Before he ducked under the blanket, Darius spoke over his shoulder to Erik, who Id almost forgotten was still lingering in the room. Almost.
Erik, get some sleep. I will wake you for the second shift.
Sounds good. Ill be Erik hesitated.
Dallass room is just down the tunnel from here. Ill bet he wouldnt mind if you roomed with him, Stevie Rae said.
Okay, thats where Ill be, Erik said.
Darius nodded. Priestess, would you check the bandages on Stevie Raes wounds? If they need to be changed
If they need to be changed, I can do it, I interrupted. Hell, Id already helped shove an arrow through her chest. I could certainly change a Band-Aid without freaking.
Well, if you need me, simply have a fledgling
The warriors sentence was cut off as Aphrodite jerked hard enough on his hand to pull him from the room. Then she stuck her head back through the doorway. Good night. Dont bother us. And she disappeared.
Better him than me, I heard Erik mutter as he watched the blanket swing back into place. I made no attempt to hide my smile. I was glad Erik wasnt still interested in Aphrodite. Erik met my eyes. And slowly he smiled, too.
CHAPTER 7
No, you two go on. Catch up with the others. Im just gonna sleep, Stevie Rae said as she curled onto her side, moving gingerly.
There was a grumpy mee-uf-ow and a chubby little orange ball of fur padded into the room and jumped up on Stevie Raes bed.
Nala! Stevie Rae scratched the top of my cats head. Hey, Ive missed you.
Nala sneezed in Stevie Raes face and then made three rotations on the pillow beside her head, lay down, and started up her purr engine. Stevie Rae and I grinned at each other.
OkaySPECIAL NOTE: Duchess, Jacks yellow Lab, is an anomaly. Stark brought her with him when he transferred to our school from the Chicago House of Night. Then he died. Jack adopted her. Then he un-died, but was obviously not himself, cause the first thing he did was shoot an arrow through Stevie Rae. Hence the fact Duchess is still with Jack. Plus I think the kids really getting attached to her.
Anyway, when the group of us escaped from the House of Night, our cats, plus Duchess, followed us. So seeing Nala making herself comfortable added a comfy, homelike touch to Stevie Raes room for Stevie Rae and me.
You and Erik go on. Get a shower or whatever, Stevie Rae repeated sleepily as she cuddled with Nala. Nal and Ill take a little nap. Oh, you can catch the rest of them if you go out, turn left, and then keep circling to your right. The entrance to the depot is by the room where we keep the fridges.
Hey, Darius said I should check your bandages, I reminded her.
Later, she yawned massively. Theyre fine.
Okay, if you say so. I tried not to show the relief I felt. No way was I ever going to be anything resembling a nurse. Get some sleep. Ill be back in a little while, I said. I swear she was out before Erik and I ducked through the checkered blanket.
We turned to our left and walked without saying anything for a little way. The tunnels were less creepy than when Id been down here before, but that didnt make them unclaustrophobic and bright and cheery. Every few yards there were lanterns staked with what looked like railroad spikes into the cement walls at about eye level, but the dampness permeated everything. We hadnt gone far when something caught at the corner of my eyes and I slowed down, peering into the heavy shadows between the lanterns.
What is it? Erik asked softly.
My stomach tightened with fear. I dont know, I My words broke off as something exploded out of the darkness at me. Id opened my mouth to shriek, imagining feral red fledglings or, worse, the horror of the Raven Mockers. But Eriks arm went around me and he pulled me out of the way of half a dozen bats, who fluttered past.
Theyre as scared of you as you are of them, he said, taking his arm from around me as soon as the creatures were past us.
I shuddered, trying to force my heart to beat regularly again. Okay, no possible way could they be as scared of me as I am of them. Eesh, bats are rats with wings.
He chuckled as we started walking again. I thought pigeons were rats with wings.
Bat, pigeons, ravensI dont care about distinctions right now. Any fluttery, flappy thing is not cool with me.
I see your point, he said, smiling at me. His smile didnt do much to help my heartbeat slow down, and as we kept walking, I swear I could still feel the warmth of his arm around my shoulders. In a few more feet we came to a section of the tunnel that was as amazing as it was surprising. Erik and I stopped and stared.
Wow, that is majorly cool, I said.
Yeah, wow, Erik agreed with me. This must be the work of that Gerarty girl. Didnt Stevie Rae introduce her as being an artist whos been decorating the tunnels?
Yeah, but I didnt expect anything like this. Forgetting about the bats, I traced my hand over the beautifully complex pattern of flowers and hearts and birds and all sorts of swirls, all entwined to make a brightly painted mosaic that seemed to breathe life and magic into this little section of the dreary, claustrophobic walls.
People, humans and vamps, would pay a fortune for art like this. Erik didnt add, if the world could ever know about the red fledglings and vamps, but the thought hung unspoken in the air between us.
Hopefully, people will, I said. It would be nice if the red fledglings could become known to the rest of the world. Plus, I added to myself, if they were out in the open, maybe my lingering questions about their powers and their tendencies could be more easily resolved. Anyway, I think vampyres and humans should have better relationships, I added.
Like you and your human boyfriend? He asked the question quietly, with no hint of sarcasm.
I met his gaze steadily. Im not with Heath anymore.
Are you sure?
Im sure, I said.
Okay. Good. That was all he said, and we started walking again, silent and lost in our own thoughts.
Not long after that the tunnel curved slightly to the right, which was the direction we were supposed to follow, but on our left there was an arched exit covered with another blanket. This one was black fake velvet decorated with a tacky picture of Elvis in a white jumpsuit.
Must be Dallass room, I guessed.
Erik hesitated only a moment, then he brushed aside the blanket and we peeked in. It wasnt very big, and Dallas didnt have a bed, just a couple of mattresses piled on top of each other on the floor, but he did have a bright red comforter and matching red pillowcases (there was a big lump under the comforter, which I assumed was the sleeping Dallas), a table that held a bunch of stuff that the light wasnt good enough for me to see, and a couple of black beanbag chairs. On the curved wall over the bed was a poster ofI squinted at it, trying to see
Jessica Alba in SinCity. The kid has excellent taste. Shes one hot vamp actress, Erik said quietly so as not to wake Dallas.
I frowned at him and pulled the Elvis blanket door closed.
What? Its not in my bedroom, he said.
Lets just catch up with everyone else, I said, and started walking again.
Hey, he said after a few minutes of dead air. I owe you a big thanks.
Me? For what? I looked over at him.
He met my eyes. For saving me from being left up there in the middle of that mess.
I didnt save you from that. You came along with us of your own free will.
He shook his head. No, Im pretty sure you saved me because without you I dont think I would have had any free will.
He stopped and touched my arm, gently turning me so that I faced him. I looked up into his brilliant blue eyes, which were framed by his adult vampyre Mark, an intricate pattern that gave the impression of a mask, making his totally gorgeous Clark KentSuperman look go all Zorro-like and insanely hot. But Erik was more than just supergorgeous. Erik was talented and an honestly nice guy. I hated that we had broken up. I hated that Id caused us to break up. In spite of everything that had happened, I wanted to be his girlfriend again. I wanted him to trust me again. I missed him so darn much
I really miss you! I realized Id blurted the words Id been thinking when his eyes widened and his sexy lips curved up.
Im right here.
I could feel my face flush hot all the way from my neck up and I knew Id turned a bright, unattractive red. Well, you just being here isnt what I mean, I said lamely.
His smile widened. Dont you want to know how you saved me?
Yeah, of course. I wished I could fan my face so that some of the beet color might go away.
You saved me because, instead of being hypnotized by the power of Kalona, I was thinking about you.
You were?
Do you know how amazing you were when you cast that circle?
I shook my head, caught by the brightness in his blue eyes. I didnt want to breathe. I didnt want to do anything that might spoil what was happening between us.
You were incrediblebeautiful and powerful and confident. You were all I could think of.
I cut your hand was all I could make my mouth say.
You had to. It was part of the ritual. He lifted his hand and turned it palm up so that I could see the thin ribbon that sliced down the meaty pad up under his thumb.
I trailed a finger lightly along the pink line. I hated to hurt you.
He took my hand in his and turned it over so that the sapphire-colored tattoos that covered my palms were visible. Then, much as I had just done, he lightly traced his finger across my skin. I shivered, but didnt pull away.
I didnt feel any pain when you cut me. All I felt was you. The heat of your body. The way you smell. The way you feel in my arms. Thats why that creature didnt affect me. Thats why I didnt believe Neferet. You saved me, Zoey.
Even after all thats happened between us, you can say that? My eyes were filling with tears, and I had to blink fast to keep them from spilling over.
I watched as Erik took a deep breath. He looked like he was a diver getting ready to jump off a high, dangerous cliff. Then, in one rush, he said, I love you, Z. All thats happened between us hasnt changed that, even when I wanted it to. He cupped my face in his hands. I couldnt be fooled by Neferet or hypnotized by Kalona because Im already a fool for you, hypnotized by what I feel for you. I still want to be with you, Zoey, if youll just say yes.
Yes, I whispered without one instant of hesitation.
He bent and his lips met mine. I opened my mouth and accepted his familiar kiss. His taste was the same; his touch was the same. I slid my arms up and around his broad shoulders and pressed myself against him, hardly able to believe that hed forgiven methat he still wanted mestill loved me.
Zoey, he murmured against my lips. Ive missed you, too.
Then he kissed me again, and I swear he made me dizzy. It was different than kissing him beforebefore hed become a full vampyrebefore Id lost my virginity to another man. Now it was like he knew a secret, but I was in on it. I felt his moan more than I heard it, and then I also felt the hard coolness of the wall of the tunnel against my back as he turned me in his arms and trapped me there. One of his hands, low on my back, was firmly pressing me into him. The other I felt sliding down the side of my body, skimming my ceremonial dress and traveling the back of my thigh until he found the hem, then his fingers were finding their way up and under it, warm against the coolness of my naked flesh.
Naked flesh?
Backed against the wall of a tunnel?
Being groped in the dark?
And the worst thought of all hit me: Did Erik think because Id had sex (once!) that now it was open season on nailing Zoey? Ah, crap!
I wasnt going to do this. Not here. Not like this. Hell, I didnt even know if I was ready to do it again at all. The one and only time Id had sex had ended disastrously and had been the biggest mistake of my life. It had definitely not turned me into some kind of nympho ho!
I pushed against Eriks chest and pulled my mouth from his. He didnt seem to mind. Actually, he hardly seemed to notice. He just kept grinding against me and moved his lips to my neck.
Erik, please stop, I said breathlessly.
Umm, you taste so good.
He sounded so sexy and turned-on that for a moment I was confused about what I really wanted. I mean, I did want to be with him again, and he was totally hot and familiar and
I had just begun to relax into him when I glimpsed something over his shoulder. Fear stabbed me as I realized the something had eyes glowing red from a deep, wavering sea of blackness that seemed to pool and writhe in the air like a ghost made of nothing but darkness.
Erik! Stop. Now. I shoved hard against his chest and he stumbled back half a step. My heart beating wildly, I moved quickly so that I could face whatever was there behind him. There were no red eyes glowing at me, but I swear I saw an inky darkness within the black of shadow. As I blinked and focused my eyes, the weirdness disappeared, leaving nothing but Erik and me and a dark, silent tunnel.
Suddenly, from the opposite direction, I heard the click of shoes against concrete and I drew in a deep breath, readying myself to call whatever element Id need to combat this new faceless threat, when Kramisha stepped calmly out of the shadows. She gave Erik a long, considering look and said, Boyyyy, you is workin it here in the tunnel? Damn! You got some game.
Erik turned to her as he tucked me under his arm. I didnt need to look up at him to know that he had an easy smile on his face. Erik was a seriously good actor. The face he was showing Kramisha was under control, with just the right amount of sexy, got-caught-in-the-act to it.
Hey there, Kramisha, he said smoothly.
On the other hand you have me. I could barely stand, let alone speak. I knew my face was beet red and my lips looked bruised and damp. Hell, I probably looked bruised and damp. Kramisha, did you see anything over there in the tunnel? I jerked my chin in the direction of the shadows behind us and managed to sound only semi-porn star and breathless.