Hunted

Lankford.”
    “The fencing instructor?”
    “Yeah. He’s on our side. Tell him I sent you to him. Tell him you’ve pledged yourself as Warrior in my service. He’ll know what to do for you.”
    “Okay, will do.”
    “But don’t let anyone see that you’ve Changed.” I didn’t know why it was important to me, but I knew he needed to keep hidden until after he reached Dragon. I looked around the storage room until I found a TU trucker’s cap, which I stuck on Stark’s head. With a little more searching I found a towel, which I rolled up and tucked around his neck. “Pull this up”—I tugged the towel into place—“and keep this brim down. You won’t look too weird. I mean, there’s an ice storm out there. Just get to Dragon without being seen.”
    He nodded. “What’ll you be doing?”
    “I’ll be planning our escape from here. Dragon and his wife are in on it, and I think the Horse Master, Lenobia, is, too. So get back here as soon as you can.”
    “Zoey, don’t wait for me. Get away from here. Get far, far away.”
    “What about you?”
    “I can come and go whenever I want. I’ll find you, don’t worry. My body won’t be with you all the time, but you’ll always have my heart. I’m your warrior, remember?”
    I smiled and touched his cheek. “I’ll never forget. I promise. I’m your High Priestess and you’ve pledged yourself to me. That means you have my heart, too.”
    “Then both of us better stay safe. A heart’s a hard thing to live without. I should know. I’ve tried it,” he said.
    “But no more,” I said.
    “No more,” he agreed.
    Stark kissed me with such gentleness that he took my breath away. Then he took a step back, fisted his hand over his heart, and bowed formally to me. “I’ll see you soon, my lady.”
    “Be careful,” I said.
    “And if I can’t be careful, I’ll be quick.” He threw me his cocky grin and ducked out of the door.
    When he was gone I closed my eyes, fisted my hand over my heart, and bowed my head. “Nyx,” I whispered, “I was telling him the truth. He has my heart. I don’t know how that’s going to turn out, but I ask that you keep my warrior safe and thank you for giving him the courage to make the choice for good.”
    Nyx didn’t suddenly appear before me, and I hadn’t expected her to. But I did feel a brief, listening silence in the air around me, and that was enough. I knew the Goddess’s hand was on Stark. Protect him . . . strengthen him . . . oh, and could you please help me figure out what I’m going to do about him . . . I prayed silently until the sixth-hour bell rang.
    “Okay, Zoey,” I told myself. “Let’s break out of this place.”

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    CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

    When I rushed into the stables late, Lenobia gave me a chilly look and said, “Zoey, you have a stall to muck.” She tossed me a pitchfork and pointed me toward Persephone’s stall.
    I muttered my apologies and my “yes, ma’am—right away, ma’am” and hurried into the stall of the mare I considered my own for as long as I was in school at the House of Night. Persephone whickered a soft greeting to me and I went straight to her head, stroking her face and kissing her velvet muzzle, and basically telling her that she was the prettiest, smartest, best horse in the known universe. She lipped my cheek, blew in my face, and seemed to agree with my opinion.
    “She loves you, you know. The mare has told me so.”
    I turned to see Lenobia standing just inside the door of the stall, leaning against the wall. I sometimes forget how exceptionally beautiful she is, so at times like this, when I really look at her, I’m surprised again at her uniqueness. She is strength packaged delicately. Her silver-white hair and slate-gray eyes are the most striking things about her, well, except for the incredible tattoos of rearing horses that Marked her as a vampyre. She was wearing her usual outfit of a crisp white shirt and tan riding slacks tucked into English riding boots. Except for the tattoos and the silver goddess embroidered over her heart, she looked like something that should be in a chic Calvin Klein ad.
    “You can really talk to them?” I’d suspected as much, but Lenobia had never been so blunt about her abilities before now.
    “Not in words. Horses communicate in feelings. They are passionate, loyal beings with hearts big enough to hold the world.”
    “I’ve always thought so, too,” I said softly, kissing Persephone’s