Betrayed (House of Night #2)(47)

Then, forcing away the image of Heath with the unhealed cut on his neck, warm and de sirable, obviously wanting me as much as I wanted him, I moved from the window and climbed into bed. Incredibly, my clock told me it was now 8:27 A.M. I'd been standing by the window for more than two hours! No wonder my body felt so stiff and crappy. I made a mental note to look up more info about Im printing and the connection between the human and the vamp next time I was in the media center (which had better be soon). Before I turned off the little table lamp I glanced over at Stevie Rae. She was curled up on her side and her back was to me, but her deep breathing told me that she was definitely still asleep. Well, at least my friends didn't know what a bloodlust-filled, hornie freak I was turning into. I wanted Heath. I needed Erik. I was intrigued by Loren. I had no damn idea what I was going to do about the mess that my life had become. I smushed my pillow into a ball. I was so tired I felt like some one had drugged me, but my mind still wouldn't shut itself off. When I woke up I'd see Erik again and probably Loren. I'd have to face Neferet. I'd perform my first ritual in front of a group of kids who would probably be happy to see me fail, or at least em barrass myself miserably, and there was always the possibility that both would happen. Then there was the weirdness of know ing that I'd seen what could only be Elliott's ghost behaving in a very unghostlike way. Not to mention another human teenager was dead and it was looking more and more as if a vamp had something to do with it. I closed my eyes and told my body to relax and my mind to concentrate on something pleasant, like ... like ... how pretty the snow was .. .

Slowly, exhaustion took over and I finally, gratefully, fell into a deep sleep.

Chapter Nineteen

Someone banging on the door pulled me awake from a dream about cat-shaped snowflakes. "Zoey! Stevie Rae! You're gonna be late!" Shaunee's voice sounded muffled but urgent through the door, like an annoying alarm covered up by a towel. "Okay, okay, I'm coming," I called as I tried to struggle out of my covers while Nala complained loudly. I glanced at my alarm clock, which I hadn't bothered to set. I mean, it wasn't like it was a school day and I usually didn't sleep more than eight or nine hours at a time and-- "Hell!" I blinked. Sure enough, the time was 9:59 P.M. I'd slept more than twelve hours? I stumbled to the door, pausing to shake Stevie Rae's leg. "Mumph," she muttered sleepily. I cracked the door. Shaunee was glaring at me. "Please with the sleeping all damn day! You two have got to stop staying up late if you can't get up. Erik's going to be per forming in half an hour."

"Ah, hell!" I rubbed my face, trying to force myself awake. "I forgot all about that." Shaunee rolled her eyes. "You better hurry up and get dressed. And slap some serious makeup on that pale face and do something about your nappy hair. Boyfriend's been looking all over for you."

"Okay, okay. Crap! I'm coming. Will you and Erin--" Shaunee put up her hand, cutting me off. "Please. We've al ready got you covered. Erin's in the auditorium saving front row seats as we speak."

"Is that you, Mamma? I don't wanna go to school today ..." Stevie Rae mumbled, clearly not awake. Shaunee snorted. "We'll hurry. You guys just save those seats for us." I slammed the door shut and hurried over to Stevie Rae. "Wake up!" I shook her shoulder. She squinted and frowned up at me. "Huh?"

"Stevie Rae, it's ten o'clock. P.M. We slept forever and now we're so late it's ridiculous."

"Huh?"

"Just wake the hell up!" I snapped, taking out my frustration that I'd overslept on her. "Wha--" She looked blearily at the clock, and that seemed to finally get through to her. "Ohmygoodness! We're late."

I rolled my eyes. "That's what I've been trying to tell you. I'm gonna throw on something and work on my hair and makeup. You better jump in the shower. You look terrible."

"'Kay." She staggered into the bathroom. I yanked on a pair of jeans and a black sweater, and then got to work on my hair and makeup. I could not believe I'd totally blown off the fact that Erik was performing the Shakespearian monologue he'd taken to the competition. Actually, I hadn't even worried about how he'd placed, which was definitely not good girlfriend etiquette. Of course it wasn't like I didn't have other things on my mind, but still. Everyone thought I was the lucky girl who had caught Erik after he'd escaped from Aphrodite's nasty spiderweb (and by web I mean crotch). Hell, I thought I was lucky to have him, something that had been hard to remem ber when I was sucking Heath's blood and flirting with Loren. "Sorry about oversleeping, Z." Stevie Rae came out of the bath room in a gush of steamy air, towel-drying her short, blond curls. She was dressed a lot like I was, and she must still be half asleep because she looked pale and tired. She gave a huge yawn and stretched like a cat. "No, it's my fault." I felt bad for the way I'd jumped on her be fore. "I should have known with how little I've been sleeping that I needed to set my alarm." I guess it shouldn't have been a sur prise that Stevie Rae hadn't gotten much sleep lately, either. We are best friends and she definitely knows when I'm overstressed. We probably both needed a good, long, comalike sleep. "I'll be ready in just a sec. I'm just gonna put on some mascara and gloss. My hair will dry in like two minutes anyway," Stevie Rae said. We were out of there in five minutes. No time for breakfast, we bolted out of the dorm and practically ran to the auditorium. We made it to seats Erin had saved for us just as the lights flicked on and off, announcing that there were two minutes before the pro gram began, and for people to take their seats. "Erik stayed out here waiting for you until just a second ago," Damien said. I was glad to see he was sitting beside Jack. The two really did make a cute couple. "Is he mad?" I asked. "I'd say confused is a better description," Shaunee said. "Or worried. He looked worried, too," Erin added. I sighed. "Did you not tell him that I'd overslept?"