Redeemed

“And this is the perfect time for me to make my exit back to Thanatos,” Shaunee said. “Even though I kinda like kids. I used to babysit for friends of my parents who were so rich their playroom was like a Toys R Us store.”

Aphrodite shuddered delicately. “Why did your parents hate you so much?”

Detective Marx joined us. “It was a nice funeral. Shaunee, what you said was perfect.”

“Thanks,” she said, smiling at the tall detective.

“Hey, I’m going to take that ambulance back to St. John’s, and the other officers are going off duty. I’ll get my truck and come on back here for the night.”

“Shouldn’t you go home to your daughters? They gotta be missing you,” Shaunee said.

Marx smiled. “My daughters and my wife are right over there.” He pointed at the group of jump-roping girls.

“Of course they are,” Aphrodite muttered.

We ignored her. “Want to hitch a ride with us?” Marx asked Shaunee. “I can swing you by the Council Oak Tree on my way back to the station.”

Erik cleared his throat. “If it’s okay with you guys, I’ll take Shaunee back and hang out there for a while.”

I shrugged. “Okay by me.”

“Awesome!” Erik said, smiling at Shaunee. “And tell Aurox he doesn’t need to worry about relieving me until sunrise tomorrow. I know the Warriors have a lot on their plate here with all these humans.”

“I’ll tell him,” I said. And everyone except Aphrodite scattered.

“When did they become a thing?” Aphrodite asked.

“Right? I was wondering the same thing.”

“Guess he needed a backup plan since Shaylin turned gay.”

“Aphrodite, you do realize what you just said was full of stereotypes, don’t you?”

“Yes. It’s figurative language I hate, not English in general,” she said, rolling her eyes.

I frowned at her and shook my head. “Shaunee is an awesome person—and gorgeous. Erik could want to be with her for those reasons and not just because he needs to be with someone to make up for Shaylin.”

Aphrodite started to say something and then stopped herself, thought, and started again. “Actually, you might be right. Erik has changed since he was ‘our Erik,’” she air-quoted. “He’s turning out to be an okay guy. Just don’t ever tell him I said that.”

“I won’t.”

“Plus,” she said as she watched the two of them walk down the sidewalk together, “they’re reminding me of Olivia and the president in Scandal. I’m liking this whole black girl–white boy thing. It’s attractive. Not to mention how it broadens the typical white boy point of view. Goddess knows they need it.”

“That’s the most politically correct thing I’ve ever heard you say.”

“You are welcome, retard,” she said. “Go get some sleep. I’ll see you after sunset.” But before she could twitch away, Kramisha ran up to us, teetering on six-inch over-the-knee patent-leather boots, holding her hoodie up over her head so it wouldn’t mess up her flaming red wig. Even with the giant mirrored gold sunglasses she had on I could tell she was scowling.

“Your boots are crazy,” Aphrodite told her.

“Don’t start with me. I didn’t get my sleep.” Kramisha pulled out a piece of her purple notepaper from inside her giant tote and shoved it toward us.

“Oh, hell no!” Aphrodite took a step back. “That’s for Z.”

“Act like you’ve got some damn sense. It’s not like I’m out here ’cause I wa

I wanted to scream and drop it like it was a spider, but I was trying to be grown up and have some damn sense. So instead I sighed and took the paper, reading the poem aloud:

Inevitable as death

Wield the Old Magick

His sacrifice accepted.

“Um, late much?” Aphrodite said. “Even I can tell that haiku’s about Kalona, and he’s already dead.”

“Do. Not. Speak.” Kramisha held her finger up at Aphrodite. Obviously thinking she had Aphrodite under control, she turned to me. “I got a strong feelin’ that you gotta get that stone back from Frodo over there.”

“I will beat you with my brush if you call me Frodo again.”

“Shhh!” I told Aphrodite. Then faced Kramisha, “I can’t wield it until I’ve figured out how not to turn into another Neferet.”

“Neferet’s broke. You ain’t. Old Magick is the only chance we have at beatin’ a goddess. So use it or you won’t have to worry ’bout turnin’ into a crazy bitch because we’ll all be the slaves of a crazy bitch.” Kramisha snapped her head around to glare at Aphrodite. “I’m leavin’ before she makes some stupid-assed slave joke that’ll make me have to go all Jackie Brown on her.” And Kramisha tottered away.

“Who’s Jackie Brown?”

“I have no clue,” I said.

“Maybe we should ask Shaunee.”

I sighed. “Maybe we should focus on how I can use the stupid stone!”

“You want my opinion?”

I stifled another sigh and said, “Yes.”

“Wear the stone. You know what it’s capable of now. Keep a check on yourself. We’ll all keep a check on you—this time out in the open. If you start to snap, you’ll be tackled by a Herd of Nerds. Literally and figuratively.”

“I really don’t have any choice, do I?”

“Not anymore you don’t. Neferet figured out how to kill Kalona. She’s going to figure out how to break the protective spell. Then she’s going to come after us. Mostly you, but the fallout will include the rest of us.”

“You’re right. Give me back the stupid stone.”

Aphrodite reached under the neck of her shirt and pulled out a delicate silver chain, long enough that she didn’t have to unclasp it to take it off. From the chain dangled the deceptively i

“It always reminds me of a coconut Life Saver,” I said, reluctant to touch it. “That’s a pretty chain.”

“It’s platinum. Try not to fuck it up, because I want it back. The chain, not the stone. Stop stalling and take it.” She held it out so I had to do exactly that. “You know, your first step in this whole wield-the-Old-Magick thing might have something to do with you working on your confidence. Z, if you don’t believe you can do this, there’s no damn way you’re going to be able to do this.”

“I know.” I put the chain around my neck and tucked the stone under my T-shirt. Then I waited for something to happen.

Aphrodite snorted. “Seriously? You walked around with that thing for weeks before you went postal.”

“Well, something could happen!” I said defensively.

“Yeah, sure, and Oklahoma could elect a female Democrat to the Senate, hell could freeze over, pigs could fly, blah, blah. Relax. Stressing over it can’t help.”

“Okay, yeah, you’re right.”

“I love hearing that twice in one conversation.”

“Don’t get used to it.” Aphrodite rolled her eyes and started to twitch away. I called after her, “Hey, I’m sending a group text. We gotta have a serious brainstorming session. Everyone needs to meet in the professors’ dining hall for breakfast. Fifteen minutes after sunset.”

“Make it an hour and fifteen minutes after sunset and I’ll send the text for you.”

“Aphrodite, we really need to get a plan.”

“Zoey, we really need to get some sleep.”

I chewed my lip and thought about how tired she looked and how tired I felt. “Deal,” I said.

“Oh, and by the way, I know you’re using this whole end-of-the-world thing as an excuse to take over the vamps’ cafeteria, and I like it!” She waggled her eyebrows at me and then off she twitched.

Shaking my head and yawning, I started toward the girls’ dorms—and then made a sharp turn, backtracked, and took a giant circular detour when I noticed that some of the jump-roping kids were gawking at me like they were gearing up to pull my feathers.

“It’s bad when Kalona seems nicer than me,” I mumbled to myself.

“You’re usually nice, Zo.”

“Holy crap, Aurox! You can’t just sneak up behind me and scare me like that.”