Hunted

looked at me silently for a long time. I searched his face, trying to find some hint of that guy I’d felt such a connection with—whom I’d kissed right before he’d died in my arms. But all I could see was an unpredictable stranger, and foremost in my mind was the knowledge that if he shot that bow he would not miss whatever he aimed at.
    And suddenly that reminded me. He hadn’t killed Stevie Rae. The fact that she was alive proved that he hadn’t meant to kill her. So maybe there was some piece of the old Stark left within him.
    “Stevie Rae’s fine, by the way,” I said.
    “That’s nothing to me,” he said.
    I shrugged. “Just thought you’d want to know, since it was your arrow that made her a shish kebab.”
    “I was doing what I was told to do. The boss said make her bleed; I made her bleed.”
    “Neferet? Is she who’s controlling you?” I asked.
    His eyes blazed. “No one’s controlling me!”
    “Your bloodlust is controlling you,” Darius said. “If you weren’t under its control, you wouldn’t have had to force yourself on that fledgling.”
    “Yeah? Ya think so? Well, you’re wrong. I happen to like my bloodlust! I liked doing whatever I want with that girl. It’s time vampyres stopped slinking around. We’re smarter, stronger, better than humans. We should be in charge, not them!”
    “That fledgling isn’t a human.” Darius’s voice was like a naked blade, reminding me that he wasn’t just a big brother-type guy; he was a Son of Erebus and one of the most powerful warriors alive.
    “I was thirsty and there wasn’t a human handy,” Stark said.
    “Zoey, get the girl into the dorm.” Darius didn’t take his eyes off Stark. “She is done serving his convenience.”
    I hurried over to Becca and helped her to her feet. She was a little wobbly but able to walk. As we reached Darius, he moved forward with us, always keeping himself between us and Stark. Just as we were passing by him, Stark spoke with an angry intensity that sent a chill down the back of my neck.
    “You know, all I have to do is think about killing you and shoot this arrow. Wherever you are, you’re dead.”
    “If that is so, then I will be dead,” Darius said matter-of-factly. “And you will be a monster.”
    “I don’t mind being a monster!”
    “And I don’t mind dying if it is in the service of my High Priestess and, ultimately, my Goddess,” Darius said.
    “If you hurt him, I’ll come against you with everything I have,” I told Stark.
    Stark looked at me and his lips tilted up in a ghost of that cute, cocky smile he used to have. “You’re a little bit of a monster yourself, aren’t ya, Zoey?”
    I didn’t think that nasty comment was worth a response, and obviously neither did Darius. He kept shepherding us by Stark, opening the front door of the dorm and helping Becca inside. But instead of me following her in, I paused. Intuition was telling me that there was something I had to do, and much as I’d like to ignore my intuition, I knew I shouldn’t. “I’ll be right in,” I told Darius. I could see that he was going to argue with me, but I shook my head and said, “Trust me. I just need a second.”
    “I’ll be inside the door,” Darius said, threw Stark a hard look, and then stepped into the dorm.
    I faced Stark. I knew I was taking a chance with what I was going to say to him, but I kept remembering Kramisha’s poem and the line that said, “Humanity saves her / Will she save me?” I at least had to try.
    “Jack’s taking care of Duchess,” I said without any preamble.
    I saw that flash of pain in his eyes again, but his voice wasn’t touched by it. “So?”
    “So I’m just telling you that your dog’s fine. She’s had a pretty hard time, but she’s okay.”
    “I’m not who I used to be, so she’s not my dog anymore.” This time I heard a quaver in his voice, which gave me enough hope that I took a step toward him.
    “Hey, the great thing about dogs is that they give unconditional love. Duch doesn’t care who you are right now. She’ll still love you.”
    “You don’t know what you’re talking about,” he said.
    “Yeah, I do. I’ve spent some time with your dog. She’s got a really big heart.”
    “I wasn’t talking about her. I was talking about me.”
    “Well, I’ve spent some time with red fledglings, too. Not to mention that the first ever Changed red vamp is my best friend. Stevie Rae’s different than she used to be, but I still