Chaos Pact

CHAOS PACT SUPERNATURAL BATTLE: COVEN CAVES KELLY ST. CLARE CONTENTS Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Chapter 14 Chapter 15 Chapter 16 Chapter 17 Chapter 18 Chapter 19 Chapter 20 Chapter 21 Chapter 22 Chapter 23 Chapter 24 Chapter 25 Chapter 26 Chapter 27 Chapter 28 Chapter 29 Chapter 30 Chapter 31 Chapter 32 Chapter 33 Chapter 34 Chapter 35 Chapter 36 About the Author Last Gift While You Wait Books By Kelly St. Clare Join the Book Barracks! Chaos Pact by Kelly St. Clare Copyright © June, 2023 All rights reserved This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, organizations, places, events, media, and incidents are either products of the authors’ imagination, or are used fictitiously. No part of this book may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without express written permission of the author. Edited by Hot Tree Editing Cover design by Covers by Christian The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of a copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by fines and federal imprisonment 1 In the lush meadow, I knelt in a circle of salt. My grandmother’s gemstone, a moss Agate, was set to the north of me. The green stone hadn’t been a favorite of hers—being that its job was to convert negative energy. She’d liked negative energy just fine. I’d picked it for tonight’s esbat with the idea that if the gemstone pulled a solid for me and converted all the negativity in my life into something positive I’d be fucking set for eternity. Set. In that future, I’d have an entire castle to lay out my gems and kits and foraged goods. A majestic wall to hang my braided artwork. There would be a magic front door that made people forget horrific details about me as they walked in, so I could continue relationships with them. Hmm… that door could go to the top of the list. “Come on, you son-of-a-bitch moss Agate,” I bit out, tipping my face to the moon. I’d spent all day preparing for the Mother’s healing with purification. Usually, esbat was the only time I felt at peace. Really though, how much had this esbat changed from the last one? Still a high chance of death. Still shit to figure out. Still secrets to keep. More even. I cracked one eyelid to glare at the stupid moss Agate. “That’s the negative stuff to convert. Earn your keep, mineral fucker.” “All right there, cuz?” I supposed one thing was different about this esbat compared to the last. I glanced back at my cousin, Rooke, who hadn’t opened her eyes while speaking. We were in the same salt circle, but Moonlight didn’t touch her yet, so she hadn’t fully centered to begin the healing. Likely because I was cursing at my grandmother’s gemstone. “Just trying to heal the shit out of myself,” I answered, closing my eyes again. This healing would take a while. “I wonder how much energy the Mother has tonight.” Rooke snorted. “Leave some for me. My shit needs healed too.” Curiosity thrummed within me to ask why, but my cousin and I had maintained a respectful emotional distance for the last two weeks, and if I asked her stuff, she’d then ask me questions in return. I wanted to stave that moment off a little longer. Because what would I say? My mother met my demon father in a ravine just up the mountain. They fell in love, did what lovers do, and my father died before my twin and I were born. Half demons, yep. Oh, and me returning to the Buried Knolls has strengthened the demon power in this area. Demons will attack and kill the coven sooner. I didn’t know. Sorry. Turning to face my affinities within, I smiled at my battle magic, calling the deadly force inward to the area under my ribs. One down. Next was apothecary—my favorite. The docile, peace-loving energy flowed easily to join battle. My smile dropped. Divination. I mean, yes, I had my hang-ups with divination in general. Watch your family’s murder and then tell me you’d go skipping to open your heart and mind to your past, future, and ancestors. Then, if you were brave enough to do so despite that, and woke up naked and injured in the middle of nowhere with no memory, tell me you’d keep trying. Except I had kept trying, only to find a fucking demon living in my divination affinity. My breaths came faster as the full shittery of my life threatened to crash down upon my shoulders and crush me. I was half magus and half demon. An impossibility. A horror to my kind. A quick peek told me that Rooke had entered her healing and was bathed in moonlight. I wouldn’t join her or the rest of the coven members scattered around us tonight. My heart was impossibly heavy because my presence here ensured the deaths of those around me. The only answer was to leave the place I’d started to wonder about calling home—the people I’d started to maybe think could be friends, or my community or something. Tonight after esbat, I’d leave. All that remained was to spend my final esbat with Rooke as best I could, then say my goodbyes to her. To everyone. I shifted my knees on the grass, then stared out of our salt circle to a larger one containing four male magus, two large hulking ones and two tall-and-lean muscled. All of them completely gorgeous and aware of it. One was particularly gorgeous, and he—as though feeling my gaze—opened his drowning eyes. Wild. Cold disdain stabbed across the meadow at me before he closed his eyes and severed our connection. My heart