Hunted

“Yeah. Okay, do not tell anyone else this next part, not even Darius. Do you swear?”

“Yeah, yeah, whatever. Cross my heart and hope to—”

“Just saying you won’t tell is good enough for me,” I said, not wanting to hear anything about hoping to die come out of her mouth.

“I won’t tell. So, what is it?”

“We’re not going back to the depot tu

Her gaze on me was sharp and way more intelligent than most people gave her credit for being. “Do you really think that’s a good idea?”

“I trust Sister Mary Angela, and I have a bad feeling about the tu

“Ah, shit. I hate it when you say that.”

“Hell, I don’t like it either! But I sensed a darkness down there that I’ve been seeing too much of.”

“Neferet,” Aphrodite whispered.

“I’m afraid so.” I spoke slowly, thinking aloud. “And I’m thinking that the influence of the nuns might repel her. Plus, Sister Mary Angela told me that there was a place of power there at the abbey, something that made my control over the elements not so surprising to her. I think she called it Mary’s Grotto.” As I spoke I felt that sureness within that told me Nyx was pleased with the choices I was making. “Maybe we can somehow use the power there, like we’ve used the power over by the east wall before. At the very least it might help me keep us cloaked.”

“Mary’s Grotto? Sounds like something that should be in the ocean and not in Tulsa. Look, just keep in mind that the place of power by the east wall has been misused about as much as it’s been tapped into for good,” she said. “And what about Stevie Rae and her freaks? Not to mention your boyfriends?”

“They’ll be there. Or at least I hope they will. The Raven Mockers have been watching around depot.”

“Well, I can tell you from being around her for those two days that she is majorly resourceful, and some of those resources are not so nice.” She paused and kinda squirmed uncomfortably.

“What is it?” I prompted.

“Look, if I tell you, I want you to promise to believe me.”

“Fine. I promise. Now what is it?”

“Well, talking about your bumpkin BFF and her bag of tricks kinda reminded me of something. Something I found out after she and I, well, you know.”

“Imprinted?” I said, trying (unsuccessfully) not to smile.

“It’s not fu

I thought back. “Yeah, I remember.” Then my stomach clenched as I replayed the scene in my mind and I really did remember how Stevie Rae had looked all uncomfortable when I asked her about other red fledglings, and I braced myself to hear what Aphrodite had to say.

“She lied to you.”

I had a feeling Aphrodite had been going to say that, but knowing didn’t make hearing it any easier. “Exactly what did she lie about?”

“So you believe me?”

I sighed. “Sadly, yes. You’re Imprinted with her. That means you’re close to her in a way no one else is. My Imprint with Heath has taught me that.”

“Okay, look. I do not want to do the nasty with Stevie Rae.”

I rolled my eyes. “I didn’t mean that, you dork. There are different kinds of Imprints. My bond with Heath is very physical, but I’ve been attracted to him for years. Uh, can I assume I’m right when I say you’ve never been attracted to Stevie Rae?”

“Hell yes, you can assume that,” Aphrodite said dryly.

“Both of you have psychic abilities. It’s only logical that your bond would be mental, not physical,” I said.

“Yeah, good. I’m glad you get that. And that’s how I know she was lying to you when she said the red fledglings she introduced us to are the only ones there are. There are more. She knows it, and she’s in touch with them.”

“And you’re absolutely sure of this?”

“Totally and absolutely,” she said.

“Well, I can’t worry about that right now, but that could definitely explain some of the darkness I sensed down there. It’s the same aura that used to surround Stevie Rae, but it’s going to have to wait until we get out of here,” I said, feeling miserable and upset that my BFF felt like she had to lie to me.

“I hate to be the one to clue you in, but Stevie Rae has more secrets than Paris Hilton has purses. On the bright side, I’m betting your lying bumpkin friend, the freaks, and your boyfriends make it past the bird boys.”

“I hope so.” I sighed and messed with my napkin.

“Hey,” she said softly. “Try not to let this thing with Stevie Rae freak you out. She’s keeping secrets, but I can also tell you that she cares about you—a lot. I also know she’s choosing good, no matter how hard it is for her sometimes.”

“I know that. I believe Stevie Rae must have a reason for not telling me things. I mean, it’s not like I’ve never kept secrets from my friends before.” Yeah, I added silently to myself. And you messed up big-time because of that, too.

“Okay, so it’s not just Stevie Rae that’s making you look like you need some pharmaceutical help to cheer up.” Then her brows raised as she continued to study me. “Oh, I get it. You’re having boyfriend issues. Or should I say boyfriends issues?”

“Sadly, the plural seems to be the correct form of the word,” I muttered.

“Erik and I used to have a thing, but you know that’s way over. You can talk to me if you need to.”

I looked at her and again thought how ironic it was that she was right. I really could talk to her.

“I’m not sure I want to be with Erik,” I blurted.

Her eyes got just a little wider, but her voice stayed nonchalant. “He’s pressuring you about sex?”

I shrugged. “Yes, no. Kinda. But it’s not just that.” I leaned forward and lowered my voice. “Aphrodite, did he ever get possessive and über-jealous with you?”

She curled her lip in a sarcastic sneer. “He tried. I don’t so much tolerate the jealous bullshit.” Then she paused and in a more serious tone added, “Neither should you, Z.”

“I know, and I’m not.” I sighed. “I have a lot to deal with when this mess is over.”

“Seriously. You have a mess to deal with when this mess is over.” She gobbled another forkful of spaghetti.

“Well, let’s try and get this particular mess over with then so I can go back to my ridiculous personal drama. Tell Darius to be ready for some bad stuff to go down tonight. Like he said, Kalona isn’t going to be happy when we get out of here.”

“No, he said Kalona isn’t going to be happy when you get out of here. He really has a thing for you.”

“I know, and I wish he’d just get over it,” I said.

“Hey, have you thought any more about that first poem Kramisha gave you before we left the tu

“Well, if it’s a formula, I haven’t figured it out.” I didn’t want to admit to Aphrodite that I hadn’t thought at all about Kramisha’s poem—or at least not the one about Kalona. I’d been completely distracted by the second poem, and by the possibility of Stark’s humanity being returned to him. And that realization made my stomach clench. What if Stark was diverting me on purpose? What if he was putting on an act when the two of us were alone so that I would be too involved with him to figure out the other poem or anything else—like a way to get out of the House of Night?

“Okay, clearly, your issues are weighing on you. And I think we can sum up your problems in one word,” Aphrodite said.

I met her eyes and we said the one word together. “Boys.”

She snorted, and I gave a kinda hysterical little giggle. “Let’s just hope someday all of this goes away and your biggest problem is boy drama.” She hesitated and then added, “I hope you’re not still thinking about Stark.”

I shrugged and took a massive bite of spaghetti.

“Look, I did some asking around, and the boy is wrong. Period, the end. Just forget about him.”