"So I guess we're all here then," Kai said, dropping his bag onto the library table with a thud that made the librarian shoot him a warning look from across the room.
I'd arrived first, claiming a table in the back corner where we'd have some privacy, and now I was watching my group members trickle in one by one with varying degrees of enthusiasm. Malachi had come next. His face was impossible to read as he took the seat farthest from me. Kai had followed, then a tall noble boy I vaguely recognized and finally Serena, who looked about as thrilled to be here as someone attending their own funeral.
"Perfect," Serena said, her voice dripping with false brightness as she set down her pristine leather notebook. "Now we can actually get started instead of wasting time."
