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CHAPTER EIGHT

  Zoey

  My stomach clenched and I felt like I was gonna puke. "Okay, I'm coming," I told Damien. "But I'd appreciate it if you would come with me. " When he nodded somberly I looked at Stevie Rae and Aphrodite. "You guys, too. 'Kay?"

  "'Course we'll come with you," Stevie Rae said.

  For once Aphrodite didn't gripe about Stevie Rae answering for her. She just nodded and said, "I'm in. " I was turning to look for Stark when he was suddenly there beside me. His hand trailed down my arm until our fingers met and threaded together.

  "Is it about your mom?"

  I didn't trust my voice, so I just nodded.

  "Your momma? I thought Damien said your grandma's here," Stevie Rae said.

  "He did. " Aphrodite spoke before Damien could. She was studying me with a look that made her appear older (and nicer) than she was. "Is it about your mom?" she asked.

  Stark glanced at me and I gave another little nod. Then he said, "Zoey's mom's dead. "

  "Oh, no!" Damien said, tears instantly coming to his eyes.

  "Don't, okay?" I said quickly. "Let's not do this here. I don't want everyone watching me. " Damien pressed his lips together, blinked hard, and nodded.

  "Come on, Z. Let's all go see your grandmomma. " Stevie Rae went to my other side and put her arm through mine. Aphrodite grabbed Damien's hand, and they followed us from the arena.

  All the way there I tried to get myself ready for what Grandma would tell me. I suppose I'd been trying to get myself ready to hear what Grandma would tell me ever since I woke up from my dream visit to the Otherworld where I witnessed Nyx welcoming my mom's spirit there. The truth that I realized as I entered the main school building and approached the front lounge was that I'd never be ready to hear this news.

  Just before we walked through the final set of doors Stark squeezed my hand. "I'm right here, and I love you. "

  "I love you, too, Z," Stevie Rae said.

  "Me, too," Damien said and then he sobbed just a little.

  "You can borrow my two-carat diamond stud earrings," Aphrodite said.

  I stopped and looked back at her. "Huh?"

  She shrugged. "That's as close to a declaration of love as you're gonna get from me. " I heard Stevie Rae expel a huge sigh and Damien's forehead squidged as he looked disbelievingly at her.

  But I simply said, "Thanks. I'll take you up on it," which made Aphrodite frown and mumble, "Goddess, I hate being nice. " I untangled myself from Stevie Rae and Stark and pushed open the double doors. Grandma was alone in the room and sitting in a wide leather chair. Damien had been right; Grandma had been crying. She looked old and very, very sad. As soon as she saw me she stood up. We met in the middle of the room and clung to each other. When she finally stopped hugging me, Grandma stepped back just far enough to look into my face. She kept her hands on my shoulders. They felt warm and solid and familiar, and somehow that touch made the knot in my stomach bearable.

  "Mom's dead. " I had to say it before she did.

  Grandma didn't look surprised that I'd known. She just nodded and said, "Yes, u-we-tsi-a-ge-ya. Your mother is dead. Did her spirit come to you?"

  "In a way. Last night, while I was asleep, Nyx showed me Mom entering the Otherworld. " I felt the shudder that passed through Grandma's body in her hands. She closed her eyes and swayed. For a second I was afraid she was going to faint, and I covered her hands with mine. "Spirit, come to me! Help Grandma!" The element I have the strongest connection with responded immediately. I felt it swirl through me and into Grandma, who gasped and stopped swaying, but she didn't open her eyes.

  "Air, come to me. Please surround Grandma Redbird and let her breathe in strength. " Damien stepped up to my side and touched Grandma's arm once, softly, as a sweet, impossible breeze stirred around us.

  "Fire, come to me. Please warm Zoey's grandma so that even though she's sad, she'll not be cold. " I blinked in surprise as Shaunee joined Damien. She, too, touched Grandma for a second, then she smiled through wet eyes and said to me,

  "Kramisha told us you needed us. "

  "Water, come to me. Wash through Z's grandma and please take some of her sadness with you. " Erin took her place beside Shaunee, touching Grandma's back. Then, just like her Twin, she smiled through tears at me. "Yeah, we didn't even have to read her poem. She just told us to get here. "

  Grandma's eyes were still closed, but I saw her lips tilt up ever so slightly.

  "My poem was good, though. " Kramisha's voice came from somewhere behind me.

  Through Aphrodite's snort, Stevie Rae said, "Earth, please come to me. " She went to my other side, and slid her arm around Grandma. "Let Z's g-ma borrow some of your power so that she can be okay again real soon. "

  Grandma drew three long deep breaths. As she let the last one out, she opened her eyes and, even though there was still sadness in them, her face had lost the scary, gaunt old person look it had when I'd first seen her. "Tell them what I do, u-we-tsi-a-ge-ya. " I wasn't sure what Grandma was up to, but I nodded. I knew she'd make me understand, and I was right. She went to each of my four friends.

  Starting with Damien, she touched his face and said, "Wa-do, Inole. You have strengthened me. " As she moved to Shaunee I explained to my friends, "Grandma is thanking you by naming you the Cherokee word for each of your elements. "

  "Wa-do, Egela. You have strengthened me. " Grandma touched Shaunee's cheek and went to Erin. "Wa-do, Ama. You have strengthened me. " Last, she touched Stevie Rae's cheek, still wet from tears. "Wa-do, Elohine. You have strengthened me. "

  "Thank you, Grandma Redbird," each of the four of them murmured.

  "Gv-li-e-li-ga," Grandma said, repeating in English. "Thank you. " She looked at me. "I can bear to tell it now. " She stood in front of me and took both of my hands in hers. "Your mother was killed at my lavender farm. "

  "What?" I felt the shock of it move through me. "I don't understand. How? Why?"

  "The sheriff is saying it was a robbery, and that she just got in the way. He says from what they took, my computer and television and my cameras, and the random violence of the crime, that they were probably addicts stealing so they would have money for drugs. " Grandma squeezed my hands. "She'd left him, Zoeybird, and come to me. I was at a powwow. I was not there for her. " Grandma's voice stayed steady, but tears welled and then spilled from her eyes.

  "No, Grandma, don't blame yourself. It wasn't your fault, and if you'd been there I would have lost both of you-and I couldn't stand that!"

  "I know, u-we-tsi-a-ge-ya, but the death of a child, even one that has been lost to her parent, is a heavy burden. "

  "Was it-did she-did Mom suffer?" My voice was barely above a whisper.

  "No. She died quickly. " Grandma spoke without hesitation, but I thought I saw something pass through her eyes.

  "You found her?"

  Grandma nodded, tears spilling more and more quickly down her cheeks. "I did. She was in the field just outside the house. She was laying there and she looked so peaceful that at first I believed she was sleeping. " Grandma's voice caught on a sob. "She was not sleeping. " I held tight to Grandma's hands and spoke the words I knew she needed to hear. "She's happy, Grandma. I saw her. Nyx took the sadness from her. She's waiting for us in the Otherworld, and she has the Goddess's blessing. "

  "Wa-do, u-we-tsi-a-ge-ya. You give me strength," Grandma whispered to me as she hugged me again.

  "Grandma," I said against her cheek. "Please stay with me, at least for a little while. "

  "I cannot, u-we-tsi-a-ge-ya. " She stepped back, but kept hold of my hand. "You know I will follow our people's tradition and mourn for seven full days, and this is not the right place for me to mourn. "

  "We're not stayin' here, Grandma," Stevie Rae said, wiping her face with her sleeve. "Zoey and our whole group have moved to the tunnels under the Tulsa Depot. I'm their official High Priestess, and I'd really like it if you'd come stay wit
h us-for seven days or seven months-for as long as you want. "

  Grandma smiled at Stevie Rae. "That is a generous offer, Elohine, but your depot is not the right place for me to mourn, either. " Grandma met my eyes and I knew what she was going to say before she spoke. "I must be on my land, at the farm. I must spend the next week eating and sleeping very little. I must focus on cleansing my home and my land of this horrible deed. "

  "All by yourself, Grandma?" Stark was there beside me, a warm, strong presence. "Is that safe after what happened?"

  "Tsi-ta-ga-a-sh-ya, do not let my looks deceive you. " She called Stark rooster, her pet name for him. "I am many things, and not one of them is a helpless old woman. "

  "I'd never think you were helpless," Stark amended. "But maybe it's not a good idea for you to be alone. "

  "Yeah, Grandma. Stark has a point," I said.

  "U-we-tsi-a-ge-ya, I must cleanse my home, my land, and myself as I mourn. I cannot do that unless I am at peace with the land, and I will not stay inside the house until it is thoroughly cleansed and the seven days have past. I will be camping in my backyard, in the meadow by the stream," Grandma smiled at Stark, Stevie Rae, and the rest of my friends. "I do not believe you would fare so well exposed to the sunlight for that time. "

  "Well, Grandma, I-" I began, but she stopped me.

  "This I must do myself, u-we-tsi-a-ge-ya. I do have something to ask of you, though. "

  "Anything," I said.

  "In seven days will you come to the farm with your friends? Will you cast a circle and perform a cleansing ritual of your own?"

  "I will. " I nodded, and my gaze took in the friends who surrounded me.

  "We will," Stevie Rae said. Her words were echoed by the kids who stood beside and around me.

  "Then that is how it shal be," Grandma said firmly. "The Cherokee tradition of mourning and cleansing will be coupled with vampyre ritual. It is good that it is so, as my family has expanded to include so many vampyres and fledglings. " Her eyes shifted around my group. "I ask one more thing. That each of you think bright thoughts of me, and of Zoey's mother, for the next seven days. It does not matter that Linda faltered in life. What matters is that she is remembered with love and kind thoughts. "

  "We will," and "Okay, Grandma," sounded around me.

  "I will go now, u-we-tsi-a-ge-ya. Sunrise is not far away, and I would greet the dawn on my land. " Keeping my hand in hers, Grandma and I walked to the door. As she passed my friends, each of them touched her and said "Good-bye, Grandma," which had her smiling through her tears.

  At the doorway, we had a little bubble of privacy and I hugged her again, saying, "I understand why you have to, but I really wish you wouldn't go. "

  "I know, but in seven days-"

  The door was pulled open and Neferet was suddenly there, looking somber and deceptively beautiful. "Sylvia, I have heard of your loss. Please accept my sincere sorrow that it was your daughter who was killed. "

  Grandma had tensed at the sound of Neferet's voice and stepped out of my embrace. She drew a deep breath and met the vampyre's gaze.

  "I accept your sorrow, Neferet. I do feel the sincerity in it. "

  "Is there anything the House of Night can do for you? Is there anything you need?"

  "The elements have already strengthened me, and the Goddess has welcomed my daughter to the Otherworld. " Neferet nodded. "Zoey and her friends are kind, and the Goddess is generous. "

  "I don't believe it was kindness or generosity that was behind the actions of Zoey and her friends or the Goddess. I believe it was love. Do you not think so, High Priestess?"

  Neferet paused as if she was actually considering Grandma's question, then she said, "What I think is that you could be right. "

  "Yes, I could be. And there is one thing I need from the House of Night. "

  "We would be honored to aid a Wise Woman in a time of need," Neferet said.

  "Thank you. I would ask that Zoey and her circle be allowed to come to my land in seven days to perform a cleansing ritual. That would complete my mourning and wash my home free of any lingering evil. "

  I saw something pass within Neferet's gaze-something that, for just a moment, might have been fear. But when she spoke her expression and her voice mirrored only polite concern. "Of course. I freely give permission for this ritual. "

  "Thank you, Neferet," Grandma said, and then she hugged me one more time and kissed me softly. "In seven days, u-we-tsi-a-ge-ya. I will see you again then. "

  I blinked fast, holding back my tears. I didn't want Grandma's last view of me to be about snot and bawling. "Seven days. I love you, Grandma.

  Don't ever forget that. "

  "I could no more forget that than I could forget to breathe. I love you, too, daughter. " Then Grandma turned and walked away. I stood in the doorway, watching her straight, strong back until the night blanketed her from me.

  "Come on, Z. " Stark slid his arm around my shoulders. "I think we've all had enough school for one day. Let's go home. "

  "Yeah, Z. Let's go home," Stevie Rae said.

  I was nodding, getting ready to tell them okay when I felt a sudden warmth building in my chest. At first it confused me. I lifted my hand to rub the spot and touched the hard circle that had begun radiating heat.

  And then Aurox stepped into view. He was with Dragon Lankford.

  "Zoey, I heard the news about your mother. I am sorry," Dragon said.

  "Th-thank you," I muttered. I didn't look at Aurox. I remembered Lenobia's words, that I needed to keep a poker face around him, but I felt too raw, too wounded to do anything except blurt at Stark, "I want to go home, but first I need a minute to myself. " Before he could even say okay, I moved out of his encircling arm and pushed past Dragon and Aurox.

  "Zoey?" Stark called after me. "Where are you-"

  "I'll just be by the fountain that's in the courtyard next to the parking lot," I said over my shoulder to him. I could see he was frowning worriedly at me, but I couldn't help it. I needed to Get Out Of There. "Come get me when the bus is loaded and ready to go. Okay?" I didn't wait for his reply. I put my head down and hurried along the sidewalk that ran beside the main school building. Almost jogging I turned right and went straight to the iron bench that was beneath one of the circle of trees that framed the fountain and the little garden-like area the fledglings called the professors' courtyard because it sat next to the part of the school that housed them. I knew if someone was looking out of the large, ornate windows I'd be seen, but I also knew all of the professors should be finishing up sixth hour in their classrooms, which meant it was the one place on campus at this particular time that I could pretty much count on being alone.

  So I sat there, in the shadow of a big elm, trying to control my thoughts. Aurox's presence messed with my mind, and I didn't know why. Right now, right at this second, I don't even care. Mom is dead. Whatever Neferet and Evil have planned for me, they can just back the hell off.

  Everyone can just back the hell off. My thoughts felt mean and tough, but the tear that was sliding down my face told a different story.

  Mom isn't in the world anymore. She's not at home waiting on the step-loser and puttering around the kitchen. I can't call and have her get mad at me and then lecture me for being a crappy daughter. It was a weird feeling, being momless. I mean, she and I hadn't been close for more than three years, but still it'd always been in the back of my mind that someday she'd come to her senses, leave that idiot she'd screwed up and married, and go back to being Mama.

  "She had left him," I said. "I need to remember that. " My voice hitched, but I cleared my throat and spoke out loud again to the night. "Mama, I'm sorry we didn't get to say good-bye. I love you. I always have. I always will. " Then I put my face in my hands, gave in to the terrible storm of sadness that had been building inside me, and I began to sob.

  Aurox

  The fledgling called Zoey-the one with the odd t
attoos that covered not just her face, but her shoulders, hands, and as Neferet had told him, some parts of the rest of her body, too-made him feel strange.

  Neferet had said Zoey was her enemy. That made Zoey his enemy as well. She who was his mistress's enemy was a danger-that danger must be why he felt an oddness when she was near. Aurox noted the direction Zoey went as she hurried away. He should note everything about her. Zoey was dangerous.

  "Neferet, I need to speak with you regarding the new classes that are being taught in Lenobia's arena," Dragon Lankford was saying.

  Neferet's cold green eyes turned to Dragon. "It was decided by the High Council that these fledglings stay, at least for the time being. "

  "I understand that, but-"

  "But would you rather have the Raven Mocker in your class?" Neferet snapped.

  "Rephaim isn't a Raven Mocker anymore. " The Red High Priestess spoke up quickly in her mate's defense.

  "And yet he calls those creatures, those Raven Mockers, brother," Aurox said.

  "Indeed, Aurox, that is a relevant observation," Neferet said without looking at him. "As you are Nyx's gift to me I think it is important that we listen to your observations. "

  "What in the Sam Hill is the point? They are his brothers. He's not tryin' to hide that. " Shaking her head, the Red High Priestess met his eyes.

  Aurox saw sadness and anger there, though the emotions weren't strong enough for him to feel them-for him to draw power from them. "You shouldn't have killed that Raven Mocker. He wasn't attacking anyone. "

  "You think we should wait for the creatures to slaughter another one of us before we move against them?" Dragon Lankford said.

  The Sword Master's anger was more tangible and Aurox absorbed some of the strength of it. He felt it boil through his blood-pulsing-feeding

  -changing.

  "Aurox, you are not needed here. You may go on about your duties. Begin here at the main school building and move around inside the perimeter of the campus. Patrol the grounds. Be quite certain none of the Raven Mockers return. " His mistress glanced at the Red High Priestess and added,

  "My command is to attack only those who threaten you or the school. "

  "Yes, Priestess. " He bowed to her and then backed from the doorway and walked out into the night as he heard the Red High Priestess still defending her mate. She, too, is an enemy, though my mistress says of a different kind-a kind that may be used.

  Aurox contemplated the intricacies of those who opposed Neferet. She'd explained to him that someday soon all of these fledglings and vampyres would either submit to her will, or be destroyed. His mistress looked forward to that day. Aurox looked forward to that day, too.

  He stepped off the sidewalk, moving to his right toward the edge of the main school building. Aurox kept away from the flickering gaslights.

  Instinctively he preferred the deeper shadows and darker corners. His senses were always alert, always searching. So it was strange that the tissue startled him. It was a simple rectangle of white. It floated on the wind, fluttering before him almost like a bird. He stopped and reached out, plucking it from the night.

  So strange, he thought, a floating paper tissue. Without conscious thought, he tucked it into the pocket of his jeans. Shrugging off the odd, foreboding feeling, he kept walking.

  Her emotions hit him after he'd taken two more steps.

  Sadness-deep, pressing grief. And guilt. There was guilt there in her feelings, too.

  Aurox knew it was the young fledgling High Priestess-the Zoey Redbird. He told himself he approached her only because it was wise to observe one's enemy. But as he got closer-as her feelings flooded him-something unexpected happened within him. Instead of absorbing her emotions and feeding off them, Aurox absorbed them and felt.

  He didn't change. He didn't begin to morph into the creature of great power.

  Instead, Aurox felt.

  Zoey's grief drew him forward, and as he stood in the shadows that surrounded her and watched her sob, her emotion flowed into him, gathered and pooled in a small, quiet, hidden place deep inside his spirit. As Aurox absorbed Zoey's sadness and guilt, loneliness and despair, something stirred within him in response.

  It was utterly unexpected and completely unacceptable, but Aurox wanted to comfort Zoey Redbird. The impulse was so foreign to him that it shocked him into moving instinctively, as if his subconscious directed his body.

  He stepped out of the darkness at the same moment she moved, pressing the palm of her hand to a place in the middle of her breast. She blinked, obviously trying to see through her tears, and her eyes found him. Her body straightened and she looked on the verge of bolting.

  "No, you need not leave," he heard himself saying.

  "What do you want?" she said, and then she hiccuped another small sob.

  "Nothing. I was passing. You were weeping. I heard. "

  "I want to be alone," she said, wiping at her face with the back of her hand and sniffling.

  Aurox did not realize what he did next until he, along with the girl, were both looking at his hand and the tissue he'd pulled from his pocket to offer to her.

  "Then I will leave you, but you need this," he said, sounding stiff and foreign to his own ears. "Your face is very wet. " She stared at the tissue for a moment more before taking it, then she looked up at him. "I snot when I cry. " He felt his head nod. "Yes, you do. "

  She blew her nose and wiped her face. "Thanks. I never have a Kleenex when I need one. "

  "I know," he said. Then he felt his face flush hot and his body go cold because there was absolutely no reason why he should say such a thing. He had no reason to talk to this fledgling enemy at all.

  She was staring at him again, with an odd expression on her face. "What did you say?"

  "That I must go. " Aurox turned and moved quickly away into the night. He expected the emotions she had made him feel to fade, to flow from him, just as the emotions of others had after he'd absorbed them, used them, cast them aside. But some of Zoey's sadness stayed with him, as did her guilt and, most peculiarly of all, her loneliness stayed with him pooled in a deep, hidden abyss in his soul.