P.C. Cast - Hidden

“Here’s what I think,” Aphrodite said. “I think we all need to keep our mouths shut about what’s going on with Grandma Redbird and Aurox and our business in general. If you’re not part of this group, then you don’t know shit. Erin’s just one kid, but what she knows could definitely mess us up.”

“Prophetess, it sounds as if there is a lesson to be learned in what you’re saying,” Thanatos said, and the rest of us nodded.

I glanced at Kalona. Including him in our group felt really weird, but I couldn’t tell if that meant we should or shouldn’t trust him.

Weirdly echoing my thoughts, Thanatos asked Kalona, “Do you still believe she will trust you?”

“Neferet? Trust me? Never. But she does desire me, even if it is only my immortal power after which she lusts. And, as Aphrodite said, she measures everyone’s depth of loyalty by her own,” Kalona said.

“Neferet is only loyal to herself,” Rephaim said.

“Exactly,” Kalona said.

“Well, let’s hope you’re not that shallow,” Stark added, sounding like he believed the opposite.

I just stood there, staring at Kalona, remembering what a lying, manipulative killer he had been, and thinking that’s who’s going to save my grandma?

I was blinking back freaked-out tears when Rephaim whispered my name. I looked over at him. He smiled and mouthed two small words: people change.

Shaylin

“Here. Now.” Aphrodite crooked her finger at Shaylin, motioning for her to follow. She did her twitchy walk, cutting across the grass and heading in the general direction of the fledglings’ dorms.

Shaylin sighed, squelched her irritation, and followed the annoying blonde. As she caught up with her, Aphrodite was already talking. “Okay, you need to reconnoiter.”

“Okay, you need to grow some manners,” Shaylin said.

Aphrodite stopped and narrowed her eyes to blue slits.

“You should know that look is unattractive and it causes crow’s feet,” Shaylin spoke quickly before Aphrodite could say something mean and smart-assy.

“You’ve been talking to Damien, haven’t you?”

“Maybe,” Shaylin answered vaguely, not wanting to get Damien in any trouble. But, yeah, the truth was she had been talking to him. Actually, she’d really started to like Damien, as well as Stevie Rae and Zoey. Aphrodite, though, she was a different story. “Aphrodite, really, it looks like you and I might have to work together, or whatever you’d call this Prophetess stuff. So, it’d make both of our lives easier if you could, at least, be polite to me.”

“No, it would make your life easier. Mine, it wouldn’t change at all.”

Shaylin shook her head. “Really? Why don’t you run that attitude past Nyx? We have major Darkness to fight. Zoey’s mom was just killed and now her grandma’s in serious danger. Correct me if I’m wrong, but isn’t Zoey a friend of yours?”

Aphrodite’s eyes narrowed again, but she only said one word: “Yes.”

“Then how about you do everything you can to help her.”

“I am doing that, bitch,” Aphrodite snapped.

“How can you be so sure? Did you ever consider the small fact that maybe, if you were less hateful, you’d have access to more of your Prophetess gifts?”

Aphrodite’s eyes un-narrowed. Slowly. She even looked a little surprised. “No. I’ve never considered that.”

Shaylin threw her hands up in frustration. “Jeesh, were you raised by wolves?”

“Sort of,” Aphrodite said. “But they had money.”

“Incredible,” Shaylin murmured. Then she started over. “Okay, here’s what I know. When I read your aura and was bitchy about the little flickering light I saw within you, it messed with my head. The next time I looked at you, it was like your colors were all running together.”

“Which, obviously, means you saw me being pissed.”

“No, because everyone’s colors looked all runny and indistinct until I apologized to you. Wait, scratch that. The complete truth is my True Sight was messed up until I apologized to you and meant it .”

“Huh. That’s almost interesting.”

“I’m not getting through to you at all, am I?”

“As much as anyone can,” Aphrodite said. “So, back to reconnoitering.”

“Fine. Yes. What do you want me to do?”

“Find Erin. And Dallas. If I’m correct, which, just FYI for future reference, I almost always am, you’re going to find them together.”

“And that would be bad, right?”

“Are you brain damaged?”

“I’m not even going to answer that,” Shaylin said.

“Good. We don’t have time for connect-the-dots. It’s going to be dawn in a couple of hours. The bus will be heading back to the depot and Kalona will be heading into Neferet’s nasty lair.”

“Yeah, Kalona waiting until dawn so she’d be weakened by the sun without it being totally obvious that he was waiting until she was weakened by the sun doesn’t look like it’s going to work,” Shaylin said, looking skyward.

“What in the hell are you talking about, fucktard?”

Shaylin pointed up. “Rain clouds. Lots of them. I really wish they’d clear out. They blanket the sun and its weakening effect. Now who’s the fucktard?”

“Do not call me a fucktard,” Aphrodite said.

“Well, then don’t call me one,” Shaylin said.

“I’ll think about it. Back to my original point—before we go back to the depot and Kalona takes off, I want you to check out Dallas and Erin’s colors. Any additional info you can give us about Erin, especially about whether she’s a traitorous, skanky ho—yeah, I’m paraphrasing Shaunee—would be a good thing. I have a feeling about them, and it’s not a warm, fuzzy one.”

“All right, yeah, sounds good, but I have no idea where they might be. Do you? Is that one of the gifts you have?” Shaylin asked.

“Goddess, you are brain damaged. No, I don’t have a GPS inside my head. I do have a brain inside it, though. It tells me that if Erin and Dallas are doing the nasty, it makes sense to start looking for them in Erin’s dorm room—the dorm room she doesn’t share with Shaunee anymore.”

“Oh. Yeah. That does make sense.” Shaylin hesitated. “But I don’t know which dorm room is hers.”

“Third floor, number thirty-six. When they shared a brain, they used to say it stood for their chest size. I said it was their combined IQ.”

“Of course you did,” Shaylin said.

“See, you do understand me!” Aphrodite said with fake enthusiasm. “I’ll meet you back at the bus. Soon.” Aphrodite started to walk away, paused and added, “Please.”

Shaylin’s eyes widened.

Aphrodite rolled her eyes and opened her mouth, obviously preparing to say something hateful. Then she stopped, stared above her for one long moment, before glancing at Shaylin and saying, “Looks like you’re getting your wish. The rainclouds are clearing.” Then Aphrodite tossed her hair and twitched off.

Shaylin shook her head. “Total nutjob,” she muttered to herself as she made her way to the girls’ dorm. “Nyx, I don’t know you very well, and I don’t want you to think I’m rude or blasphemous or anything like that, but Aphrodite as your Prophetess? Why?”

“No one knows, and I think that includes Aphrodite herself.”

Shaylin jumped in surprise as Erik Night stepped from the shadows of a nearby oak tree.

“Erik! What are you doing out here?” Shaylin’s hand went to her throat. She imagined Erik could see how hard her pulse pounded there, and not just because he’d startled her. Her first view of him was always the same—his absolute, total, tall/dark/handsomeness was obvious and distracting. But then she got a glimpse of his colors and they weren’t nearly as attractive. Shaylin had decided he was like one of those gorgeously painted pieces of pottery that you’d like to use to toss a salad in or whatever, but if you flipped the piece over you’d see the WARNING: DO NOT USE TO SERVE FOOD label.