Burning in a Memory by Constance Sharper

could feel the heavy tension in the air. Tony’s eyes bore into her and his painfully rigid figure never budged. Adam led them swiftly into the house and shut the door behind them.
                  Finally and apparently alone, Adelaide let out a hissing breath.
                  “Something tells me that you didn’t tell Tony I was coming,” Adelaide asked.
                  Adam only answered with a hum in his chest. His attention lingered on other things which he shortly pointed out.
                  “We have a spare bedroom upstairs for you. There are three basic floors and the basement. On this first floor there are just family rooms, living rooms, kitchen…”
                  He walked so she followed. Her head spun as she took in the house. The inside had mild decorations for the size and grandeur, leaving nothing that particularly stood out to her. Other than a few dusty corners, it looked like an elegant farm house plucked from the Hollywood hills. Its size genuinely shocked Adelaide. Every time she thought they reached the end of the house, there was an entire extra set of corridors. Adam led them through the stainless steel kitchen to winding stairs.
                  “This place is all yours?” she asked. She’d have chopped it out and rented it out as separate condos if she could.
                  “It is now. It once belonged to a coven bigger than ours but somewhat went down the line of descent until we ended up with it,” he explained, noticeably leaving out what happened to the prior coven. She let it go. With every step up the stairs, he seemed less and less angry with Tony but she gave him extra space.
                  “This is amazing,” she credited him. He nudged open the first door and gestured for her to go inside.
                  Furniture in the room was sparse but sufficient. A full sized bed sat in the corner and smelled of fresh laundry detergent. A desk covered in plastic took up the length of the wall beside the bed. If this place had once been someone’s room, they left no personal ruminants.
                  “I hope you like it,” he said. For the first time, she heard life return to his voice and a hint of nervousness. She plastered on a smile.
                  “It’s nice,” she commented. Her eyes swept from him to the hallway. Just visible from this vantage point was another door. The door was shut and the room unlit. “Is your bedroom up here too?”
                  “No, I’m downstairs. Closest to the kitchen.”
                  She fought off a cringe when she had to ask the follow up question.
                  “Who else has the bedroom on this floor?”
                  Adam followed her gaze and shook his head immediately.
                  “No one currently. What I mean to say is that he isn’t here yet.”
                  “Someone besides those I’ve met?” she asked too quickly. “I mean, I thought there were only five of you. Is Charlotte coming?”
                  “No. There are usually six of us, but it’s not Charlotte. She’s a part of her second husband’s coven anyway.”
                  Adam wouldn’t get into details so she moved to distract him.
                  “You sure you don’t want to move up here then? Within hollering range in case of Tony? He got me like that last time and took me home,” she said. She doubted he’d make the drive to dump her off now, but reminding Adam of it distracted him from their missing coven member.
                  “Please don’t worry about Tony. I won’t let him bother you,” he said sharply.
                  She thought for a moment he would fume all over again, but his anger came and went quickly. He appeared to concentrate solely on her. The