"So there was an article that Carol published this morning. Did you happen to see it?"
She almost groaned. "No. Did she tell the town to burn us at the stake?"
"Actually, no witches were burned in Salem," Kelsea said. "They were all hanged or pressed to death. They would place heavy stones on their chests until they suffocated and were crushed."
Eloise looked at her flatly. "So did Carol tell the town to crush us to death? That's absolutely horrific, by the way."
Kelsea's eyes widened in agreement then she shrugged answering her. "Not yet. Though I wouldn't be surprised to read that headline if these things keep happening and having connections to us all. But uh, this one quotes you."
"Me?" she asked in surprise trying furiously to think through any damning conversations she'd had with the notorious writer of late. None came to mind. "I don't understand. I haven't spoken with Carol about anything." She snapped her fingers. "Was it about how I've seen Ursula naked?"
She frowned. "What? Why-"
But Eloise waved her question away.
Kelsea's eyes flicked up to something behind Eloise and she turned to see Bess carrying an armful of supplies.
"Something you said to someone in the bathroom at the club about Bess."
Her blood froze and her heart leapt. "What are you talking about?"
She pulled out her phone, scrolled through until she found what she was looking for and passed it to her.
She read the article and this time she did groan. The chatty red headed woman from the bathroom had given an interview to Carol Weatherby, and in the article she was quoted saying that she wished she had hexed Kyle Sandman and called him a twerp. Also, possibly worse, that Bess was already being targeted.
"No wonder she's throwing eye daggers at me." She slid the phone back to Kelsea over the bar.
"So, I guess she's not taking it so well," she said, and they both turned to see Bess look up at them, her dark and moody glare strong. They both visibly moved back at the impact of her wrath. "Yikes."
Eloise turned back to her with wide eyes. "Right?"
She leaned in whispering, "I felt it. In my soul."
She groaned again. "But I would be angry too if I were her. I can't believe I said that to a stranger. In a bathroom. At a club."
"Something else," Kelsea hedged.
"This is not my day." She took a fortifying breath and then nodded. "Okay, hit me with it."
Kelsea made an apologetic face as she said, "Bess quit soccer."
"What?" she asked with so much concern and sadness her heart physically squeezed inside of her. Bess; sweet, intense, moody, brilliant, strong yet vulnerable Bess was getting the full impact of being picked on, bullied. She was shutting down. And Eloise had a hand in that. She cursed softly. "This is all my fault. I knew something was off that night."
"What do you mean? With the woman in the bathroom?"
"I don't know how to explain it, but I felt out of body. It was like thoughts didn't even stop at the filter gate of my mind and mouth. There was no filter and no gate. It was so odd and everything smelled off." She shook her head at the memory, which was foggy at best.
Kelsea's blonde eyebrows raised. "Maybe a hex was put on you."
"I don't know," she sighed. "Okay, I'll try and fix it."
"I have a feeling the cops are going to officially call us in soon."
"Well yeah, now that we've allegedly hexed one of their own," Eloise agreed.
"We need to get together. The Lost Souls. Tonight?"
At the mention of The Lost Souls House, a pang echoed in her chest. Her fight with Ursula was a heavy cloak over everythingright now. They all had a lot going on and not being right with her person was going to make this much more difficult.
