The Witch's Initiation

Torn between the rampant lust raging through her body and her sacred duty to protect her family, Deme avoided his questions, dodging his desire to know more about her personal life. When he’d pushed to know more, she dumped his ass and moved as far away from Chicago as possible to avoid him and his overpowering magnetism. Once bitten by the lust bug, twice hesitant to make a repeat performance.

From the start of their relationship, he’d been clear…He was dedicated to his job protecting the good citizens of Chicago. Nothing and no one would get in the way of his work. He took his responsibilities seriously. He demanded as much passion in his work. And he demanded full disclosure from the people he let into his world. Namely her.

Cal Black was exactly the kind of man Deme didn’t need in her life, even if he was there to help her find Aurai.

She crossed to the one small, dingy window and set the ceramic pot containing her beloved angelica root in the meager sun, distorted by the aging glass. The plant drooped, the colors appearing dull in the dreary environment. Deme empathized with how the plant felt. She, too, needed the light to flourish and chase away the emptiness. She touched the fragile stems and they seemed to brighten and reach upward. A ghost of a smile curved Deme’s lips.

“The girls are usually pretty good about obeying curfew. I’m sure you’ll have no troubles keeping tabs on them.” Dr. Diane Masterson entered the room behind her and gave the space an appraising glance. “It’s not much, but I hope you’ll be comfortable.”

“Thank you.” Deme faced the college president. “I’m sure I will.”

“I’m so glad you chose our school to complete your degree. We needed an older student as a resident assistant. If nothing else, the girls will have a mentor, someone to look up to. You should have no troubles catching up with the coursework.” She paused, her eyes narrowing slightly. “Miss Jones, tell me again why it was you decided on Colyer-Fenton College and to start three weeks into the semester.”

“I was out of the country visiting a sick relative. I chose Colyer-Fenton because the campus suits me. Quaint and quiet.”

“Oh, yes, yes, of course. And that’s what we are, quaint and quiet.” Dr. Masterson glanced back over her shoulder as if to search the hallway for anyone who could refute her lie.

Deme found it odd that the college president personally escorted her to her room instead of one of the administrative employees in charge of housing.

“If you need anything, just ask one of the girls. They can show you where things are. I’d better go. I have a meeting with my staff in five minutes.” The older woman backed out of the room, closing the door behind her.

A meeting, ha! The Chicago police detective in charge of finding Aurai had interviews with the staff scheduled throughout the afternoon. Her Harley-riding sister, Brigid, had met the officer in charge of the case and he’d informed her of the steps they were taking to find their sister, including a thorough interrogation of each campus employee and a number of the over six thousand students.

As far as Deme was concerned, it wasn’t enough.

She stared around the stark confines of the room deemed the resident assistant’s quarters for the Gamma Omega sorority dorm. She’d had to pull some major strings to land in this one. But this is where she needed to be in order to discover the whereabouts of her youngest sister.

Deme unlocked the window and pushed it upward. A cool blast of fall air blew in, stirring the stale air. She had the best view of all the rooms in the dorm. Maybe it was a perk for being R.A. Located on the shortest side of the building, the room overlooked a fenced courtyard garden. The majority of the dorm rooms stretched out and away from the courtyard.

Deme inhaled the scent of the pines growing close to her window and the sweet fragrance of roses. Ivy clung to the brick walls just below her window, the leafy green vines filling Deme with a sense of calm. The roses in the garden below were in the full bloom of late summer, early fall. Before long, frost would claim the plants and lay them dormant for the chilly winter months.

They would find Aurai before then. She was their sister, the fifth point of the pentagram. They were a unit. Together they were as one. Deme’s fingers wrapped around the ornate silver pentagram hanging by a delicate silver chain at her throat. They couldn’t fail.

Water dripped from the faucet in the single sink against the wall. Deme moved across the room and twisted the handle to make it quit, but no amount of tightening the handle stopped the slow, steady dripping. She’d have to get maintenance to fix it or she’d be up all night counting each drop.

A light knock at the door echoed against the plain white walls. Before Deme could call out for the person to come in, the familiar willowy, sandy blonde with bright sea-green eyes slipped through the door.

Deme hurriedly closed the gap between them and hugged her sister tightly against her chest. “Oh, Gina. I can’t believe this is happening.”

Aegina Chattox squeezed her around her middle and then pushed her far enough away to look her in the eye. “Me, either. I’m just glad you and I got in without anyone knowing who we really are.”

“Did you have any troubles selling yourself as the aquarium cleaner?”

“None whatsoever. And the aquariums are in atrocious condition in the central library. I should have several days’ work on my hands and lots of opportunities to snoop around.”

“Let’s hope it doesn’t take long to find Aurai.”

Gina hugged her again. “I’m glad you’re home.”

Deme nodded. “Me, too.”

Without so much as a knock, the door burst open and another one of her sisters entered. Selene, wearing a flowing white skirt, with her long, rich, chocolate-brown hair tied up in a bright colored scarf, entered, stepping into Deme’s arms. Tears trembled on her thick lashes, blurring her deep brown eyes. “Where could she be?”

Deme fought the lump in her throat. “I don’t know, but between the four of us, we will find her.” She patted her second-youngest sister on her back and set her away. “What do you know so far?”

“We met with Brigid off campus and she filled us in.”

Gina drifted toward the window and peered down into the garden. “Supposedly, she disappeared during a sorority hazing ceremony. None of the girls know what happened. Or at least they’re not talking.” She wrapped her arms around her stomach. “How could someone vanish in a crowd of people and no one see it?” She turned back, a frown marring her smooth, tanned forehead. “They know something.”

Footsteps in the hallway made the three women fall silent. When the steps continued on, Deme relaxed but she spoke in quiet tones. “No one knows we’re related. Brigid was the only one of us to openly meet with the detectives in charge of the investigation and the school officials as Aurai’s sister. She can continue to be our contact with the external investigation. I met with the undercover detective. He’ll pretend to be my boyfriend so that we can pass information.”

Both Gina’s and Selene’s brows rose. “Boyfriend?”

“His idea, definitely not mine.”

“I’m impressed already,” Selene said.

Deme glared at her sisters. “Don’t get any ideas.”

Gina touched her sister’s arm. “You can’t let that last guy you dated affect every relationship, Deme. What was his name, anyway? You never did tell any of us.”

“Yeah, why all the secrecy?” Selene added.

Deme shrugged. “No reason. Besides, it didn’t last.”

Gina slid a glance sideways at Selene. “Still evading the question.”

“No kidding.” Selene addressed Deme. “Well, you shouldn’t let him taint your feelings for the other men in the world. There are some nice ones out there to choose from.”

Deme closed her eyes and drew in a deep breath, guilt pressuring her. She really should fess up to her sisters. She’d never kept secrets from them, with the exception of her relationship with Cal.

For the first time in the year she’d been away from him, she could actually think of him without choking up. Leaving him had been about the hardest thing she’d ever done. She couldn’t begin to contemplate how she’d feel after leaving him a second time. As best she could, she would remain aloof…an overwhelming challenge in the presence of the man’s alpha-male sex appeal and bad-boy biker persona. “The undercover detective’s name is Cal.”

“Nice, strong name. What does he look like?” Gina’s eyebrows disappeared into her sandy-blond bangs.

“Does it matter?”

“Of course!” both sisters agreed as one.

“He’s your typical eye candy with dark hair and dark eyes.” And muscular legs and arms that could wrap around her and carry her to places she’d never been. That flash of heat she’d experienced in the cafeteria returned in force. “Not my type,” she lied.

Selene’s brows drew together. “Since you’re not interested, perhaps I could provide his cover.”

Deme held up a hand. “We’ve already established our so-called relationship in public. Otherwise I’d let you.”

“Point made.” Gina grinned. “In the meantime, loosen up, sis.”

“I’m not here to find a man. I’m here to find Aurai.”