life for good. I hoped.
“Mom did okay,” I said.
“She wasn’t a Rowlands,” Mary K. pointed out darkly.
“True!” I said, and unbelievably, I giggled. Then we were hugging in the front seat of my demolition-derby car. “I’m glad you’re my sister,” I whispered.
“Back atcha,” Mary K. said, and then her friend Jaycee ran up to the car, bundled in a Day-Glo-pink ski jacket.
“Mary K.,” she cried excitedly, tapping the window. “You are not going to believe who Diane D’Alessio is going out with!”
“Just a sec,” Mary K. told her. She turned back to me. “I’ll talk to you later, okay?”
“Yep,” I told her.
Mary K. and Jaycee hurried across the icy parking lot toward school. I grabbed my backpack and followed them.
Inside the redbrick building, I headed to the basement stairs, where our coven usually hung out on cold mornings. Jenna and Sharon were already there, along with Ethan. Matt, Jenna’s ex, was nowhere to be seen, and neither was Robbie.
“Hey,” I said.
Sharon looked up at me, relief evident in her expression. “Morgan! Are you all right? Robbie told us about Sunday night.”
I sat down on the step beside Jenna. “Yeah, I’m okay. I guess.”
Ethan shook his head. “That totally blew me away. I can’t believe I missed all the signs that Cal was lethal.”
“We all missed them,” Sharon said, shuddering. Ethan put his arm around her shoulders.
Jenna tucked a strand of her pale blond hair behind her ear. “I feel so stupid. Like we were all taken in by a con artist or something. That the whole thing was just part of a plot to get at you.”
“It’s strange, but I can’t help feeling that a lot of what he was doing was sincere,” I said thoughtfully. Then I caught myself, wondering if I had a total victim personality or what. “Of course, he seemed pretty sincere about trying to kill me, too,” I added briskly. “So now we know. Wicca definitely has a dark side, and Cal and Selene were practicing it.”
Ethan stood up and shoved his hands into the pockets of his jeans. “You know, I like the part of Wicca that’s about connecting with nature, understanding yourself. But this dark stuff scares me.”
“I don’t think any of us realized what we might be getting into when Cal started Cirrus,” I said. “Now I guess we have to decide whether we want to go on with it.”
“Did you hear that Hunter wants to lead the coven?” Jenna asked.
I nodded. “He told me last night. How do you all feel about it?”
“Weird,” Jenna said. “I mean, we started with Cal. Being in the coven is so much connected with him for me. I don’t know what it will be like. Plus it seems weird that Hunter would even want to lead us. He doesn’t know us.”
“He’s worried about us being exposed to dark magick, and he wants to make sure no one gets hurt. That’s what he said, anyway,” Sharon said. She smiled. “In his sexy English accent.”
“Hey!” Ethan protested. “What about my sexy accent?”
“He does seem to know what he’s talking about,” Matt said. “He’s been doing this a lot longer than we have. I know he’s not much older than we are, but he seems . . . I don’t know . . . more grown-up or something.”
“It’s just the accent,” Ethan said, poking Sharon in the ribs. “It makes him seem older.”
“Cut it out.” Sharon wiggled away, laughing.
“You’re right,” I admitted. Hunter did seem older than his years. It probably had to do with all he’d been through. He’d had to grow up fast.
“I loved Cal’s circles,” Sharon said wistfully. “He was totally laid-back but at the same time encouraging.”
“That last circle with him, I felt real magick,” Jenna agreed. “Still, it might be interesting to see how Hunter handles things. For variety.” The first bell rang, and she got to her feet. “All I know is, I’m not joining Sky’s coven,” she said. We all knew what she meant. Along with Bree, Raven Meltzer
“Mom did okay,” I said.
“She wasn’t a Rowlands,” Mary K. pointed out darkly.
“True!” I said, and unbelievably, I giggled. Then we were hugging in the front seat of my demolition-derby car. “I’m glad you’re my sister,” I whispered.
“Back atcha,” Mary K. said, and then her friend Jaycee ran up to the car, bundled in a Day-Glo-pink ski jacket.
“Mary K.,” she cried excitedly, tapping the window. “You are not going to believe who Diane D’Alessio is going out with!”
“Just a sec,” Mary K. told her. She turned back to me. “I’ll talk to you later, okay?”
“Yep,” I told her.
Mary K. and Jaycee hurried across the icy parking lot toward school. I grabbed my backpack and followed them.
Inside the redbrick building, I headed to the basement stairs, where our coven usually hung out on cold mornings. Jenna and Sharon were already there, along with Ethan. Matt, Jenna’s ex, was nowhere to be seen, and neither was Robbie.
“Hey,” I said.
Sharon looked up at me, relief evident in her expression. “Morgan! Are you all right? Robbie told us about Sunday night.”
I sat down on the step beside Jenna. “Yeah, I’m okay. I guess.”
Ethan shook his head. “That totally blew me away. I can’t believe I missed all the signs that Cal was lethal.”
“We all missed them,” Sharon said, shuddering. Ethan put his arm around her shoulders.
Jenna tucked a strand of her pale blond hair behind her ear. “I feel so stupid. Like we were all taken in by a con artist or something. That the whole thing was just part of a plot to get at you.”
“It’s strange, but I can’t help feeling that a lot of what he was doing was sincere,” I said thoughtfully. Then I caught myself, wondering if I had a total victim personality or what. “Of course, he seemed pretty sincere about trying to kill me, too,” I added briskly. “So now we know. Wicca definitely has a dark side, and Cal and Selene were practicing it.”
Ethan stood up and shoved his hands into the pockets of his jeans. “You know, I like the part of Wicca that’s about connecting with nature, understanding yourself. But this dark stuff scares me.”
“I don’t think any of us realized what we might be getting into when Cal started Cirrus,” I said. “Now I guess we have to decide whether we want to go on with it.”
“Did you hear that Hunter wants to lead the coven?” Jenna asked.
I nodded. “He told me last night. How do you all feel about it?”
“Weird,” Jenna said. “I mean, we started with Cal. Being in the coven is so much connected with him for me. I don’t know what it will be like. Plus it seems weird that Hunter would even want to lead us. He doesn’t know us.”
“He’s worried about us being exposed to dark magick, and he wants to make sure no one gets hurt. That’s what he said, anyway,” Sharon said. She smiled. “In his sexy English accent.”
“Hey!” Ethan protested. “What about my sexy accent?”
“He does seem to know what he’s talking about,” Matt said. “He’s been doing this a lot longer than we have. I know he’s not much older than we are, but he seems . . . I don’t know . . . more grown-up or something.”
“It’s just the accent,” Ethan said, poking Sharon in the ribs. “It makes him seem older.”
“Cut it out.” Sharon wiggled away, laughing.
“You’re right,” I admitted. Hunter did seem older than his years. It probably had to do with all he’d been through. He’d had to grow up fast.
“I loved Cal’s circles,” Sharon said wistfully. “He was totally laid-back but at the same time encouraging.”
“That last circle with him, I felt real magick,” Jenna agreed. “Still, it might be interesting to see how Hunter handles things. For variety.” The first bell rang, and she got to her feet. “All I know is, I’m not joining Sky’s coven,” she said. We all knew what she meant. Along with Bree, Raven Meltzer
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