying on Ivy. Tonight, after everyone was in bed, I’d talk to Piper. Alone. Make her see things my way. Then, once I had her convinced, I’d explain the situation to Abby.

I bustled around the kitchen, trying hard not to stare at Piper. She sat at the dining room table with Chloe, Abby, and Whitney. The four of them were talking about Abby and Isach’s wedding—I was glad they were still going through with that.

“Isach made the right choice in coming back to fight for his life with you.” Piper’s voice was soft and sincere, and warmth seeped through me. “I’ll do everything I can to ensure he gets to live it, too.”

“Why?” Chloe’s tone held a bite to it.

I resisted the urge to snap at her for being so mean to Piper. Hadn’t Chloe realized yet that Piper was our friend? I clutched the saucepan so tight my fingers ached.

“Excuse me?” Piper asked.

“Why are you so eager to help a bunch of people you don’t know?” Chloe asked.

The house had fallen silent, and I couldn’t stop from scowling in Chloe’s direction. I knew she had reason to be suspicious, and she had the girls to think of, but the fact that she didn’t trust my judgment was a slap in the face. I shifted so my attention was on everyone else, the food momentarily forgotten, and I clenched my hands into fists.

“Because I know Isach, and all of you are important to him. That makes you important to me, too,” Piper said simply. When no one spoke, she sighed. “I realize the importance of family, especially when that family consists of people you chose to be part of your life. Those bonds are often stronger and a lot harder to break. I never agreed with what Isach did.” She flashed him an apologetic smile. “Sorry, Isach.”

“It’s old news. But do we really need to do this again?” Isach directed his question to the room as opposed to one person specifically. “I know that none of you have had good experiences with witches, and you have every right to be suspicious, but I’m begging you to trust me.”

Abby cleared her throat. “What’s wrong with all of you? Before Isach faked his death, every single one of you trusted him with your lives. What’s changed? If anything, his actions should prove how much he cares, how far he’s willing to go for all of us. Why are you treating him like he’s the enemy?” She stood abruptly, and the chair scraped against the floor.

Yeah, I wouldn’t have any issues getting Abby to side with me and Piper, but just to be sure…

“I’m with Abby on this.” I remained in the kitchen, even though I really wanted to move into the dining room so I could be closer to Piper. “I don’t like what Isach did or how deeply it affected everyone, especially Abby, but he saved all our lives. We kinda owe him, and if all he’s asking is for us to trust Piper, then…” I shrugged.

Chloe’s eyes widened with shock. Normally, I wouldn’t hesitate to side with her about something like this, but she was wrong about Piper.

“But that’s not all he’s asking us to do,” Wyatt said. “He’s asking us to go up against another coven of witches, to once again fight against his kind in a war that we’re outmatched in.”

“You’re not outmatched,” Piper said calmly. “My sisters will arrive when the time’s right, and Ivy won’t stand a chance.”

“We’ve been arguing about this all day. Can we put it aside for the night and just enjoy the fact that all of us are back together again?” Trent walked into the kitchen, and I gave him a warning look. “How much longer until the food is ready?”

“Ten minutes,” I said and turned back to the stove.

“I’ll set the table.” Chloe stood, but her movements were stiff.

“I’ll help.” Abby moved into the kitchen and gathered the silverware from the drawer while Chloe collected plates and napkins.

When Abby passed me, I clutched her elbow. “We need to talk later. Alone,” I whispered.

She nodded, and I released her. Now all I had to do was get Piper alone long enough to change her mind about this plan of hers.