Page 49 of The Redd Key (Bone Coven #1)
“A re you sure their bodies aren’t there? Maybe there’s just nothing left? I must’ve all burned; the fire was merciless…the entire structure collapsed.” My voice shook as I grilled Jeff with my questions. I saw Griffin, Aggy, and Tamara burn. Even Chris wasn’t worth saving as the stone walls caved in, burying all of their bodies.
“I don’t want to get too morbid, but I checked. I’m sure.” Jeff coughed, and I heard scraping and shuffling. “I don’t know how it is possible, but given what’s been going on…” his voice trailed off. “The ruins are, well, ruined. None of the walls are left standing. The floor is charred, burning embers in most places—still smoldering. But—” Jeff paused, “There’s a circle in the ash here, untouched by the flames. The space within it is completely fine.” The one Griffin drew around Bridget, Sarah, and I in the dust with the black knife. “There are dark blotches inside of it, like dried blood.”
“A circle was drawn, but Griffin was never able to complete the ritual. It probably defaulted as a circle of protection.” I tried to remember an excerpt in my family’s Book of Shadows about casting a Protection Circle as I struggled with the logic to make sense of it all.
“Was anyone conscious? Maybe everyone got inside the circle.”
“That would be impossible,” I noted, trying to recall everything that happened in the blacksmith shop. “The ceiling collapsed…” I shook my head, the motion tight and disbelieving.
“I don’t know the details, but trust me when I tell you, they are not here, and there’s no sign of anyone anywhere.”
“Ok,” I sighed. “I believe you.”
What felt like lightning shot through my nervous system, jolting me so hard that I lurched forward. Then again. Tingles inched their way through my vein, the sensation took my breath away as my heart began to race. Electricity sparked just under the surface of my skin.
“I have to go.” I said, pressing. The words came out sounding almost like a question, and then I quickly hung up on Jeff.
As if moving on their own accord, my legs swept me through my studio apartment, and before I could stop myself, I was bundled in a heavy, oversized sweater and walked swiftly down to the driveway. The compulsion to move was irresistible. The feeling was confident, self-assured, and didn’t leave room for questioning. It simply felt right, as if going wherever I was heading was the only thing that made sense for the chaos brewing inside me.
Leafless branches snagged at me as I fought against the brush for miles. The cold air caressed my cheeks as I warmed from the speed of my impromptu hike. Each step felt like punctuation, dismissing every doubt that festered in my mind, and validating every truth that had replaced them. With an open heart and mind, I moved with faith that the Aecor surging within me was taking me where I needed to be. To home— even though I just left my apartment. The connection between the island and me was almost tangible.
The lazy crashing of the ocean’s waves was music in the air, rhythmic in their sets. One, two, three, as I walked and climbed. One, two, three, as I stumbled and swept. One, two, three, the ocean’s bellows rang like a symphony with the sea salt breeze gently whispering in my ear. A siren’s song that was luring me and I happily obliged.
Any residual terror from everything Griffin had done left my heart. The anxiety that loomed over me like a dark cloud, enmassed by the Blood Coven, retreated. They may have tried to hunt me, but now, I was going home . My conscious mind didn’t even try to pull me from my dreamlike state as I wandered through Redd Hill’s coastal brush. Deep inside, my lucid self just sat back and took slow, calming breaths while I continued walking. The imagery reminded me to breathe steadily, as I was nearly gasping for air after what felt like hours navigating the coastline’s wilderness.
I was miles away from my apartment, I realized as I stepped out into an all too familiar clearing.
“Bailey’s Cove.” The words slipped from my lips like a prayer. The wood was still in a pile where Sarah and Bridget had attempted the location ritual to find me. On impulse, Aecor released from me, and flames began to dance on the pyre. Thick, ashen clouds parted above, unveiling a dark sky with a new moon. Stars gleamed and glittered, and all I felt was joy and serenity. Hugging myself, I held in laughter that bubbled from the butterflies fluttering in my stomach. The sea’s song called to me, and I raised my arms, twirling in rhythm with the playful breeze around me.
“Cole!” A gasp tore from me. All happiness froze within a moment. I didn’t move from the waterline as he stepped out from behind one of the stone giants. He didn’t speak, but the flames in his grey eyes conveyed more than words ever could. The fire crackled beside me, and I felt all of my will snap with the birth of each new ember. Fleeing never crossed my mind, and I took a confident step forward to meet him.
“I cannot believe it worked. Here you are,” he said in awe, more to himself than to me. His subtle accent suddenly seemed to be more prominent than ever before. “You are her . You are the one who can end all of this.” Cole took two languid strides to meet me as his words hung between us. Flames danced in his darkened eyes.
“I don’t understand,” I breathed, tormented with emotion. I recognized the feeling, but I shouldn’t. His hand reached for mine, but I pulled back. I shook my head, clearing it from this surreal dream. “You took me.” I tried to more so convince myself that he was a real threat, rather than berate him for what he had done, but the words felt superficial and weak.
“Yes, I did.” He tipped his chin down, and through loose strands of his inky black hair, his eyes met mine. My heart kickstarted, and a tremor ran through me. His gaze swept over my face, lingering on my eyes, my cheek, my mouth—as if he branded the image of me into his memory. Slowly, his hand cupped my jaw and swept his thumb down my chin and across my lip. Perhaps it was my imagination since the movement was so subtle, but I felt his hand shaking against my skin. “How are you real?” Before I even registered what he asked, his lips crashed against mine.
Stars swirled around us, and we were blanketed by the night sky as his hand slid into my hair, cradling me as he released all inhibitions and claimed my mouth with his tongue. The kiss was hungry and deep, and I felt his desperation as he held me in place. Thought he didn’t have to—I wasn’t going anywhere. Tension in my neck, shoulders, and as deep as my bones, released as I melted in his hands. This was exactly where I was supposed to be.
My lips parted for more of him, and I moved against his mouth. His tongue swept at mine, stroking depths far deeper than flesh. Areas within me sparked with heat that had nothing to do with the bonfire blazing beside us. The electricity in my core matched the crackling flames as I reached up and entwined my fingers into the strands of hair that teased at his collar.
When Cole broke the kiss, his lips didn’t move far. At a painfully casual pace, he trailed kisses down my jaw and neck—gentle like the sea breeze. His hands slid down my body, making me shiver as they traced, finally settling on my hips. He lowered his head to my clavicle, causing a small moan to escape me. My sweater was suddenly too hot. I tugged at the hem to pull it off, but Cole grabbed my wrists, and my eyes fluttered to meet his.
“No,” he rasped, and the word shattered everything in a moment. In a beat, his face softened, and he straightened. Cole chuckled and ran a hand through his hair. “I am afraid if I allow myself to continue, I will devour you,” he purred with a smirk, and a hint of his antiquated accent clung to the words.
“Where are you from?” I asked, instantly regretting the thoughtless questions. He stared at me for a long while, biting his lip as he searched for the right words. I licked my bottom lip as I watched him, vaguely aware of how he watched me. “I’m sorry, I—” my hands paused against his chest. When I realized what I was doing, I instinctively withdrew them, but he gently held my arms to stop me. I looked up at him as he spoke.
“I am from many places, and I have journeyed the seas countless times.” He drifted his gaze into the ocean void, scanning the unseen horizon. He spoke as if he’d experienced life many times over. “Before I settled here, I often sailed from New England to the islands. Though I was born in Britain.” His chest heaved as he played with a loose strand of my hair. The light in those quicksilver eyes suggested that our kiss lingered in his mind. Under my hands, the warmth of his body made me lean in against him, and I was shocked by my fervor and familiarity. He didn’t seem to mind.
I tilted my head, “I don’t understand any of this.” I felt like a doe-eyed damsel, yet it was like a cord connected my heart to his, reassuring me that my vulnerability was safe in his hands.
“I barely understand myself. I should apologize.” His brows furrowed as he looked at me with a pained expression from hidden scars. “There is much I wish to tell you.” His voice was low, resonating between us. “So I will begin with what you already know.” Cole tenderly held my face in his hands. “You are a witch, Raina Archer.” My breath caught at the acknowledgement, still not used to the declaration being spoken aloud. He continued, “That is a fact I have feared for what feels like an eternity, but I see that you are different. You come from a line of strength and compassion. So entirely different than…” he trailed off, walking away toward the fire. I immediately sensed the loss of his touch, a chill replaced his absence. I watched him as he appeared to fight off inner demons.
“You must understand, the past has a habit of tearing apart any semblance of salvation. It is a creature that feeds off the hopes of the future, and it has hunted me through time. I have waited so long for it all to end. You are my salvation, Raina—my Storm—the only person who can stop all of this.” His words lulled me into his spell, but I was still utterly confused. “I am aware that none of this is making any sense,” he echoed my thoughts. “The locket—” he looked at me pointedly. “You found it, and I knew who you were then, even if I did not want to believe it. But it also confirmed something I had suspected since you and your family came to Redd Hills.”
“You took the locket when you abducted me.” I meant for the words to cut, but they were forgiving, as I feigned anger. He pulled the locket from his pocket and held it by the flames.
“I needed to.” His face was hard as he stared at the trinket. “I tried to drown it, as I have drowned thousands of times.” A chill coursed through my blood as his words unnerved me. For a moment, he looked crazed just before tossing the locket into the pyre. I flinched. The flames rose, deepening into crimson and then to black. I was spellbound as the obsidian flames emitted a light that glowed like an ethereal dream. It was beautiful. “It was killing you.”
Instead of crackling and popping, the bonfire’s black flames produced a crescendo of what sounded like cries, shrieks, and sobs. I finally moved my feet, which were rooted to the spot. Aecor stemmed from the place where physics no longer existed. Within the black flames, I saw the stars above now inside the pyre, glittering and glowing. Like if moonlight sliced through the spaces between the swaying fire. When I turned to look at Cole, he was already gazing at me.
“It wasn’t killing me. I was the one who—” I choked down a weep that caught me off guard.
“You haven’t done anything wrong.” He grasped my shoulders, positioning me squarely in front of him. “I understand this world is new to you, but you have to know the facts. The legends, the lore, the curse…it is all true.”
“You mean with the pirate Black Sam and his witch?” At my words, his eyes changed instantly, and the storm inside him broke. He gazed upward to the sky, clenched his eyes shut, and inhaled deeply. When he opened his eyes, they glistened with heavy emotions.
Looking deep into my soul, he said, “You are to be the death of me. Something I have waited an eternity for.” Cole’s voice was rich with anguish, and I was afraid to breathe. “I had given up any dream of peace, but here you are, as devastating as the storm that tried to take me so long ago. I will choose to drown with every beat of my heart, for all eternity if it means even the possibility of living during a lifetime in which you merely breathe. I will gladly feel the razor’s edge against my throat as sea salt fills my lungs, over and over as often as the tides come and go, if only it means you are mine.” He clenched his hands and raised his chin as if in pain. “Fuck the curse, fuck it all,” he growled, and once again, he claimed my mouth and kissed me.
There was no hesitation or politeness behind his kiss as he devoured me. In a fluid motion, he laid us down upon the sand of the cove, and our breathing drowned out the phantom screams of the black flame. Beside the fire, he ravaged me—this time, not restricting me as I tore my sweater over my head. He effortlessly lifted my body and laid the sweater underneath. I couldn’t tell you if the night air was chilled; my body flooded with heat. I slid my hands under the loose hem of his shirt, and they met the tight muscles of his abdomen, built from his daily labor at the harbor. His hands, rough from his work, roused my skin as they explored the length of my body. The sensation was intoxicating.
“Cole,” I moaned as he stripped his shirt off, and I looked up at him. Everything around us seemed to still as his eyes bore into mine. The leggings I wore were barely a barrier as I felt the straining against Cole’s pants when he leaned down over me. The feeling sent a shiver down my entire body, settling between my thighs. Heat pooled in my core, and I arched my back as I let my hands explore him. His mouth craved, nibbling my ear and trailing kisses along my neck, shoulder, and lower.
“You are so fucking divine,” he rasped. I watched him, sliding my hands over his shoulders and down the muscles of his back. His tongue traced a delicious line between my breasts, cupping each of them gently in his hands. My leg bent in response, allowing his hips to press harder against me. He moaned at the heated sensation, and I trembled beneath his body at the sound.
“Fuck,” Cole breathed. “Raina, you are so—” He failed to finish his thought as his mouth closed over the peak of my breast, gently nipping at the sensitive bud. His teasing sparked a throbbing in my center, aching for even more of him. His teeth glided across my skin, which was now covered in tiny bumps from the thrill of his attention. As he continued to explore every inch of my exposed skin, he slid a hand down my waist, rounding my hip to palm my ass. He groaned, and his mouth descended on mine again. I met him, fiercely kissing him; starving for him, I pulled his lip between my teeth. A swipe from his hand over the fabric covering my most sensitive spot made me release him and throw my head back.
“God,” I gasped, as I caught sight of the stars above us. Swallowing hard, I had no shame as I clawed at the waist of his pants. “I am so what, exactly?” I panted. My voice was throaty. A wave of confidence overcame me, and I tugged on his belt. Cole leaned back, sitting on his heels between my thighs, and my hands fell to my bare stomach. As he knelt above me, his gaze seemed to memorize every curve of my body, while the black flames of the pyre danced in his eyes. His hand held me by my thigh, and with the other, in one swift move, he undid the buckle and slid his belt free. The moan that came from me was indescribable, and the image of him doing what he just did was permanently seared in my mind.
“You are so…,” Cole said once more. The roughness of his voice made me ache in wait. I reached out to undo his pants, but he stopped me, trapping both of my wrists with just one of his enormous hands. With his other hand, he undid it himself, the zipper falling on its own due to his hard length straining against it. “So impatient, my tempestuous Storm,” he purred with a slow, languid smile. His hooded eyes looked down at me as I moved beneath him, desperate for friction, snaking to free my wrists from his hands.
“Tempestuous?” I scoffed. “I’ll show you how violent I can be.” Biting my bottom lip, I smirked and pushed out with my power, calling upon Fire to heat my skin. Cole reacted to the blazing swell and loosened his grip, just enough for me to pull my arms back. While pushing myself up on an elbow, I reached my other hand around his neck to pull his face down to mine. Cole caught himself, placing his hands on the ground on either side of my body, encasing me in his scent. My head spun with feral desire, and I reached down and grabbed his pulsing length over the thin layer of fabric that covered almost nothing, shuddering at what I held. Cole’s cock was thick and dauntedly hard in my palm. Lying back, I reached with my free hand to stroke him With both hands, they still weren’t enough to cover his entire length. A tremor of desire rolled through me, and I had to bite back a whimper.
Cole looked down at my hands where I held him , and then slowly returned his gaze to me, chest heaving as a shadow darkened his eyes. “I do not doubt your aptitude for violence,” he growled. “I crave it.” And with that, he dipped his head back down toward my waist, tucking his hand into the band of my leggings and cupping my ass again before he pulled them off of me. “You very well might kill me, but I will finally die , as a very fortunate man.” A long lick up my center made me yelp. A low laugh reverberated through him and into my pulsing bud. Cole took his time kissing, licking, and sucking every part of the damp ache between my thighs, leaving little love bites on my sensitive flesh. My head tilted back as my hips raised to receive more of his mouth. He gripped my thighs as I bucked when he finally flicked his tongue against the throbbing bundle of nerves, sending a bolt of electricity through me when he slipped his tongue inside me.
“No,” I hissed as Cole slid two fingers in me while swirling his tongue around my clit. I felt the tension building quickly in my body, faster than I had ever felt it before. “You don’t get to do this to me.” I inched up enough to firmly wrap my hands around his hardness.