Chapter 76

Chapter 76

“When one with honeyed words but evil mind persuades the mob, great woes befall the state.”

Euripedes

*Joseph’s POV*

Joseph had been under a sleeping spell one or two times before, so he was familiar with their side effects. As he came to, the pounding in his head was to be expected – but the body aches and the chilliness were not.

It only took him a second to realize he hadn’t passed out in his office chair or even his mattress at home. He felt far too cold to be lying in his temperature-controlled apartment.

His eyes flew open, and he took in his surroundings with a gasp.

No, he definitely wasn’t home…although he certainly recognized this location.

Instead, he found himself lying on the cold, hard-packed soil of a clearing, surrounded by the woods he’d spent his childhood playing in.

He was on coven ground.

And he wasn’t alone.

It looked to be the dead of night, but fortunately, there were torches all over the clearing. Familiar faces surrounded him – faces he’d grown up with, faces he’d trained with, faces he’d practiced magic with.

His former coven.

They formed a wide, loose circle around him, and none of them looked particularly friendly as they stared at him. He was on his feet in a flash, although he nearly stumbled and lost his balance – that after-effects of a sleeping spell were no joke.

“What is this?” He called out, and his voice seemed to echo across the clearing. None of them replied. They continued to stare through him like a ghost, not at him.

“Thank you for joining us, Joseph.”

The hair on the back of his neck prickled. He was prey in the presence of a predator.

He’d know that gravelly voice anywhere. He’d heard it in his nightmares every night for the past few years.

The circle parted to let Elder Marjorie through.

She was just as tiny as Joseph remembered, with the same thinning, white hair and glassy eyes that looked through you, never at you. She looked like the kind of woman you’d help cross a busy intersection, but Joseph knew better. There was nothing frail about her.

As she got closer, a wide, gleeful smile overtook her face and Joseph’s entire body tensed. His entire heart raced, and as much as he wanted to disappear into the dirt he was sprawled out on, he managed to shout, “What do you want from me?”

Her smile got wider – no doubt she was enjoying this.

“We had a deal,” he continued, his words echoing across the crowded clearing, “I let you take my power and collect your herbs, and you leave me alone to live a human life free of your interference.”

“Yes, that was the deal,” she finally spoke, “But you haven’t entirely been following your end of the bargain now, have you?” There was a dangerous edge to her voice, one that sent a fresh wave of adrenaline pumping through his veins.

He wanted to bolt for the trees.

And if he thought he had half a chance of making it, he would’ve done it.

“Our coven has been following the return of *him*,” she spit out the last word with venom, and Joseph didn’t need clarification on who she was referring to. “We know you interfered. You helped the wolves.” There were murmurings across the circle as she said it.

“Helped them?” Joseph echoed, “I didn’t help anyone, at least not by choice!”

Elder Marjorie’s glassy eyes narrowed. “You provided herbs for them to break a curse that we set.”

Joseph wanted to argue that he didn’t provide those herbs – they were stolen, but he already knew Elder Marjorie didn’t care about semantics. Whatever he was here for right now, it wasn’t because they wanted an apology or an explanation.

With a swallow, he asked, “What do you want from me? Tell me why I’m really here right now.”

Her eyes flashed with amusement. “You know, you always were so impatient. It was your worst quality as a student…although I suppose you were never as bad as Liliana.”

Red, hot anger swelled in him.

“Don’t speak her fucking name!” He roared, trying and failing to stumble to his feet. “You don’t get to speak my sister’s name. Not after what you did to her.”

It was a wonder Elder Marjorie’s face didn’t crack with how much her smile widened. “Now, you know…”

Joseph covered his ears – he was pretty sure they’d bleed if he had to hear her lies one more time. “*Don’t*,” he hissed, “Don’t tell me she was a danger to the coven or to herself. I’m not one of you anymore. I don’t need to take your lies like gospel anymore. Just tell me why I’m here.”

“Very well,” she replied, and he watched as she tilted her head to the side. “I suppose the timing is good. Our guests have arrived.”

Joseph’s heart sunk like a rock.

*Guests?*

He wasn’t sure why, but his first thought was Rae. Had they captured her? Put her under a spell like that girl’s brother? Just the idea made him want to keel over and spew his guts all over the ground.

“Welcome, brothers and sisters,” Elder Marjorie said, clasping her hands together. The circle shifted again to make way for the newcomers.

It wasn’t Rae – that alone made him sigh with relief – but it only put him at ease for a moment. When he caught a glimpse of Elder Marjorie’s “guests,” his breath hitched.

It was so much worse than he could’ve imagined.

He didn’t recognize most of them, but even without his power, he knew who they were.

They were witches – men, women, and teenagers who barely looked through puberty – from other covens. They poured into the existing circle like water until they’d all formed one large circle, him in the center.

They were a few faces he could put to names, Elders he’d seen at coven gatherings back when he’d been a part of this world.

His brain reeled at the thought.

Had Elder Marjorie really gathered all twelve covens together tonight? What was she planning?

His stomach churned. More importantly, why did he seem to be at the center of it all?

Even though he was in the center of the circle, none of them were even looking at him. He might as well have been invisible.

“Thank you for having us, Elder Marjorie,” a severe voice said, one that Joseph recognized as Elder Musan. Elder Marjorie continued to greet a few others, all Elders.

Shit. She really had collected all twelve covens here tonight.

*Well, whatever role she expects me to play tonight, I’m not doing it. Not willingly*, he thought.

His eyes scanned the clearing.

He knew there was no point in running. He was still wobbly on his feet from the sleeping spell, and even if he managed to make it more than a few yards, someone would just incapicitate him with a spell – and then he’d really be at their mercy.

He’d need to bide his time and wait for an opening.

Not that he even had a weapon or a lick of magic to protect himself with.

“I’d like to thank you, brothers and sisters, for traveling here tonight,” Elder Marjorie’s hoarse voice carried through the night air, “As you all know, our kind has been threatened. If we do not act, the *Lupus Deum* will bring about our end…just as he nearly brought about the demise of our ancestors. With his mate, he’s more powerful than ever. I’ve seen it in a vision – I know what must be done to stop him.”

Her glassy eyes fell over the crowd. “I understand you’ve already made sacrifices to answer my call tonight, and by sunrise, we’ll all sacrifice one more time.” Her eyes landed on Joseph. “All of us.”