Iris nodded so eagerly that her glasses slid down her nose. She pushed them back up. “Yes! That sounds fun! I’ve actually never had a mani-pedi, or not a real one, anyway.… My sister Kedren, she’s my big sister… I have a little sister, too, Nyala, she’s a total brat… Kedren used to try to give me home mani-pedis, but the smell of the nail polish always—”
“So interesting,” Div interrupted, trying to put the brakes on yet another runaway Iris monologue. She instinctively reached up to pet Prada, then remembered that she’d left her at home to digest her mouse from yesterday. (Snakes didn’t like being held during the twenty-four to seventy-two hours after a meal.) “Penelope, what’s your position on mani-pedis? Pro or con?”
“Oh, pro, definitely,” Penelope said cheerfully. “I did a whole series about them for my YouTube channel last month. I tested different vegan nail polishes, because that’s a thing now.” She turned to Iris and added, “You might like them. I think they smell nicer than the not-vegan kinds.”
“Cool!” Iris exclaimed.
Mira asked Penelope some questions about her YouTube channel. Next to Mira, Aysha fake-smiled through her veggie burger and nodded, pretending to listen. (Aysha didn’t wear makeup, and the only topics of conversation that held her interest were witchcraft, martial arts, and wolves—she was convinced that her familiar, Nicodemus, was half wolf, half dog.)
Div watched her two witches and her two new maybe-witches. She wasn’t a total Crowe disciple—not even close—but she did agree that group spells were more powerful than solo ones, and the bigger the group, the better. Hopefully Iris and Penelope were witches. (And if so, could they have enchanted the shadow messages? If yes, why?)
“Hey, guys!”
Speaking of… Div recognized the voice, its forced friendliness masking irritation, before she even looked up. Greta was heading toward their table, flanked by Binx and Ridley. Oh, great. Div needed to focus on her Iris and Penelope project; she didn’t need this distraction right now.
Without waiting for an invitation, Greta pulled up an empty chair from a nearby table. Ridley did the same and sat down next to Penelope. Binx remained standing.
Aysha put down her veggie burger. Her brown eyes flashed at Greta. “We’re having a private conversation—” she began.
Div set her iced tea down and held up her hand. “It’s fine. Please. Join us,” she said smoothly. She didn’t want Iris and Penelope to get the impression that she and Mira and Aysha were mean or unwelcoming.
“Thanks, Div.” Greta sat down next to Iris. “Hey, Iris! These are my friends that I told you about. Binx and Ridley. And you must be Penelope,” she said. “I’m Greta.”
Penelope nodded. “Yup, that’s me! Hey, Ridley, when is our history quiz? I forgot to write it down and I’m sort of terrified it’s tomorrow.”
“It’s on Monday, so you have plenty of time. How was that pumpkin spice latte?”
“Yummy, as always. Maybe we could grab one later?”
“Sure!”
Div frowned. Ridley and Penelope already knew each other? And Greta knew Iris, too? This was not good.
Greta didn’t suspect that the two new girls might be witches… did she? She hadn’t mentioned a word about it in the car yesterday, and keeping secrets was so not Greta. Unless she’d changed. Div eyed Greta with interest, wondering.
Iris stood up and sat down again. She pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose. “Greta! It’s awesome to see you again! I didn’t know you guys all knew each other! I’m so, so sorry I’m late for our lunch. I mean, I know that I told you I’d be late, but I still feel bad. You and Aysha asked me to lunch at the same time… well, not at the exact same time, but super, super close… so I thought I’d try to hang out with both of you somehow, and your friends, too, but now it’s even better because we’re all hanging out together!”
“No worries,” Greta assured Iris.
Div pretended to pluck a loose thread from her white jeans. So Greta did suspect. Maybe she even knew for sure, and she was making her move to recruit them to her coven first. She stifled a swear and dug her nails into her palms.
On the other hand, maybe this was a good thing—maybe this was the confirmation Div had been looking for. If Greta believed that Iris and Penelope were witches, that backed up Aysha’s impressions from yesterday… the amulet, the tarot cards…
Just then, Div spotted Axel Ngata across the cafeteria; his Antima buddies Orion and Brandon weren’t with him. He hovered beside a table where a freshman girl sat by herself. He leaned down and said something to her that made her shake her head agitatedly. The girl tried to pick up her tray and leave, but he wouldn’t let her.
Div narrowed her eyes. Did Axel think that girl was a witch? Or was he just harassing her for no good reason? Whatever the case, the guy needed to be put in his place.
Prurio, she thought as she stared directly at him.
Axel stopped what he was doing and began furiously scratching his arms and chest and scalp, as though he’d been attacked by a swarm of fleas. The girl took the opportunity to make her escape. Good.
At the same moment, Colter Jessup walked into the cafeteria with the lacrosse coach. Their heads were bent in conversation, and the coach was tracing diamond shapes in the air. Lacrosse plays? Colter and Mira used to date. Div had never liked the guy and was not unhappy when they broke up. There was just something too perfect about him.
Penelope seemed to notice them, too. Her face lit up, and she waved. “Colter! Over here!”
At the mention of Colter’s name, Mira’s head snapped up, and she swiveled in her chair. She watched intently as Colter said goodbye to the coach and came over to their table.
Penelope wiggled her fingers toward him, and
