Mika glanced uncertainly at Jamie, her question obvious. He gave her a short nod. “It’s fine, they know Edward’s coming. You can talk about him.”

“Okay, then,” Mika said. “Yes, Lillian’s solicitor will be coming to visit in December and it’s very important that we make sure he doesn’t find out the truth about the three of you.”

“Would it be so bad?” There was a wistful note in Rosetta’s voice that arrowed directly into Mika’s heart. “I mean, would it really be the end of the world if more people found out about us?”

“I’ve often wondered that,” Mika said. “It would be nice, wouldn’t it? To not have to keep secrets anymore? To have friends?” Rosetta nodded, and Mika nodded, too, wishing with all her heart that she could give her a different answer. “But we can never know for sure how someone will react to finding out the truth, so it’s just too much of a risk.”

It was exactly the kind of thing Primrose would have said. The thought brought Mika no comfort.

Mika tried to soften the blow with the one thing that usually made her feel better. “Of course, you have to remember that more people know about witches than we think. Look at your own caretakers. They’re not witches, but they know about us. And I know for a fact that plenty of witches have grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and a whole lot of other relatives who raised them.” She smiled. “The way I see it, there must be quite a few people out there who already know our secret and accept us. That could be a good place to start looking for new friends.”

She didn’t mention the one thing that made this almost impossible: the Rules. How was a witch to find a community of witches and non-witches who would embrace her when she was supposed to stay away from other witches, keep her life completely disconnected from theirs, and only see those other witches a few times a year?

“Anyway,” Mika went on, injecting some cheer back into her voice, “to answer your earlier question, Altamira, I don’t know if there are any boy witches. I’ve never met one. And, Rosetta, I know a few other witches. Twenty, to be exact.”

“Twenty?” Altamira squeaked. “How do you know them? Are they your friends?”

“Um, not exactly,” said Mika. “We meet once every three months. I call us the Very Secret Society of Witches. Primrose, the head of our group, doesn’t like it when I call us that.” Mika grinned. “Which may or may not be why I keep doing it.”

Rosetta and Altamira laughed. Even Terracotta looked like she wanted to. “How come Primrose is the head of the Society?”

“Because she’s the oldest, most powerful, and, most importantly, the bossiest.”