"Skye? Really? Where is that? Ireland?" Stevie Rae said.
"It's Scotland, not Ireland, retard," Aphrodite said.
"Aren't they kinda the same thing? And don't say 'retard.' It's not nice."
"How about if I say bite me? Is that nice enough? Just listen and try not to be so asstarded, bumpkin. I need you to get Alena to do more of her whatever she did weird, and see if you can come up with some info about Light andDarkness—you know, with a capital L and D. Also, tell her to pay attention to something about two bulls."
"Bulls? You mean like cows?"
"Are you not from the country? How is it that you don't know what a bull is?"
"Look, Aphrodite, that's an ignorant stereotype. Just 'cause I'm not from a big city does notmean I automatically know about cows and stuff. Heck, I don't even like horses."
"I swear you're a mutant," Aphrodite said. "A bull is a male cow. Even my mom's schizophrenic Bichon Frise knows that. Focus, would you, this is important. You need to go ask the fucking grass about an ancient and entirely too barbaric and therefore unattractive mythology or religion or some such that includes two fighting bulls, a white one and a black one, and a very guylike, violent, unending struggle between good and evil."
"What does this have to do with gettin' Zoey back?"
"I think it might somehow open a door for Stark to the Otherworld, withouthim actually dying because, apparently, that doesn't so much work for Warriors protecting their High Priestesses there."
"The cows can do that? How? Cows can't even talk."
"Bulls, double retard. Stay with me. I'm not just talking about animals, but the rawness of the power that surrounds them. The bulls represent that power."
"So they're not gonna talk?"
"Oh, for shit's sake! They might and they might not—they're super old magick, stupid! Who the hell knows what they can do? Just get this: to make it to the Otherworld, Stark can't be civilized and modern and all nicey-nice. He's got to figure out how to be more than that to reach Zoey and to protect her without getting both of them killed, and this olden-time religion might be a key to that."
"I guess that makes sense. I mean, When I think about Kalona, I don't I don't exactly think of a modern guy." Alena listened to Stevie Rae, acknowledging only to herself that she was thinking of Rephaim and not his father.
"And he's definetly got some raw power."
"And definitely in the Otherworld without being dead."
"Which is where Stark needs to be."
"So, go tell her to talk to flowers about bulls and such," Aphrodite said.
"I'll tell her," Stevie Rae said.
"Call me when she finds something."
"Yeah, okay."
"Hey, tell her to be careful," Aphrodite said.
"See, you can be nice," Stevie Rae said.
"Goodbye, bumpkin."
"Alena, so you know what to do for me right?"
"Yes, Stevie Rae. I wont fail you. She's your best friend."
Sadness enveloped Alena but she knew Alena was going to keep her promise. "She is which i'm trusting you to find more information, ok?"
"Yes."
"Good now I have to go but call me the second you find out something. Blessed be"
"Blessed be." Alena said doing the formal greeting over her chest as she watched Stevie Rae go take a shower.
Alena opened the door to leave Stevie Rae's dorm room, and almost ran smack into Kramisha's hand, raised to knock on her door.
They both jumped and then Kramisha shook her head. "Don't do weird shit like that. Makes me think you ain't normal no more."
"Kramisha, if I'd known you were out here, I wouldn't have jumped when I opened the door."
"they's nothin' wrong with me. You, on the other hand," she said, pointing to Alena. "look like one hot messatude."
"I almost burned up on a roof. I think that gives me the right to look like crap."
"I don't mean you look bad." Kramisha cocked her head to the side. Today she was wearing her bright yellow bob wig, which she'd coordinated with sparkly fluorescent yellow eye shadow.
"Actually, you lookin' good—all glowly like white folks get when they real healthy with a new tan. It kinda reminds me of cute little baby pigs with they pinkness."
"Kramisha, what do you want?"Alena said.
"I'm just sayin' that you look good, but you ain't doinggood. In there, and there." Kramisha pointed from Alena's heart to her head.
"I've got a lot on my mind," Alena said evasively.
"Yeah, I know that, what with Zoey totally jacked up and all, but you gotta keep your shit together just the same."
"I am." Alena said
"No you ain't. Stevie Rae needs your help with Zoey. I know you ain't there with her, but I got this feelin' that you can help her. So you gotta be using your good sense."
Kramisha was staring at her with an intensity that made Alena want to fidget. "I am."
"You up to somethin' crazy?" She said to Alena.
"No!"
"You sure? 'Cause this is for you." Kramisha held up a piece of purple notebook paper that had something written on it in her distinctive mixture of cursive and printing. "And it feels like a whole bunch of crazy to me."
Alena snatched the paper from her hand. "Why didn't you tell Stevie Rae?"
"I was gettin' 'round to it." Kramisha crossed her arms and leaned against the doorway, obviously waiting for Alena to read the poem.
"Shouldn't you be doing something?"
"Nope. The rest of the kids is eatin'. Oh, 'cept for Montoya. He's working with Dragon on some sword stuff, even though school ain't starting again officially, and I do not see no need to rush things, so I do not get why he in such a hurry to go to class. Anyway, just read the poem. I ain't goin' nowhere."
Alena stifled a sigh.
Kramisha's poems tended to be confusing and abstract, but they were also often prophetic, and just thinking about one of them being obviously for Alena had her stomach feeling like she'd eaten raw eggs. Reluctantly, her eyes went to the paper and she started to read:
The daughter of the Red one steps into the light
girded loins for her part inthe apocalyptic fight.
Darkness hides in different forms
see beyond shape, color, liesand the emotional storms.
Ally with him; pay with your heart though trust cannot be given
unless the Darkness you part.
See with the soul and not your eyesbecause to dance with beasts you
must penetrate their disguise.
Alena shook her head, glanced up at Kramisha, and then read the poem again, slowly, willing her heart to please stop beating so loud that it would betray the guilty terror the thing instantly made her feel. 'Cause Kramisha was right; it was obviously about her.
Of course it was also obviously about her andRephaim.
"See what I mean 'bout it bein' 'bout you?"
Alena shifted her gaze from the poem to Kramisha's intelligent eyes. "I'm not the only daughter of the red one. The first line says that."
"Yeah, see, I was sure 'bout that, too, even though no one's left the house of night except you. Yous be acting strange lately."
"I guess it makes sense," Alena said quickly, while trying to drown out the memory of Rephaim's voice calling her daughter of the Red One.
"That's what I thought, even though there is that whole bunch of freaky 'bout the beasts and stuff. I had to look up the gird-your-loins part 'cause it sounded nasty and sexual, but it ended up just bein' a way to say she need to get real ready for a fight."
"There's a lot of fights going on," Alena said, looking back at the poem.
"Looks like you in for some more—and it's some bad shit, too, you got to be real ready for." Then she cleared her throat meaningfully, and Alena reluctantly met her eyes again.
"Who is he?"
"He?"
Kramisha crossed her arms. "Do not talk to me like I'm stupid. Him.The guy my poem says you're gonna give your heart to."
"I am not!"
"Oh, then you do know who he is." Kramisha tapped the toe of her leopard-print boots. "And he definitely ain't Montoya, 'cause you wouldn't be freaked about givin' him your heart. Everyone know you two got a thing, so who is he?"
"I don't have a clue. I'm only seeing Montoya."Alena lied.
"Huh," Kramisha snorted through her nose.
"Look, I'm gonna keep this and think about it," Alen said, stuffing the poem into skirt pocket
"Let me guess—you want me to keep my mouth shut 'bout it," Kramisha said, tapping her foot again.
Alena blew out a long breath, decided to tell as much of the truth as she could, and started again. "I don't want you to say anything because I got guys issues, and I don't want anyone to know, especially Montoya.
"That's more like it. Guy shit can be one hot mess, and like my mama always says, it just ain't right to put your personal business all out there for everbody to see."
"Thanks."
Kramisha held up her hand. "Hang on. Didn't nobody say I was done with this subject. My poems is important. This one is about more than your jacked-up love life. So like I said before, get the crazy cleared from your head and remember to use your good sense. And also, every time I wrote the word Darkness, it made my insides feel wrong."
Alena gave Kramisha a long look, debating whether she should say anything about Rephaim. "Can you walk with me to the parking lot? I want to talk to you."
"No problem," Kramisha said. "Plus, it's 'bout time you said something 'bout what's going on inside your head to someone. You been actin' wacked lately, and I mean even before Zoey got herself shattered."
"Yeah, I know," Alena mumbled.
Neither one of them said anything more while they walked down the stairs and through the busy dorm
"The Darkness in my poem that makes me feel wrong—you don't think that's 'bout us, do you?"
"No!" Alena shook her head emphatically. "Nyx gave us a choice, and we chose good over evil—Light over Darkness."
"It's the others, huh?" Even though they were alone, Kramisha lowered her voice.
Alena thought about it and realized Kramisha could be right. "I guess it could be talking about them, but if it is, it's really bad."
"Please. We all know they real bad."
"Yeah, well, Stevie Rae just found out some stuff from Aphrodite that gives Darkness a whole new level of evil. And if they're involved, they following Neferet."
"Shit."
"Yeah and after talking with Aphrodite, Stevie Rae wanted me go and try to see if we can use the info she told us to help Stark get to the Otherworld so he can protect Z while she puts her soul back together."
"You mean get Stark to the Otherworld without him being all dead and stuff?"
"Yeah."
"So you gonna use that old shit to figure out how to do it right?"
Alena smiled at her. "We're gonna try. And you can help."
"Say the word—I'm there."
"Okay, here goes: Aphrodite's found some new Prophetess powers since she's been focused on them." Alena said. "Anyway, I was thinking that even though I don't have a circle here like Zoey does around her there, Stevie Rae has a Prophetess."
Kramisha blinked, looked confused, and when Alena kept staring at her, her eyes finally widened in understanding. "Me?"
"You and your poems. You did it before. You can do it again."
"But—"
"But look at it this way," Alena broke in. "Aphrodite figured it out. Are you gonna let her outsmart you?"
Kramisha's eyes narrowed. "I got a whole world of smart that rich white girl don't know nothin' about."
"Well, then, you're not gonna let little miss snooty best you out right?"
"No, I'll help."
"Okay, good I'm gonna go and see if I can figure anything out. Hey, can you find Montoya and fill him in on everything but the poem."
"I already told you I ain't rattin' you out."
"Thanks, ya." Alena waved and started to jog for her car.
"I got your back!"
Kramisha's parting words had her grinning as she started her car. She was just getting ready to put the car into gear when she realized she didn't know where she was going, and creating a circle thing would be easier if she'd bothered to grab candles and maybe even some sweet grass to draw some positive energy.
Totally annoyed at herself, she put the car into neutral. Where was she going?
Back to Rephaim. The thought was like breathing—instant and natural.
Alena reached for the gearshift, but her hand paused. Would going back to Rephaim right now really be the smartest thing for her to do?
Sure, on one hand she'd gotten a bunch of info from him about Kalona and Darkness and such.
On the other, she didn't really trust him. She couldn'treally trust him.
Plus, he messed with her head. When she'd read Kramisha's poem, she'd been busy obsessing about him to consider anything else—like the fact the poem could be a warning about the bad red fledglings and not just stuff about her and the Raven Mocker.
So what the heck should she do?
She'd told Rephaim she'd come back to check on him, but she wanted to return because of more than just telling him she would. Alena needed to see him.
Needed to?Yes, she admitted reluctantly to herself. She needed to see the Raven Mocker.
"I'm Imprinted with him. That means we have a connection, and there's not much I can do about it," she muttered to herself while she squeezed the steering wheel. "I'm just gonna have to get used to it and deal with it."
And I have to remember that he is his father's son.
Fine. She'd check on him. She'd also ask him questions about Light as well as Darkness, and about the bulls.
But she should do some digging for herself without Rephaim. She really should evoke a circle and see what info she could get on the bulls. That would be using her good sense. Then Alena grinned and slapped the steering wheel.
"I got it! I'll stop at that cute old park that's on the way to Gilcrease. Do a circle and then check on Rephaim."
Of course first she'd duck back into Nyx's Temple and grab some candles, some matches, and some sweetgrass. Feeling better now that she had a plan, she was just getting ready to drive when she heard the sound of boots tapping against the asphalt of the parking lot and then Monotoya speaking with exaggerated nonchalance.
"I'm just walkin' out here to Alena's car. I'm not sneakin' up on her and makin' her jump."
Alena rolled down her window and grinned at him. "Hey there, Montoya. I thought Kramisha said you were working with Dragon."
"I was. Check it out—Dragon gave me this cool knife. Said it's a dirk. He also said I might be good with it."
Alena watched dubiously as Montoya pulled a pointy, double-edged knife from a leather holder he was wearing strapped around his waist and held it kinda awkwardly, like he wasn't sure whether it would cut someone else, or cut him.
"It's really sharp," Alena said, trying to sound positive.
"Yeah, that's why I'm not using it to practice with yet, but Dragon did say I could wear it. For a while. If I was careful."
"Oh, okay. Cool."
"Yeah, so, I got done with my dirk lessons and ran into Kramisha on my way out of the Field House," Montoya said while he sheathed the knife. "She said she'd left you here 'cause you were gettin' ready to take off to go do some earth thing. I thought I'd try to catch you before you left and come along."
"Oh, well. That's nice, Montoya, but I'm fine by myself. Actually, it would really help if you grabbed some candles, some sweetgrass and some matches for me from Nyx's Temple please?"
She was surprised when Montoya didn't say okay and jogged away for the stuff. Instead, he just stood there, watching her, with his hands shoved down in his jeans pockets and looked kinda annoyed
"What?" she asked.
"I'm sorry I'm not a Warrior!" he blurted. "I'm tryin' the best I can to learn somethin' from Dragon, but it's gonna take me a while to get decent at it. I've never really cared about all that fightin' stuff, and I'm sorry!" Montoya repeated, looking more and more upset.
"Montoya, what are you talking about?"
He threw his hands up in frustration. "I'm talkin' about me not being good enough for you. I know you need more—that you need a Warrior. Hell, Alena, if I'd been your Warrior, I could've been there for you when those kids attacked you and almost killed you. If I were your Warrior, you wouldn't be sendin' me off on stupid errands. You'd keep me close to you, so I could protect you during all this stuff you're goin' through."
"I'm doing fine, and getting stuff for me is not a stupid errand."
"Yeah, okay, but you deserve better than a guy who doesn't know shit about protecting his woman."
Alena's brows went up to meet her side swept bangs. "Did you just call me your woman?"
"Well, yeah." He fidgeted, and then added, "But in a good way."
"Montoya, you couldn't have stopped what happened on the roof," she said truthfully.
"I should have been with you; I should be your Warrior."
"I don't need a Warrior!" she yelled, exasperated at his stubbornness and hating the fact that he was so upset.
"Well, you sure as hell don't need me anymore." He turned his back on the Hummer and shoved his hands into his jeans pockets.
Alena looked at his hunched shoulders and felt terrible. She'd hurt him because she'd been pushing him and everyone away to keep Rephaim a secret. Guilty, she got out of the car and touched his shoulder gently.
He didn't look at her.
"Hey, that's not true. I do need you."
"Sure. That's why you've been busy shoving me away."
"No, I've just been busy. Sorry if I've been shoving you away," she said.
He turned to her. "Not shoving me away. Just not caring anymore."
"I do care!" she said quickly, and stepped into his arms, hugging him back as tightly as he was hugging her.
Montoya spoke softly into her ear. "Then let me come with you."
Alena pulled back so she could look at him, and the "no, you can't" she'd been ready to say died on her lips.
It was like she could see his heart through his eyes, and it was clear that she was breaking him.
What the hell was she doing hurting him because of Rephaim? She'd saved the Raven Mocker.
She wasn't sorry about that. She was sorry that it was hurting Montoya, the one guy she really liked.
"Okay,you can come with me," she told him.
His eyes instantly brightened. "You mean it?"
" Yeah. I do need that candle and the sweetgrass though."
"Hell, I'll get you a whole bag of candles and all the grass you want!" Montoya laughed, kissed her, and then, yelling that he'd be right back, sprinted away.
Slowly, Alena got back into the car. She gripped the steering wheel and stared straight ahead, reciting her mental to-do list aloud like a mantra.
"Conjure up a circle like Zoey did, and do it with Montoya.. Find out what I can about the bulls. Bring Montoya back to the school. Make a good excuse to leave again, only this time alone. Go to the Gilcrease and check on Rephaim. See if he knows anything else that might help Zoey and Stark. Come back here. Don't hurt your friends by shoving them away. Clue in Stevie Rae about what I found out. Get Stevie Rae to call Aphrodite back."
Feeling like she was drowning, Alena lowered her head until her forehead pressed against the steering wheel.
How in the world did Stevie Rae and Zoey deal with all of this bullshit and stress?
She didn't,the thought came unbidden to her mind, it shattered her.