Chapter 2

“Selina faces the Coven Council Saturday night,” Kalinda told Kayla as the two of them sat, snuggled up on the couch watching an old episode of Charmed. “She’s kind of nervous about it.”

Kayla shifted a little, but didn’t pull away from the other girl. Why Kalinda still talked to the woman who intended to kill them, Kayla had no idea “She should be nervous. She tried to kill us. Not exactly a good thing, you know? Why are you even talking to her? Look what she caused? Hannah’s death. Selina’s own mother died. Clara and Nicole. Hell, the entire Daughters of Darkness coven is either dead or sitting here on this couch, and all because Selina didn’t have the guts to stand up to her mother.”

She felt Kalinda pulling gently at her red hair, kissing the side of Kayla’s head. “I know, sweetie, but she came through in the end,” Kalinda said. “She lost more than we did and could possibly lose even more. She needs us.”

Kayla pushed back, staring into Kalinda’s dark brown eyes. “Are you saying you want to go and support her? After what she did? Why? You barely knew her.”

“No, I’m not planning on attending the council convening. I don’t think it’s allowed even if I wanted to go.” Kalinda shrugged. “Still, we were a coven. Grant it, the coven is dead—pardon the choice of words—but we were a coven once, bonded together. I don’t think we should just turn our backs on that. What would it say about us?”

“Uh, that we don’t enjoy hanging around people who try to kill us.” Kayla sat back on the couch, arms over her chest as she took a deep breath to tamp down the frustration bubbling to the surface. “I think that’s a normal feeling. I don’t think people would judge us for that.”

Kalinda chuckled, reaching out and pulling Kayla close again. “I would judge me for that,” she said. “I’m sorry. I know you want to write her out of our lives, but I intend to be there for her when she realizes she needs someone.”

Kayla felt her shoulders droop as Kalinda held her, the other woman’s integrity grating on Kayla’s nerves. She didn’t want to support Selina. She wanted nothing more to do with the woman, to be honest. Selina had been willing to shove the Darkness into Kayla’s body, anchoring it to her while using Kalinda and Hannah to fuel the possession, in essence killing them because of some foolish notion of Cherise’s to avenge her son’s death. In the end, it turned out the Sisters of the White Oak hadn’t killed Warren Rycroft; the Darkness killed him, the same Darkness that turned on Cherise in the end.

Kayla sighed, leaning her head on Kalinda’s shoulder. “Fine. I’ll support you in supporting her, but I’m doing it for you, not Selina.” She sat there for another moment, stewing. “Are you going with me to The Murky Cauldron tonight?” The Cauldron Coven met on Wednesday nights after the store closed, and with the Daughters of Darkness no longer around, she hoped Kalinda would join Tansy’s coven. Kayla wanted to share the small group with Kalinda, bringing her into their closeknit family. Kalinda and Selina were still alive because of the Cauldron Coven, having severed the bond that held them together and allowed the Darkness to reach them across the city.

“Of course,” Kalinda said. “I’m looking forward to it. They seem like a terrific bunch of people, even if a couple of them seem a little odd.”

Kayla sat up, turning to Kalinda and staring at her with a puzzled look. “Who seems odd?” The women of the Cauldron Coven were the most normal group of women Kayla ever met. All right, Wanda was a little odd with how she shoved tea down everyone’s throat, and Jayden was a little on the snarky side, but that wasn’t odd. That was just Jayden.

“Well, that middle-aged man who seems to hang around all the time, his nose stuck in book after book,” Kalinda said. “And then that old man that tends to hover around the fringe of the coven, sipping from his flask. I can’t tell if he’s a part of your group or not. He seems more crotchety than anything else.”

Kayla nodded. “Him, I know nothing about. From what I hear, he’s a necromancer, here to help Laci with her new powers like you helped me get in touch with my spirit animals. As far as Famallumi…” She paused, not sure if she should out the elf of not. His secret wasn’t really hers to tell, even if it was with Kalinda she shared it. She shook her head. “His story is an odd one, but pretty cool. I’ll talk to him and get him to tell you. His story really is an experience.”

Kalinda cocked an eyebrow. “An experience, huh?” She shook her head. “Considering what we’ve seen lately, that could be anything.”

Kayla laughed. “Trust me. It’ll be worth it.”

Kalinda’s phone dinged with a notification. “Can’t wait,” she deadpanned, as she grabbed her phone from the coffee table and slid it unlocked.

Kayla watched as the other woman’s brows furrowed as she read whatever message she received. “Everything all right?”

“I’m not sure. Seems something happened at the campus.” She glanced up at Kayla, a confused expression on her face. “Apparently, something is happening at the science building again.”

Kayla cocked an eyebrow at the other woman, remembering how Damien Ledbetter animated the cadavers last week with his magic, making people believe zombies had invaded the college. She wasn’t even sure how the administration explained that one away. “Halloween’s over. Maybe they’re gearing up for Thanksgiving,” she said with a shrug.

Kalinda just laughed, sliding her phone back into her pocket. “I can’t wait to see how they bring in the New Year.”