“No, I don’t. Or at least I don’t right now. Weird that I haven’t even thought about it.”
Stark found his voice again. “Where do you sleep?”
“I’m dead. I don’t sleep. And time passes differently here than when you’re alive,” she said. “Oh, there are a lot of dogs here. I’m surprised there are none around right now. I never had a dog. My dad didn’t care about them and my mother said that they were disgusting and dirty, but let me tell you—I like them. There’s this one giant German shepherd that looks like a grizzly. He and I hang out a lot.” Her grin widened. “Hey, how’s Nala?”
Kevin smiled down at her. “She’s great! She misses you.”
Aphrodite snorted. “No, she doesn’t. Cats know better. They’re here too, but I expected that. It’s the dogs that surprised me.” She looked at Stark. “Hey, you need a dog. Seriously.”
Stark frowned at her. “I’m a vampyre. If a cat chooses me that’d be okay, but a dog?” He moved his shoulders. “I’ve never heard of a dog at a House of Night.”
Kevin laughed. “I guess I should’ve told you. Your counterpart in the world we’re heading to has a dog. A big yellow lab named Duchess. She’s cool.”
“At the House of Night?”
“Definitely,” Kevin said.
“Poor dog. I’ll bet the cats are pissed about that,” said Aphrodite.
Kevin shrugged. “I think Duchess has a lot of patience. Every time I saw her she seemed like a very happy girl.” He gave Stark a wry look. “And I think Aphrodite’s right. Having a dog would be good for you.”
“Of course I’m right,” Aphrodite said. “Being dead definitely doesn’t change that. Oh, speaking of dead—I’ve spent some time with your sister.”
“Zoey? Really? How is she?”
“She’s good. She likes to hang out with the horses.”
Stark said, “There are horses here too?”
“Yep. Try to keep up. There are lots of animals here. Anyway, yeah, I like her.”
“In the world I’m heading to, you and Z are really good friends,” Kevin said.
Aphrodite shot Stark a quick look before saying, “And in that world Zoey and Stark are a thing, right? Like an Oathbound Warrior thing ?”
“Yeah, that’s right,” Kevin said, also giving Stark a look.
“What?” Stark said. “It’s not like I didn’t already know that. Plus, I never met our Zoey, the one that’s dead and over here. The only one I know is the one from the Other World, and it’s not like I’m in love with her or anything.”
“Then why did you have to come with me?” Kevin asked—sick of how out of touch with his feelings he’d begun to realize this Stark truly was.
Stark blurted, “To make up for helping Neferet! Shit, man, how many times do I have to say that?”
His angry words echoed around them. Kevin could actually see them. They were dark, inky, and they lifted until they came to the verdant canopy where they were absorbed.
“That’s what happens to lies,” Aphrodite said. “They don’t last here.”
“They’re not …” Stark sighed. “Never mind.”
Aphrodite paused and turned to Stark. “You and I definitely weren’t friends, but I don’t care about that anymore. I can see what’s wrong with you, and because I know you can’t, I’m going to tell you about it—once. What you do with it afterward is up to you.”
Stark sighed again. “Okay. What?”
“You’ll never be happy if you can’t accept your feelings—and that means the good ones along with the bad. You are seriously the poster boy for toxic young male bullshit. And I say that with love because you can change it. Here’s the truth—it is not good for men to deny their feelings. Crying isn’t weakness—it’s healing. Asking for help doesn’t make you a pussy—it makes you mature. Until you deal with all that negativity inside you—all that anger and regret and jealousy—you’re going to be like this. A guy who has potential but is kinda douchey.” She flipped back her hair. “It’s your choice. You need to fix yourself. No one can do that for you. And, giant newsflash—it’s no woman’s responsibility to make you a better man. Do that on your own. Period. The end.”
Aphrodite began walking again, and this time she moved more quickly. Kevin and Stark scrambled to keep up with her.
“Hey, I don’t mean to rush you guys, but like I said, time passes differently here, and I just got a major feeling that you two need to be in Tulsa sooner rather than later.”
“Can you tell what’s going on there?” Kevin asked.
“No. I have zero clue. But I know you need to be there. I also know I need to have you promise me something—both of you. Especially you, Kevin.”
“Okay, yeah, we’re listening,” said Kevin.
“I said this before, but it won’t leave my mind, which means I need to say more about it. Do not use Old Magick. I know it’s tempting, especially for you,” she smiled at Kevin. “You’re unusually powerful. It’d be easy for you to give the sprites a call, make a quick deal with them, and then go on about your business. But Old Magick will change you if you keep using it.”
Stark lifted his hands and let them fall to his sides. “Yeah, you already said that. I think we need to go and—”
“James Stark, there is more going on here than you can understand. There is a reason Old Magick has mostly been confined to Skye and is under the watchful eye of a queen who isn’t fully vampyre or immortal. It doesn’t belong out in the world. Do you understand?”
Kevin spoke first. “Not entirely, but I think that’s part of the issue with Old Magick. I won’t use it though. I swear. I lost you because of it. I want nothing to do with those sprites.”
Aphrodite looked at Stark with one brow arched. “Well?”
“Yeah, whatever. I get it. Old Magick is dangerous. I won’t use it. Promise.”
“Not a particularly moving promise, but you have pledged your word in Nyx’s Grove. And that pledge is binding.” Around Aphrodite
