Chapter 1

CHAPTER 1 SIENNA I tried to keep my face straight. The elections were just a formality but since it was my own idea, I had to go through with this until the very end. It was my boyfriend Khalan who suggested that I should try and earn people’s trust by taking my position as the head of the Black Rose Coven in a fair fight. I was lucky that he and my best friend Harmony told me about the rumours going on around about me and together we came up with a strategy how to fix all that. My family was running the Coven for centuries as the strongest witches unrivaled in strength. And we were already privileged as it was, possessing all four elements and almost unlimited reserves. But my werewolf brother became the new Alpha King just recently after my father stepped down from the same role and a few people were talking that this was the only reason why I could become the Head.    However, I earned my place with hard work over the past few years. I may be just 19 but I graduated school at 15 and didn’t waste my time. I spent two years preparing for this role when I realized that it wasn’t enough. That’s when I decided to go and learn witchcraft from the best while traveling all over the world. Luckily my sister and her husband took me under their wing and got all the best witches as my mentors since they were always on the move due to their work and had the best contacts in the magical community.    And now I was back and ready. It was long overdue since the previous Head of the Coven – my uncle Connor – lost most of his powers about ten years ago. He managed to keep control, waiting until I was ready. But it was getting harder and harder for him. So, now finally here we were. The members of the six elder families would cast their votes and I would start the new page in my life as a leader. I already had so many plans in my head about improving our old education systems and protective barriers. Not to mention co-working with other species more. Werewolves for starters. But there were others as well. I was going to mention all that in my speech, that I was going over again and again in my mind. All while keeping a graceful smile on my face.   My uncle stood up first, he was the representative of the Harper-Grayson clan. He came to the centre of the stage and added a spark of his fire magic to the huge bowl in the centre, saying my name out loud for everyone to hear. Bright yellow and orange flames illuminated the dark meadow we gathered at. Next was the member of the Anderson clan – Jared, who also created a flame and called my name, winking at me as he did it. No surprises there. Elsa Ashton came to the fire next, without looking at me once. She didn’t like me much since my brother broke up with her just recently and I was fearing the worst. And when she called Kahlan’s name instead of mine, I rolled my eyes. Typical. But understandable. A little revenge is important to every witch. Not that I was to blame for their breakup but okay. One voice is nothing in the long run.   Aaron Riverford was next, and I smiled at him as he walked to the fire, however, he turned away the moment our eyes met. My smile faded as this wasn’t the reaction that I expected. Aaron was my friend. He was slightly older than me but also very talented. And we were discussing many times all the wonderful things that we would be able to do once I become the Head of the Coven. For him to avoid my gaze was... strange.   “Khalan Turner!” he announced dryly and left the meeting abruptly. He didn’t even stay until the end. Not to mention that he didn’t look at me once.   The crowd around us started whispering and I raised my chin high. Whatever it was right now – I would deal with it later. I was sure that it was probably a simple misunderstanding between Aaron and me. Or someone from his clan and from mine… Nevermind.   Harmony was next. My best friend and the prospective witch from the Pierce clan, she was always my most loyal supporter. Playing with her ebony black hair, she reached the place with a smile and created an impressive fireball on her palm. I chuckled to myself. She loved to make a show wherever she went.   “Khalan Turner!” she almost yelled and her voice echoed in my head.   What? Why?! Harmony turned and looked me straight into the eyes with a smirk that distorted her pretty face.   What was going on here?! My best friend left the stage and I felt crystals of sweat forming on my back! It was three to two! I was already losing! How was this even possible?!   Khalan was next, all eyes on him.  And I felt a bit relieved. Even though this tiny voice inside was telling me that I had to be worried. But I knew that Kahlan would make everything right. He would give me his vote and then withdraw from the election.  He dressed up for my big day and looked dashing in his black trousers and shirt. The upper buttons were undone, and one could see the golden chains and amulets on his neck. He brushed his fingers through his dark hair and smiled at me reassuringly when he was coming to the bonfire.    Of course! I had nothing to be worried about. He…   “Khalan Turner!” his voice sounded like a thunderstorm on a quiet day, and I blinked a few times, trying to concentrate on what was going on.   Why did they do it? All of them! Why?!   However, I didn’t let a single teardrop. I didn’t let my face twitch even though I wasn’t smiling anymore. My name was Sienna Grayson, daughter of the former Alpha King Xavier Grayson and his Witch Queen Stella Grayson, sister of the one and only hybrid Alpha Witch Aria Grayson and the current Alpha King Kieran Grayson. I was not going to humiliate my family by showing ugly emotions. I lost the position of the Head of the Coven, but I was still its member. And I knew my duties.   “Khalan Turner is chosen as the next leader of the Black Rose Coven,” my uncle Connor announced without even a shade of excitement, “The ceremony of power will take place in three days. Congratulations to the winner!”    I forced a smile on my face and waited until the crowd around Khalan dispersed. A few people came up to me with condolences, looking as shocked as I felt.    Just a few people…   When Khalan was finally alone, with my head lifted up high, I came up to him and looked him in the eye.   “Congratulations,” I said confidently, and he smiled at me apologetically. As if he didn’t just stab me in the back.   “I am sorry, Kitten,” he took a step forward, “It all came as a surprise to me. And I couldn’t fail my family. No hard feeling, all right?”   “Seriously?” I raised my brow. Did he really think that I wouldn’t have hard feelings about him betraying me?!   “Leave it, Lan,” Harmony’s hands wrapped around my boyfriend’s neck possessively, “You don’t owe her anything”.    He wasn’t shocked or even a little bit surprised by her actions. And when she put her head on his shoulder, he pulled her closer by her waist, palm sliding all the way down to her bottom slowly. They both were making a point. And an announcement. Not only for me. For everyone.   I clenched my lips tightly. No, not because I didn’t have anything to say to them. Because I was afraid to say something that may potentially curse them and have consequences. It was best not to do such things when I was emotional. I might still regret it later. Although at the moment, it looked like they deserved at least something nasty sent their way.   Still, I wanted to take a higher road.   “I see that more congratulations are in order,” I sneered, “You two are full of… let’s call it surprises.”   “Sienna,” Khalan sighed heavily as if he was talking to a clueless child. Then again, it was not too far from the truth. They both played me like a baby. “We didn’t know how to tell you. Ever since you left abroad, we both felt so lonely. It was almost impossible to replace you…”   “But you both managed just fine!” I snorted, crossing my hands on my chest, “When I left abroad?! You mean two years ago?!”   “Something like that,” Harmony didn’t look remorseful at all, “We couldn’t fight real love!”   “Real love?!” I scoffed, “From what I see, you two wouldn’t know real love if it hit you in the face!”   “Now, there,” Khalan said loudly, “There is no need to make an ugly scene. I am sorry that you had to find out like this. I understand your pain and…”   “Pain?!” I chuckled loudly but still kept it natural enough, “Please, Khalan. Don’t think too much of yourself. If anything, I think you two deserve each other! You get my blessing and everything!”   “We don’t need it!” Harmony snapped at me, “What, do you think that the golden girl always wins and gets everything?! Welcome to the real world, Sienna. Today you lost everything!”   “Today I lost dead weight,” I raised my brow and smirked, “And as for the Coven, this is far from over!”   With that, I turned and started walking away, hoping that they didn’t notice how my legs were shaking and how I clenched my fists not to demonstrate my trembling fingers. Anger and hurt were devouring me from the inside. I needed to get out of here! Fast!   “You did well, kid,” uncle Connor and his girlfriend Maeve joined me on the way, “I mean, considering…”   “But how did it happen?!” Maeve gritted through her teeth, “I was talking to Elsa and Aaron just a few days ago and they both were going to support you.”   “Well, I guess something happened in those few days,” I said calmly and threw a quick glance at Connor, “Tell me, is there anything we can do now?”   “You can challenge him and claim your spot back when he loses, but…” He stopped talking and none of us said a word. But that would be a wrong move. I called for the vote and now I was going to deny its results. As if the voices of the people didn’t matter. Not to mention that it would look like petty revenge.   “Are you ok?” my aunt Cassidy joined us on the way to the parking lot. I knew that she was somewhere in the crowd but seeing her now just made it worse somehow. More witnesses to my failure. And in our family, we didn’t have failures. For the first time, I was glad that my parents and sister were away, while my werewolf brother wasn’t allowed here at events like that.   “I will be,” I tried to force a smile on my face, “I just need time to be alone and think.”   I was next to my car already and clicked on the button to unlock the doors. Without looking at my closest people, I got inside and started the engine. The anger and frustration took the best of me and I made a few sips of water from the metal bottle that I kept in the car.   Luckily, my Bugatti didn’t take long to be ready, and I drove off the Coven grounds in seconds.    A few treacherous tears rolled down my cheeks and I wiped them off aggressively. I was overspeeding but I did not care. The only thing I wanted was to get as far away from the Coven as possible!   Living in the Lake Districts had its perks. There was no one in this area for miles! Just the endless mountains and forests.   The road was empty and I did not restrain myself. When I noticed a black car behind me, I did not pay any attention at first. However, it was approaching me fast from behind and my sixth sense told me to be careful. The car caught up with me and I stole a quick glance, only to frown at the disappointment as all the windows were tinted and it was impossible to see who was sitting inside. But what happened next – I did not expect, as the dark car hit me from my right and made me lose control. A little bump made me fly high, turning in the air and the only thing I managed to do, was whisper a quick protective spell.    The car fell down and plowed the ground, bumping into a tree. But thankfully, all I got were just a few scratches here and there. I knew one thing for sure - if I wasn’t fast with the spell – I’d be dead.   It was too dangerous to stay in the car, so I decided to get out. Only to find out that the door right next to me was stuck. Closing my eyes, I summoned air, knocking the damn thing off and crawling out.   I got back to my feet in seconds and looked around carefully. My head was pounding after the fall, but I realized that it would be best to call someone and alert them. I might need help. And I was about to get into the car when a huge brown wolf jumped on top of it.   I didn’t have werewolf senses but even I could recognize his stench and unkempt look. It was a rogue. He was probably thinking that I was just an innocent defenseless human, so I created a fireball on my palm, smirking and showing him that he wanted to attack the wrong girl.   Yet he didn’t budge. And I felt two others coming out of the woods.   This assassination attempt was getting better and better. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven…   I breathed out heavily. This was officially bad! Too many big rogues for one tiny me.   But it was still manageable.   I flexed my second hand and another fireball appeared. Now it was their move.   Unfortunately, they didn’t make me wait long and the one at the top of the car jumped on me. He received one of the fire pulsars while his friend who tried to attack me from the back got another.   And I received the opportunity to run. There was no way to describe how thankful I was to all the gods that I decided against wearing a dress with heels today! That would have been a disaster! Jumping over bushes in black jeans, boots, and leather jackets was so much easier!   Nevertheless, however impressive my speed and training were, I knew that I wouldn’t be able to run away from five werewolves far. I had no doubts that the two I hit were dead, but now they knew my abilities and would attack me all at once.   A huge shadow covered me and in just a fraction of a second, I understood that one of them tried to jump over me. Summoning air just in time, I threw him away, hitting over a nearby tree, and kept running.    A howling sound very close to me and I turned to look, seeing one of the wolves running at my speed. He was just playing with me. Because one thing was for sure, a werewolf could run way faster.   I knew I needed to make some noise, so I started to send fireballs at them – one after another. If I got into them – it would be great, if I didn’t, it would cause fire and make the scene visible from afar. Hopefully, someone from the coven would be using this road soon. Then they might notice. Our laws would oblige them to check it out and with some help, I would be able to deal with the enemy fast and efficiently. I could take them easily one by one. But not when they all were ganging up on me.   I stumbled onto something and fell into the muddy grass. They circled around me and one of them even seemed sneering. Or maybe I was seeing things… My knees were hurting, and my cheek was cut by a branch while I was running.    This was it.   I knew it and so did they.   Yet I refused to give up. If I had to go down, I would do it fighting. Summoning fire to the tips of my fingers, I spun quickly, creating a circle around me. Yet they wasted no time either and the first of them jumped on me through the flames, pinning me to the ground. His fur was burning in a few places but he didn’t seem to care as his yellow eyes were looking at me with hatred.    No surprises there, if he was a rogue then my father exiled him at some point in time. Rogues hated every member of our family. To kill one of us was probably what all of them wanted.   Stinking saliva was dripping from his fangs as his claws dug into my flesh, making me scream from the piercing pain. But if he did anything, he only made me freaking angrier.    I was not thinking clearly when I summoned all four elements. It wasn’t even supposed to work as usually you can only do that in turns, but flames covered the wolf, making him roar, the ground under us shook, water and wind combined threw him off me. I could feel power circling through my veins and it was something completely new and unknown. Something that I didn’t know how to control…    A barrier formed around me and when the werewolves were throwing themselves at it, they couldn’t get through.   So, this was good.   But the bad thing was that I felt weaker and weaker by the minute. I didn’t know for how long I would be able to hold it. And in the middle of the forest, there was no one to help me. If there were any witches near, they would have already reached me…   The glow around my barrier was fading and we all knew what it meant. There were four rogues remaining and as soon as my protection fell, they were going to tear me to pieces.   A dark shadow flashed before my eyes and I blinked, trying to concentrate. I checked on my attackers again and strangely enough, counted only three wolves now. Another second, a growling sound and there were just two left.   Just what was going on?!   The werewolves now turned their backs on me, they knew that there was something scarier in the woods, something that came to get them…   I had no idea what that was but I couldn’t help but chuckle. Even if that thing would kill me as well, at least the rogues wouldn't get me!    The energy was leaving me fast and I fell to the ground, panting. My blood was soaking the grass, I already lost too much of it from my wounds…   The glow of the barrier died down when I saw… a creature. It attacked the last remaining rogue that I could see, tearing him apart in one snap of its jaws and then it turned to face me.   It looked like a wolf, yet it wasn’t… The creature was bigger, pitch-black in colour, and with spikes over his head and back that made it look like… a demon!   If that was correct, then I would be following the rogues fast. Yet that thing... started shifting right before my eyes. My vision was so blurry at that moment that I couldn't keep my eyes opened no matter how much I tried. All I could see was a pair of legs... Tanned and muscular as if they were carved out of stone... And walking in my direction...   I struggled to get a better look of him but the darkness was covering me with its veil, making my eyelids far too heavy. My face fell into the grass as I lost the last bits of my strength and for the first time I gave up...