“We’ll need seven more to complete the circle,” Catherine said. “A coven needs eleven people.”
“A coven?” Alice asked in an alarmed tone.
Catherine rolled her eyes. “A club, I mean.”
From her bag, Eliza drew the empty journal her mother had given her and placed it on the table.
“I’ll take notes,” she said.
Alice reached around to her own bag for her fountain pen and then shook it to bring the ink into the point. As Eliza took the pen from Alice, she had to allow herself a private smile. Imagine what her mother would think if she knew what use her book was being put to.
Slowly, deliberately, Eliza wrote down the names of the four girls present: Elizabeth Williams, Catherine White, Theresa Billings, and Alice Ainsworth.
“All right. Who else, do you think?” she asked, looking up.
“Jane Barton, of course. She would never let it go if she weren’t included,” Theresa answered, leaning forward and resting her elbows on the table. “And Viola and Beatrice Hirsch.”
“Isn’t Bia a bit young?” Catherine asked.
“She’s no younger than me,” Alice pointed out.
“But she seems younger,” Eliza said, thinking of the way Bia was always following Viola around, asking about her opinions.
“Yes, but Viola is one of my closest friends. She must be invited, and Bia must do anything Viola does,” Theresa said flatly. “Besides, Bia can be quite sweet when she wants to be.”
“All right, then. That’s seven. We’ll need four more,” Eliza said, looking up from the page.
“Lavender,” Catherine said, before Theresa could answer.
“Ugh! Lavender’s awful,” Theresa groused, crossing her arms over her chest. “She’s so awkward and bland.”
“But she’s a good person to have on your side,” Catherine replied. “Did you see the way she moved to protect us that night when Miss Almay caught us? She seems the type to lay down her life for her friends.”
Eliza’s heart thumped at the sentiment.
“Why are we talking about death?” Alice asked.
“Yes. Let’s hope our club doesn’t come to that,” Eliza added. She reached up to her neck and rubbed the gold locket between her finger and thumb.
“All I’m saying is that I think she’s loyal,” Catherine replied in a soothing tone. “I’d like to invite her.”
“I agree,” Alice said. “She might not be my sort of person, but she’s nice enough. Besides, she’s my roommate, and I don’t want to have to sneak around keeping secrets from her.”
“All right, then,” Eliza replied, writing down Lavender’s name. “I nominate Marilyn DeMeers. She’s worldly.”
“Fine, but she’ll have to leave that yippy dog of hers at home. And Marilyn won’t come without Genevieve, so write her down too,” Theresa directed, looking down her nose at the page. “How many is that?” she asked.
“Ten. We need one more,” Catherine replied.
“What about Clarissa Pommer?” Eliza whispered, glancing sideways at Clarissa from across the room.
“Yes! Clarissa would be perfect,” Catherine agreed.
Theresa wrinkled her nose in Clarissa’s direction.
“But she’s so . . . uppity,” Theresa protested. “Who wants to be around someone who’s not only smart but knows it and never stops telling you about it?”
“But that’s just the thing about her,” Eliza said, glancing at Clarissa. “She’s smart. If we were ever to get into any trouble, it might be a blessing to have a quick thinker on our side.”