Hunted

cheap wine for days,” Stevie Rae said. “All I can say about that is nasty.”

Aphrodite, the Twins, Damien, Jack, and I all stared at her. Finally I was able to say, “Stevie Rae. Please don’t eat any more people. It’s really dis-dis-disturbing,” I slurred.

“She sure won’t eat another wino. That last one tasted bad for real,&rdqu s a specimuo; So; Kramisha said.

“Kramisha! Don’t freak Zoey out. No one is eating anyone anymore. I was just usin’ that one time a long time ago as an example of why I know Heath’s being trashed made her trashed.” Stevie Rae patted my arm. “So don’t worry, ’kay? We’ll be fine here, and so will the street people. Don’t stress about us. You just get well.”

“Oh, yeah.” I rolled my eyes at Stevie Rae. “I’m not going to worry ’bout a thing.”

“Hey, you have my promise. No eating people while you’re gone.” Stevie Rae looked solemn and pretended to draw an X over her heart. “Cross my heart and hope to die.”

Hope to die! Jeesh, I really hoped that none of us would have to die. Again. And just like that I was able to think through the wine fog that had woozied my brain, and I knew what I had to do. On purpose I gave Aphrodite a tipsy smile. “Hey there, Afro! Why don’t you guys go on out to Darius? I gotta give Stevie Rae a phone number, then I’ll be right there.”

“Fine. We’ll meet you out there. And do not ever call me Afro again.” In a huff, Aphrodite led the Twins, Damien, Jack, and a whole passel of annoyed cats out of the room.

As they left the room, Erik came back in. Crossing his arms, he leaned silently against the wall and watched me. I used my drunkenness as an excuse to ignore him.

“Hey, could you manage to focus? Do you want me to add a number to my phone?” Stevie Rae said.

“No,” I said stubbornly. “I gotta write it down.”

“Okay, okay,” she said quickly, obviously humoring the drunk.

She was looking around for something to write on when Kramisha marched over to her and handed her a piece of paper and a pen. “Here’s something to write on.”

Looking utterly confused, Stevie Rae shook her head at me. “Z, are you sure you can’t just tell me the —”

“No!” I snapped.

“Okay, here, don’t have a big ol’ cow.” Stevie Rae slipped the paper and pen into my hands. I could feel Erik, who had come over to stand closer to my table, watching me. I gave him a boozy frown. “Don’t peek at what I write!”

“All right, all right!” He held his hands up in surrender and walked over to Kramisha. I could hear both of them talking about how goofy I acted when I was trashed.

It was hard as hell to concentrate through the ridiculous buzz Heath had passed on to me, but the pain the movement of my hands caused helped to sober me up. I scrawled down Sister Mary Angela’s cell phone number and then quickly wrote Plan B: be ready to move everyone to the abbey but don’t tell. No one knowing = Neferet not knowing where you are.

“Okay, here.” Stevie Rae tried to take the paper from my hand, but I held it tight, which made her look up at me in exasperation. I met her eyes, trying to look and sound as sober as possible as I whispered, “If I tell you to move, you move!”

Her gaze went down to the note I’d just written, and I saw her eyes widen. She looked quickly up at me and then nodded almost imperceptibly. Awash in relief, I closed my eyes and gave in to the dizziness.

“All done with her secret phone number note?” Erik said.

“Yep,” Stevie Rae teased back. “As soon as I put this in my phone, I’m gonna destroy the evidence.”

“Or it might self-destruct,” Heath slurred from over on the bed.

I opened my eyes and looked at him. “Hey!”

“What?” he said.

“Thanks again,” I said.

Heath shrugged. “No big deal.”

“Yeah, it is,” I said. “Stay safe, okay?”

“Does it matter?” he asked.

“Yeah, it does. But next time I really wish you wouldn’t drink.” I burped again and then grimaced when the movement hurt my chest.

“I’ll try to remember that,” he said, tipping the wine bottle back to his lips.

I sighed, told Stevie Rae, “Get me out of here,” and closed my eyes, clutching my purse and the two indecipherable poems to me.

“That’s your cue, Erik,” Stevie Rae said.

Erik was suddenly at my side. “This is going to hurt, and I’m sorry, but you really need to get back to the House of Night.”

“I know. I’m just gonna close my eyes and try to pretend I’m someplace else, okay?”

“Sounds like a good idea,” Erik said.

“I’ll be right here with you, too, Z,” Stevie Rae said.

“No. Stay with Heath,” I said quickly. “If you let anyone eat him, I’m gonna be majorly pissed. And I mean it.”

“I’m right here,” Kramisha said, “and I heard that. I ain’t eatin’ your boyfriend. He don’t taste good no more.”

“That’s not what Zo says!” Heath slurred and lifted his almost empty bottle like he was going to toast to us.

I ignored both of them and kept my eyes on Stevie Rae.

“Don’t worry. Heath’ll be fine. I’ll take care of him.” Stevie Rae hugged me and kissed my cheek. “Stay safe,” she said.

“Remember what I wrote,” I whispered. She nodded.

“Okay, let’s go,” I told Erik, and squidged my eyes shut tight.

Erik lifted me as gently as he could, but the pain that sheared through my body was so awful that I couldn’t even scream. I kept my eyes closed and tried to breathe in shallow little pants while Erik hurried down the tunnel with me in his arms, murmuring that everything would be fine…we’d be there soon…

When we got to the iron ladder that led up to the basement, Erik said, “I’m sorry, but this is going to hurt like hell. Just hang on, though, Z. It’s almost over.” Then he shifted his grip on me and lifted me to Darius, who was reaching down for me.

That was when I fainted.

Sadly, I came to when the freezing rain and an icy wind slapped against my face.

“Ssh, don’t struggle. You’ll only make it worse,” Darius said. He was holding me in his arms. Erik was walking at his side, watching me with worried eyes as we made our way toward a huge black Hummer that was idling in the parking lot. Jack was standing beside the open door to the wide backseat. I could see Aphrodite in the passenger’s seat and the Twins together with a whole buttload of cats in the far back area. Damien was sitting by the open door.

“Slide over and help me lay her down here,” Darius said.

They somehow transferred me to the backseat of the Hummer, pillowing my head on Damien’s lap. Unfortunately I didn’t pass out again. Before Darius closed the door, Erik squeezed my ankle.

“You have to get well, okay?” Erik said.

I barely managed a weak “Okay.”

When Darius closed the door and jumped into the driver’s seat and we took off, I made a conscious decision to avoid the whole Erik-Heath issue until my life was calmer and I could deal with the two of them. I admit that at that moment I left the two of them behind with a guilty sense of relief.

Most of the ride back was as dark and silent as ice-swept Tulsa had become. Darius had to battle the Hummer to keep it on the sheets of ice that masqueraded as streets, and Aphrodite only commented once in a while on a fallen limb in their way or a turn they should take. Damien, tense and speechless, held me securely on his lap, and the Twins were, for a change, not chattering with each other. I closed my eyes, trying to control the dizziness and the pain. A disturbingly familiar sense of numbness had started to creep slowly over my body again.