She nodded, still staring at the ground.
Being a bitch to her felt like kicking a puppy, but I couldn’t help it. I was pissed. It didn’t have to be this way. “Let’s talk about what we’re going to do next.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, you need a new leader. Let’s start there. Who do you think is a good candidate?”
She shrugged. “I’m not sure. That’s the problem. No one is even close to Luciana’s strength in magic.”
“And that’s one of the requirements?”
“No. Not exactly.”
“How about you tell me exactly while I make myself a snack?” I opened the fridge and pulled out cheese, ham, and an avocado for a grilled sammy. I made myself at home as I started cooking. Once I had everything in a pan, I looked over my shoulder at Claudia.
She hopped onto the counter. “Right. Rules. There’s always a leader and a successor, so the current leader picks someone to be third in line. Grams picked you and once Luciana stepped down, she was supposed to name your successor, but that’s all changed now. And Grams is—”
“Unreachable.” Maybe it was snippy, but I was a little tired of being manipulated. I needed real solutions. “So what happens in this kind of scenario?”
“Luciana should pick someone, but we don’t want that to happen. That’s why there’s always a break in succession. No one person’s will or agenda gets pushed on two generations. And since we’re extremely divided about some of the things Luciana’s been doing…we’re in a bit of a bind. You’re strong enough that you could pick your replacement, and I think if we position it correctly, then we could get the support of the whole coven.”
“Sounds reasonable. So I know you have to have some sort of sight like my visions in order to rule.”
“Exactly. And Luciana’s visions used to be kind of weak, but she’s been getting stronger lately. Which is weird.”
“Wait. Why is her getting stronger weird?”
“Because once you reach a certain age, your affinity or abilities start to settle or even lessen. But with Luciana, it’s the opposite. That’s another reason we’re divided. The few in our faction suspect she’s using dark magic to boost her power and most in the coven want no part in that.”
I checked my sammy. Perfectly golden. I tossed some more butter in the pan as I flipped it.
“Wow. That looks really amazing.”
“Want me to make you one?”
She shook her head. “No. I eat something like that and I have to eat nothing but lettuce and work out for days to burn it off.”
“Right. Well, I have the opposite problem. It gets old, this whole eating all the time thing. I kept almost losing control of my wolf before. But now, as long as I eat I’m pretty okay. Me and the wolf have an understanding.”
Claudia pressed her lips together for a second, as if carefully considering what I’d said. “It’s weird hearing you talk about the wolf that way.”
I shrugged. “It’s weird to me, too, but that’s the only way I know how to describe it.” I checked the sammy. Not quite toasty. “So, who here has abilities that could be considered leadership material?”
“No one. That’s the problem. I’ve even asked friends in nearby covens, but they won’t respond. They’re too afraid of Luciana.”
I snorted. “She’s such a bitch.” I thought for a second. “What about you?”
Her mouth dropped open. “Me?” She pointed to herself like there was anyone else in the room I could’ve been talking about.
“Yeah. When we first met, you helped me find Dastien. That could be a good start.”
She shook her head. “That’s nothing. I helped amplify your own powers.”
“What about Raphael?”
“He’s good at spells. Other than that…”
“Poor guy.” I winked at her.
Claudia laughed.
My sammy was done. I put it on the plate and cut it in half. The bread gave a lovely crunch as the knife sliced through it. “Do you have any chips?”
“Yeah.” She hopped off the counter and opened a cabinet. “Snacks are all in here.” She pulled a bag of tortilla chips and a bag of Cheetos. “I also have Limón potato chips, and pretzels.”
“I’ll take the Cheetos.” I grabbed a root beer from the fridge and sat down.
Cooking for myself was going to be a pain in the ass. How was I going to get anything done? I suddenly yearned for the cafeteria and stocked common room fridge.