Marked

needs that.”
    "Okay, I'll go. But I won't stay away." He kissed me hard and quick. I felt a white-hot stab of pleasure when I tasted the blood that was still on our lips. Then he slid down the wall and disappeared into the darkness until all I could see of him was the little dot of light from his flashlight, and then, finally, not even that.
    I wouldn't let myself think. Not yet. Moving methodically, like a robot, I used the branch to steady myself as I climbed down. My knees were shaking so badly that I was able to walk only the couple of feet to the tree where I sank down on the ground, pressing my back against the security of its ancient bark. Nala materialized, hopping into my lap as if she'd been my cat for years instead of minutes, and as my sobs started she crawled from my lap to my chest to press her warm face against my wet cheek.
    After what seemed like a long time my sobs turned to hiccups and I wished I hadn't run out of the rec hall without my purse. I could really use a Kleenex.
    "Here. You look like you need this.”
    Nala complained as I jumped in surprise at the voice, and blinked up through my tears to see someone handing me a tissue. "Th-thanks," I said, taking it and wiping my nose.
    "No problem," Erik Night said.

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

    "Are you okay?”
    "Yeah, I'm okay. Totally. Fine." I lied.
    "You don't look fine," Erik said. "Mind if I sit down?”
    "No, go ahead," I said listlessly. I knew my nose was bright red. I'd definitely been snotting on myself when he walked up, and I had the sneaking suspicion he'd witnessed at least part of the nightmare between Heath and me. The night was just getting worse and worse. I glanced at him and decided, What the hell, I might as well continue the trend. "In case you didn't realize it, it was me who saw that little scene between you and Aphrodite in the hall yesterday.”
    He didn't even hesitate. "I know, and I wish you hadn't. I don't want you to get the wrong idea about me.”
    "And what idea would that be?”
    "That there's more going on between Aphrodite and me than there really is.”
    "Not my business," I said.
    He shrugged. "I just want you to know that she and I are not going out anymore.”
    I almost said that it sure looked like Aphrodite wasn't aware of that, but then I thought about what had just happened between Heath and me, and with a sense of surprise I realized that maybe I shouldn't judge Erik too harshly.
    "Okay. You guys aren't going out," I said.
    He sat quietly beside me for a little while, and when he spoke again I thought he sounded almost angry. "Aphrodite didn't tell you about the blood in the wine.”
    He hadn't said it like a question, but I answered anyway. "Nope.”
    He shook his head and I saw his jaw tighten. "She told me she was going to. She said she'd let you know while you were changing your clothes so that if you weren't okay with it you could skip drinking from the goblet.”
    "She lied.”
    "Not a big surprise,” he said.
    "Ya think?" I could feel my own anger building inside me. "This whole thing has just been wrong. I get pressured into going to the Dark Daughters' ritual where I'm tricked into drinking blood. Then I meet up with my almost-ex-boyfriend who just happens to be one hundred percent human, and no-damn-body bothered to explain to me that the tiniest speck of his blood would turn me into…into…a monster." I bit my lip and held on to my anger so I wouldn't start crying again. I also decided I wouldn't say anything about thinking I saw Elizabeth's ghost― that was too much weird to admit for one night.
    "No one explained it to you because it's something that shouldn't have started to effect you until you were a sixth former," he said quietly.
    "Huh?" I was back to being dazzlingly articulate.
    "Bloodlust doesn't usually begin until you're a sixth former and you're almost completely Changed. Once in a while you'll hear about a fifth former who has to deal with it early, but that doesn't happen very often.”
    "Wait―what are you saying?" My mind felt like bees were buzzing around in it.
    "You start having classes about bloodlust and other things mature vamps have to deal with during your fifth form, and then, in your final year, that's mostly what school focuses on―that and whatever you've decided to major in.”
    "But I'm a third former―barely I mean, I've only been Marked a few days.”
    "Your Mark is different; you're different," he said.
    "I don't want to be different!" I realized I was