"Hello, Quinn," Hunter Redfern said.
Quinn was absolutely still beside Rashel. She had the feeling that he couldn't even think. And she
understood why. She'd seen into his mind; she knew what Hunter represented to him. Stern necessity,
even ruthlessness, but honor, too. And he was just now finding out that that was all a lie.
"Don't look so upset," Hunter said. He stepped forward with an amiable smile. His golden eyes were
fixed on Quinn; he hadn't even glanced at Rashel yet. "There's a reason for all this." He gestured to the
vampires in the room, and his voice was gentle, rational. "We need allies in the Council;
the lamia are getting too lax. Once I've explained it all to you, you'll understand."
The way he'd made Quinn understand that Quinn had to be a vampire, Rashel thought. The way he'd
made Quinn understand that humans were the enemy.
She was shaking all over, but there was a white-hot fire inside her that burned through the fear.
"Was there a reason for killing my mother?" she said.
The golden eyes turned toward her. Hunter looked mildly startled. Beside her, Quinn's head jerked
around.
"I was only five, but I remember it all," Rashel said. She took a step closer to Hunter. "You killed her
just like that-snapped her neck. Was there a reason for killing Timmy? He was four years old and you
drank his blood. Was there a reason for killing my great-aunt? You set a fire to get me, but it got her."
She stopped, staring into those predatory golden eyes. She'd searched for this man for twelve years, and
now he didn't seem to recognize her. "What's wrong, did you hunt too many little kids to keep track of?"
she said. "Or are you so crazy you believe your own public image?"
Quinn whispered, "Rashel..."
She turned. "I'm sure. He was the one."
In that instant, she saw Quinn's face harden implacably against the man who'd made him a Red-fern. His
eyes went dark as black holes-no light
escaped. Rashel suddenly had the feeling of glacial cold. Look into eyes like that and what you saw
alone might kill you, she thought.
But she had her own fire inside her, her own vengeance. The knife was in her waistband. If she could
just get close enough.... She moved toward Hunter Redfern again. "You destroyed my life. And you
don't even remember, do you?" "I remember," the little shadow beside him said. And then the world
flipped and Rashel felt the floor slipping away from her. The child behind Hunter was walking into the
light-and suddenly she could smell plastic and old socks, and she could feel vinyl under her hands.
Memories were flooding up so quickly that she was drowning in them.
All she could say was "Oh, Timmy. Oh, God, Timmy."
He was standing there, just as she'd seen him last, twelve years ago. Shiny dark hair and wide tilted blue
eyes. Except that the eyes weren't exactly a child's eyes. They were some strange and terrible
combination of child and adult. There was too much knowledge in them.
"You left me," Timmy said. "You didn't care about me."
Rashel sank her teeth into her lip, but tears spilled anyway. "I'm sorry..."
"Nobody cared about me," Timmy said. He reached up to take Hunter's sleeve. "No humans, anyway.
Humans are vermin." He smiled his old sweet smile.
Hunter looked down at Timmy, then up at Quinn. "It's amazing how quickly they learn. You haven't met
Timmy, have you? He's been living in Vegas, but I think he can be useful here." He turned to Rashel and
his eyes were pure evil. "Of course I remember you. It's just that you've changed a little; you've gotten
older. You're different from us, you see."
"You're weak," Lily put in. She had stepped forward, too, to stand beside her father. Now she linked
her arm in his. "You're short-lived. You're not very bright, and not very important. In a word, you're...
dinner."
Hunter smiled. "Well put." Then he dropped the smile and said to Quinn, "Step away from her, son."
Quinn moved slightly, closer to Rashel. "This is my soulmate," he said, in his softest and most disturbing
voice. "And we're leaving together."
Hunter Redfern stared at him for several long moments. Something like disbelief flickered in his eyes.
Then he recovered and said quietly, "What a shame."
Behind Rashel there were noises of stirring. It was as if a hot wind from the savanna had blown in, and
the lions had caught its scent.
"You know, I was already worried about you, Quinn," Hunter said. "Last summer you let Ash and his
sisters get away with running out on the enclave. Don't think I didn't notice that. You're getting lax, getting
soft. There's too much of that going around lately."
Stand back to back, Quinn told Rashel. She was already moving into position. The vampires were
forming a ring, encircling them. She could see smiles on every face.
"And Lily says you've been strange these last few days-moody. She said you seemed preoccupied with
a human girl."
Rashel drew her knife. The vampires were watching her with the fixed attention of big felines watching
their prey. Absolute focus.
"But the soulmate idea-that's really the last straw. It's like a disease infecting our people. You understand
why I have to stamp it out." Hunter paused. "For old time's sake, let's finish this quickly."
A voice that wasn't Quinn's added in Rashel's mind, / told you I'd see you later.
Rashel stood on the balls of her feet, letting Hunter's words slide off her and drip away. She couldn't