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There’d be no running. I’d have to fight this one out, at least until I found her.
But how to fight a dozen Draug with only four throwing stars? They were moving slowly, like zombies. Maybe they’d just eaten. Maybe their bloodlust was temporarily dulled. Or maybe, like Tom had said, if I didn’t show fear, they’d not hunger for me.
Either way, fear was something I couldn’t afford. I put two stars in each hand and took off running, headed straight for them. “Best defense…good offense. ”
I heard Mei-Ling scream and ran harder, but then I made sense of her words and skidded to a stop, close enough to the Draug to see the whites of their eyes.
“Stop, Drew,” she cried again. “Stop. ”
She meant me. She wanted me to stop.
Her voice came from above, and I looked along the hilltop. She was walking, her flute in hand. Tom walked beside her, looking grumpy to be there.
“What the—?”
She half slid, half ran down the hill to me, a proud smile on her face. “I thought I’d bring backup. ”
I had the oddest flicker of temper. I was slashed all over my body, and despite the rapid healing of my wounds, my shoulder still ached like crazy. I’d been freaking out with worry for her, fighting to protect her, and here she was, scampering toward me with a smile on her face. “What the hell are you doing?” I snapped.
She looked stung. Hurt. It made me feel like an ass. “I thought I’d help you,” she said quietly.
“Sorry. You’re right. ” I sighed and looked toward the Draug, and it hit me what I was witnessing. They weren’t acting like zombies because they’d been fed. This was Mei-Ling’s doing. I looked back at her for confirmation.
She waved her flute. “Cool, huh?”
I stepped closer, fascinated to see the creatures up close. Their eyes were glazed, and they held themselves utterly still, like they were waiting for something. The stench was overpowering, but I couldn’t look away. Each face was so distinct, all in various states of decay.
My eyes went to a patch of brown curly hair, and I recognized one of the Trainees who’d been in my Phenomena class last term. I whirled and ran to the hillside, leaning on the rocks for support as I retched up every last bit of food in my system.
Tom’s voice sounded at my shoulder. “Get a hold, girl. Be calm, like your friend here. ”
Astounded, I looked up, wiping my mouth, gathering myself. Sure enough, Mei-Ling did look calm. Composed. I remembered how she’d been through a crisis before, watching as her boyfriend was killed, but it hadn’t destroyed her. This time, when crisis struck, she’d had the wherewithal to use music to pacify the Draug. She’d needed me to protect her, but it appeared in this situation I’d needed her.
“Yeah, Drew,” she said with a teasing smile. “Be calm like me. ”
I used my sleeve to wipe my mouth again. “Jeez, Mei. Your flute did this?”
She shrugged, looking pleased.
Tom, though, had that grumpy look again. “Her whistle shut them right up. ”
I bumped up against her, giving her a half hug. “You’re like the pied piper. ”
He scowled at my arm around Mei’s shoulders. “You girls done? We gotta get a move on. My Draug ain’t the only ones called by blood. ”
That focused us quickly enough. There was a rogue vampire out there somewhere, who’d be called by the scent of blood in the air. It also reminded me how there were bodies—bodies that might easily be linked back to me. “There are three of them,” I said gravely. “They were Guidons. ”
Tom sniffed and nodded up the beach. “I smell ’em, all right. This way?”
I nodded, nervous. How would we dispose of them? Even if I didn’t get in trouble for killing three Guidons, I knew I’d get it for going so far off campus. “What should I do?”
“We’ll see,” he said mysteriously.
We reached Masha’s body, and the full impact of what I’d done hit me. Masha was dead.
I knelt to study the body. I’d killed a girl before, only to see her pop up on another island. I didn’t want another Lilac. I felt for her pulse, for her breath.
Really dead.
