Bitter Demons

41. Friends Don't Hurt Each Other Like That

Fear ruled my thoughts for the rest of the afternoon. On the outside, I tried to act happy and be a good hostess for all the members of the Order who had come to see Caroline and lend their support to her mother. Ella Mae set up a buffet in the kitchen with casseroles and chips and cookies and finger foods. There was enough food to feed a hundred people, but I couldn't stomach the thought of any of it.

When I thought I was up against one witch, it didn't seem so bad. I'd been against worse before and won. But several? Caroline wasn't sure how many witches there were, but she'd said several. That could mean four or five. Maybe more.

I shivered and pulled my sweater tighter.

"Can you believe it?" Lark asked. She was all smiles as usual. "It's a miracle."

I forced a smile. "I know. It's amazing."

"You should have seen Brooke's face when my mom called you a hero," she said with a laugh. "I thought she was going to blow her top."

"Do you think she sabotaged my sneakers the other day at practice?"

"Who? Brooke?" Lark shrugged. "Maybe. She's been pretty jealous over all the attention you've been getting lately. I wouldn't put it past her."

"Would you ever do something like that to me?" I asked.

Lark lifted one eyebrow super high and tilted her head to the side. "What? You're joking right? I could never use magic against you. I'm your friend. Friends don't hurt each other like that."

Friend. A word I didn't have a lot of experience with. How could you really tell who your friends were in a world like this? Jackson was my friend. More than a friend, really. And still, I'd hurt him. I regretted it with all my heart.

"I thought Brooke was my friend, too," I said.

Lark screwed up her nose. "She's different since her initiation. It's weird. It's like she's no one's friend anymore."

"She seems pretty chummy with Allison still."

"Hmm. Maybe," she said. "Anyway, don't sweat it. If you want me to, I'll talk to her about it. See if I can get her to lighten up a bit."

"No," I said. "Just let it go. The truth is, I don't care if she does take the top of pyramid."

"One of these days, you're going to have to get used to the fact that you're the star around here," she said with a laugh. She grabbed a cookie off the plate in front of me and licked the cream from the middle. "You're going to be Prima, soon. You'll be in the spotlight all the time."

I frowned. Being the future Prima was ruining my life.