Loved (House of Night Other World #1)(31)

“I hope so. I am a little weirded out by Aphrodite’s vision, though. Jack featuring predominately in it is pretty crazy, and feels more than coincidental what with Damien being so homesick and sad.”

“Maybe that part’s not supposed to be literal. Maybe Nyx decided we do need some extra protection on the grotto, and she took the opportunity to make a point about not letting go of the past.”

“Meaning that it’ll eat you alive if you can’t make peace with it.” I nodded. “I can see that. But then there’s Kramisha’s poem. No clue how that works into it.”

“Well, there’s a snow metaphor throughout it, with a reference to snowflakes joining by finding themselves again. That could play into Aphrodite’s vision, too. It could be for Damien, symbolizing that he really needs to heal so that he can love again. You did say he and Adam broke up, right?”

“Right.”

“I’m guessin’ the breakup had more to do with Damien than Adam?”

“Right again,” I said. “But I should let Damien tell the rest of it.”

“No worries, Z. I don’t want to be all in his business. But it does seem like a bunch of this could be about Damien moving on.” She lowered her voice. “He looks rough. And Damien never looks rough.”

“Yeah, he needs to be home. I wish I’d known—about him as well as you. Hey, make me a deal. Promise you’ll never keep things from me like that again.”

“Z, you’re so busy with the new Council and integrating the North American Houses of Night. I didn’t want to bother you. I’ll bet Damien felt like that, too.”

“Sure, I’m busy, but I’m never too busy for my friends.”

“I can’t just leave Chicago, you know. There’s too much to do up there. The city’s just starting to relax enough to let a few human art students attend classes at the House of Night. I gotta go back and be sure everything runs smoothly.”

“What if you go back temporarily. Just long enough to train your replacement. I really could use you here. The depot tunnels house the only House of Night for red fledglings. You’d be a better High Priestess to them than me.”

“Really?” Stevie Rae’s blue eyes sparkled happily.

“Really,” I said. “What with Stark and Kramisha added to the staff here, I have a few extra priestesses. I’m sure one of them would love to check out Chicago.”

“What about Damien? New York can’t be any easier to integrate than Chicago.”

“Damien finished the yearly professor evaluations at his House of Night early,” I said.

“’Course he did,” Stevie Rae said with a grin.

“Yeah, he’s super organized. He gushed about one young High Priestess in particular. I think I remember that her name is Monique. Anyway, in his evaluation he went on and on about how skillful she is at brainstorming creative answers to dead-end problems. Perhaps Damien should groom her to take his place in New York.” And then return to T-Town and help me organize the administrative mess I’ve buried myself under.

“Z, you’re gonna make three people real happy this holiday!”

Feeling lighthearted, I linked my arm with my BFF and, like giggling preteens, we skipped to catch up with the rest of our group.

Everyone was waiting for us at the rocky ridge that looked down on the walled, concealed grotto prison.

“All right, does everyone remember their parts?” I asked.

Aphrodite, Shaunee, Shaylin, and Stevie Rae all nodded. I met Damien’s sad gaze. “Honey, I need you to stay up here with Stark and Rephaim.”

“But I really wanted to be part of the circle, even if I can’t call air,” he spoke quietly, miserably.

“I don’t think it’s safe. Aphrodite’s vision took place down there.” I pointed to the place beside the grotto wall where I’d decided to cast the circle and set the new protection spell. “You were killed, Damien.”

“But by Jack, and that’s impossible,” he insisted.

“Seriously, Damien? You’re going to argue about what’s possible and what isn’t after everything that happened last year?” Aphrodite said, though she spoke kindly. “I don’t understand the vision Nyx sent me. I do understand I was in a body that died. And that body was holding your yellow candle. It’s not safe for you down there. Hell, I don’t even like the fact that you’re going to be up here. My vote was for you to wait back at the House of Night with Grandma Redbird and Nicole.”

Aphrodite’s gaze met mine. I’d vetoed her vote and allowed Damien to come with us. I just couldn’t bear the misery in Damien’s eyes. He personified air and had been part of my circle since the first time I’d cast one so long ago. I couldn’t leave him behind.

“I won’t run. I’ll close the circle if something crazy happens. That wouldn’t change whether Damien was here watching or not,” I told her firmly.

“What does that mean?” Damien asked.

“Nothing!” Aphrodite, Darius, Stark, and I all said together. Yeah, the four of us had decided to leave some of the details out of the vision she retold to Damien. He didn’t need to know his breaking the circle had let the tide of zombie things loose on Tulsa. I’d been forewarned. My running wouldn’t happen until after my circle was closed. I could say that for sure. But if there was even the slightest chance something to do with Jack might happen, none of us believed Damien would be in any shape to make the right decision—the safe decision.