Total pages in book: 132
Estimated words: 125083 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 625(@200wpm)___ 500(@250wpm)___ 417(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 125083 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 625(@200wpm)___ 500(@250wpm)___ 417(@300wpm)
“That would be Esther,” replied Wynter, not needing to elaborate. She’d already told her crew all about the Moonstar witches.
His eyes narrowing, Xavier twirled his sword. “I don’t suppose you’ll let me kill her, will you?”
“Nope, this one’s mine.” Once the Priestess came to a halt several feet away, Wynter smiled at her and said, “I can’t tell you how delighted I am that you’re here.”
Esther jutted out her chin. “I cannot say I share that delight. I would have much preferred to never set eyes on you again.” Her gaze slid to Kali’s mark and she tittered, all haughtiness. “Did you really think that anyone would be fooled by that mark on your face? Foolish girl. Kali will not be pleased that you are falsely posing as one of Her Favored.”
Wynter skimmed her gaze along each of the Moonstar coven members, sensing that none believed the mark was real. Uninterested in proving anything to these people, she didn’t respond to Esther’s comment.
“You have made a series of bad decisions of late,” said the Priestess. “I would advise you to break that habit, put down your sword, and come quietly.”
Come quietly? “Oh, you’re here to detain me?” Wynter couldn’t help but smile. “You think you have it in you? Well, aren’t you just adorable.”
Xavier snickered.
Esther dismissed him with a glance. She hadn’t paid any real attention to the cat, crow, or Anabel/Mary either. Well, underestimating people was kind of Esther’s thing.
The Priestess squinted. “If you know what is good for you, Wynter, you will come without a fight.”
“So you can hand me over to the Aeons? You’d really do that?” Wynter took in each face that stared back at her. “I mean, I can see why you’d stand aside while someone else captured me. You’d never go up against the Aeons even if you wanted to. But for you all to actually take it upon yourselves to do the deed, knowing the Aeons will put me through a serious amount of pain once they’ve gotten what they want from me … That’s kind of cold of you, isn’t it? I was one of you once.”
Some did look uncomfortable with the situation. They might not have particularly cared about her, but they’d cared for Agnes—handing over the woman’s granddaughter to beings who were fond of sadistic torture didn’t sit right with them. Having Wynter exiled had been one thing. This was another.
“You stopped being one of us a long time ago,” said Esther. “You were a stain on the coven for years. You defiled our town with your filthy magick. You afflicted a plague upon our people. You incited a war between the Aeons and the Ancients. The others from Aeon have looked upon our coven with utter contempt since you left. We have been scorned. Judged. Snubbed. And all for something that wasn’t our fault.”
“Then you’ve had a taste of how I felt for years after my magick turned dark, huh?”
Esther snapped her mouth shut.
As a little breeze swirled around Wynter’s legs that carried a hint of derision, she said, “Kali’s not a fan of you, you know. Neither is what She put inside me.” The monster kept throwing her mean-ass snarls. “It would really like to end you. And I mean really like it. To be truthful, I’m kind of tempted to let it, since I know for sure it would rip you apart. But I want to be the one who sees you fall.”
Esther scoffed. “You will not convince me you are a revenant. Nor will I believe you are a match for me. Your magick is not pure enough to take down a Priestess, Wynter.”
“You’re not the only Priestess here,” Xavier said to her. “Wynter is ours, and I’d say she’s a fuck of a lot better at the position than you are.”
Anabel/Mary nodded while the cat and crow moved a little closer to Wynter.
Esther took in the sight of them and laughed. “A rag-tag group doesn’t make a coven.”
“A family makes a coven,” said Wynter. “That was why Agnes despaired of what yours had become. It is no longer a family. It is a gathering of power-hungry people. There’s no real loyalty among you. No true bonds. Hell, half of you don’t even like each other. But my coven? We’re everything you’re not.”
Xavier grinned. “You called us a coven,” he whispered. “About fucking time.”
“And you still haven’t worked out what you should have long ago learned,” Wynter went on, holding Esther’s gaze. “No magick is pure. It’s just power. Your magick might be able to do warm, fuzzy things like heal or create, but it can also kill. Where’s the purity in that?”
Esther pressed her lips into a thin line. “It may interest you to know that Rafe is dead. Lailah snapped his neck.”
Rage and grief blasted through Wynter, tightening every muscle. Esther smirked and, God, Wynter wanted to fuck this bitch’s shit up in the worst way. But rushing at her in anger … no, Wynter wouldn’t do that. She wouldn’t dishonor him by forgetting all he’d taught her. No, she’d avenge him by applying all he’d taught her—starting with boxing her rage away and focusing on getting the job done.