“Actually, narcissistic is a better way to put it than stuck up.” He paused and looked at his friends, who were all—even G-ma—frowning at him. “I didn’t mean Zoey is actually narcissistic, just that what she’s going to say will appear to be that.” Damien sighed. “Never mind. Carry on, Z.”
“Anyway,” Zo started again. “What they want me to tell you is that I’m the reason we defeated Neferet. It’s not that I did it on my own, but like Nyx said when I was Marked,” then she quoted almost exactly what Nyx had said to him, too, when he’d made the Change. “My power is in the uniqueness of my combined blood of ancient Wise Women and Elders, as well as insight and understanding of the modern world. She said that I would be her eyes and ears in a world that is struggling to find the balance between good and evil. Then she said,” Zo pointed at the words tattooed around his bicep, “Darkness does not always equate to evil, just as light does not always bring good.”
“The same thing happened to you.” A terrible sense of foreboding caused the hairs on his forearms to lift.
“Kevin, do you have an affinity for any of the elements?” Zo asked abruptly.
“I dunno.”
“When you’re circling for, say, a Full Moon Ritual, and the elements are called, have you ever felt anything?” Damien said.
“I have no idea.”
“What do you mean, you have no idea?” Zo asked him.
“I’ve never taken part in a ritual. Or a circle.”
Except for Jack, the entire table gaped at him.
“What in the hell are you talking about?” Aphrodite said.
“Red fledglings and red vampyres don’t take part in rituals. We don’t circle. We’re not even allowed in Nyx’s Temple,” Jack explained.
“Oh, my Goddess, is that true?” Zo sounded like she might hyperventilate.
“Well, yeah. I tried to sneak into Nyx’s Temple once, but I got caught.” Kev paused to shake off the memory of that terrible beating. “I never tried that again. That’s why I was sure my dreams of Nyx were just delusions—my brain dying or something.”
“It’s an abomination,” Damien said.
“We need to fix that. Now.” Aphrodite stood. “Let’s take him to the temple. If he has what you have, Z, we’ll know he really is you in his world.”
“And if not?” Kevin asked.
“If not, you’re just a cute red vampyre whose sister is boss of us,” Stevie Rae said.
“I am not the boss of you,” Zo said.
“I’ll remind you that you said that next time you order me around,” Aphrodite said.
“Children, stop bickering. Let us go to Nyx’s Temple,” said G-ma.
“Hang on, we need Shaylin,” Zo said.
“She was with Nicole in the barn last time I saw her,” Shaunee said. “She said she needed some barn therapy after dealing with the super-upset red fledglings. I’ll get her and meet you guys in the temple.”
Everyone started to file out of the dining hall, and Kevin snagged Zo’s sleeve, holding her back for a second. “Hey, what if I do have what you have. What does it mean?”
Zoey’s eyes were sad when they met his. “It means you’re what I am—a leader, a rallying point, the person who brings people together—and when we do that, we defeat Darkness.”
“Ah, hell,” he said.
“Yep. I couldn’t have said it better myself.”
Other Kevin
The snow had changed from giant flakes to steady, tiny specks of white that caught the gaslights along the path to the temple and turned into starlight. Zoey’s friends were talking easily together. They even waved to fledglings who called their names.
Zoey walked beside him, uncharacteristically silent.
G-ma Redbird was on his other side. She was silent too, and holding his hand.
“Do not be nervous, u-we-tsi.” She spoke softly, for his ears alone. “The goddess already knows you.”
“How can you be sure? Maybe they were just dreams, or delusions, or maybe some weird psychic echo across worlds of what was supposed to happen to Zoey.”
“I can be sure because I know Nyx,” G-ma said cryptically.
And then they were entering Nyx’s Temple and Kevin forgot his nerves. He forgot his fears. He forgot everything except the wonder of Nyx.
The moment he entered the temple he was engulfed in the scent of vanilla and lavender. He heard the tinkling of running water and glanced to his right as they passed a beautiful fountain made of amethyst with candles floating in it. There were several ways they could have gone, but the group didn’t hesitate. They turned to the left, walked through a thick, arched stone doorway, and entered a large room that was lit by white candles suspended everywhere. Sconces with live flames protruded from the walls. In the very center of the room was the only piece of furniture—an antique wooden table, ornately carved, that held another candelabrum, plus a luminous statue of the Goddess made of iridescent, golden onyx that was lit from within. Her arms were raised and she was cupping a crescent moon between her hands. Several thick sticks of sweetgrass incense smoked at her feet. In front of the table there was an open flame that burned from a recess in the stone floor. He thought it looked like it could burn for a century and never falter, never fade, never extinguish.
“Z, I’ll get the candles,” Stevie Rae called, disappearing into a side room.
“Found her!” Shaunee entered the room with a pretty, petite girl beside her. He blinked, surprised to see yet another female red vampyre. This one had an adult tattoo that looked like that famous Japanese wave, but with layers upon layers of detail. “Kevin, this is Shaylin. Her element is—”
“Water,” Shaylin said. She stared at him, and as she did her eyes seemed to get bigger and bigger. “He has the exact same aura as you, Z.”
“Huh?” Kevin was even more confused than he had been before he’d entered the temple. “Aura?”
“She’s a Prophetess of Nyx. She sees auras,” Shaunee explained.
“Really? And mine’s like Zo’s?” Kevin said. “What’s it look like?”
Shaylin grinned. “Pretty. You both have violet auras with flecks of silver, like liquid mercury, sparkling all over.”
“Do people usually have the same auras?” Zo asked.
“Nope,” Shaylin said.
“What about siblings? Other Kevin’s my brother.”
“My answer is still nope. I’ve never seen anyone before with the same aura.”
“Well, that’s weird,” Kevin and Zoey said together.
“Jinx!” Kevin yelled. “Beat ya!”
She shoved his shoulder. “Come on. You’re with me.” Then she gestured at the others. “Okay, circle up.”
It only took a moment. Everyone knew exactly what to do. Well, everyone except Kevin, who stood next to Zoey, watching everything while he cracked his knuckles. When all were in place, Zoey turned to him. They were standing in the middle of the circle between the table and the open fire.
“Hey, stop looking so nervous. This is easy and fun. Just walk with me. Damien, Shaunee, Shaylin, Stevie Rae, and I will do everything. All you need to do is to concentrate on what you’re feeling, and if you feel something—tell me. Ready?”
“Yep,” he lied.
She picked up a long, wooden match and a box to strike it against. Then she walked to Damien, who was holding a yellow candle.