"Wear this," he said, no louder than a breath. "It has spells to protect you. And even without the spells, there aren't many Night People who'll harm you if they see it."
Hannah opened her mouth to say she wasn't afraid of any Night People except him, but he was still speaking. "Try not to go out alone, especially at night."
And then he was gone.
Like that. He was off her porch and out somewhere in the darkness, not even a shadow, just gone. If she hadn't had a fleeting impression of movement toward the prairie, she would have thought he had the ability to become invisible at a moment's notice. And her heart was pounding, hurting, filling her throat so she couldn't breathe.
Why had he touched her cheek? Most people didn't touch the birthmark; they treated it like a bruise that might still hurt. But his fingers hadn't avoided it. The caress had been gentle, almost sad, but not frightened.
And why was she still standing here, staring into the darkness as if she expected him to reappear?
Go inside, idiot.
Hannah turned and fumbled with the back door, pulling at the knob as if she'd never opened it before.
She shut the door and locked it, and again she found' herself as clumsy as if she'd never worked a lock or seen this one in her life.
She was beyond screaming or crying, in a state of shock that was almost dreamlike. The house was too bright. The dock on the kitchen wall was too loud. She had the distracted feeling that it wasn't either night or daytime.
It was like coming out of a theater and being surprised to find that it's still light outside. She felt that this couldn't be the same house she'd left an hour ago. She wasn't the same person who had left. Everything around her seemed like some carefully staged movie set that was supposed to be real, but wasn't, and only she could tell the difference.
I feel like a stranger here, she thought, putting one hand to her neck where she could just detect two little puncture marks. Oh, God, how am I ever going to know what's real again?
But I should be happy; I should be grateful. I probably just saved my own life out there. I was alone with a vicious, evil, murderous monster, and...
Somehow the thought died away. She couldn't be happy and she didn't want to think about how evil Thierry was. She felt hollow and aching.
It wasn't until she stumbled into her own bedroom that she remembered to look down at her right hand.
On the fourth finger was a ring. It was made of gold and either white gold or silver. It was shaped like a rose, with the stem twining around the finger and back on itself in an intricate knot. The blossom was inset with tiny stones-black transparent stones. Black diamonds? Hannah wondered.
It was beautiful. The craftsmanship was exquisite. Every delicate leaf and tiny thorn was perfect. But a black flower?
It's a symbol of the Night World, her mind told her. A symbol of people who've been made into vampires.
It was the cool wind voice back again. At least she understood what it was saying this time-the last time, when it had given her advice about silver and wolves, she had been completely confused.
Thierry wanted her to wear the ring; he claimed it would protect her. But knowing him, it was probably another trick. If it had any spells on it, they were probably spells to help him control her mind.
It took nearly an hour to get the ring off. Hannah used soap and butter and Vaseline, pulling and twisting until her finger was red, aching, and swollen. She used a dental pick from her fossil-collecting kit to try to pry the coils of the stem apart. Nothing worked, until at last the pick slipped and blood welled up from a shallow cut. When the blood touched the ring it seemed to loosen, and Hannah quickly wrenched it off.
Then she stood panting. The struggle with the little band of metal had left her exhausted and unable to focus on anything else. She threw the ring in her bedroom wastebasket and stumbled toward bed.
I'm tired... I'm so tired. I'll think about everything tomorrow, try to sort out my life. But for now...
please just let me sleep.
She could feel her body vibrating with adrenaline after she lay in bed, and she was afraid that sleep wouldn't come. But tense as she was, her mind was too foggy to stay awake. She turned over once and let go of consciousness. Hannah Snow fell asleep.
Hana of the Three Rivers opened her eyes. Cold and desolate, Hana stood by the rushing river and felt the wind blow through her. So alone.
That was when Arno burst out of the bushes on the riverbank.
There were several hunters with him and they all had spears. They charged after the stranger at full speed. Hana screamed a warning, but she knew he didn't have a chance.
She could hear a few minutes of chaos far away in the dark. And then she saw the stranger being driven back, surrounded by Arno's hunters.
"Arno-don't hurt him! Please!" Hana was speaking desperately, trying to block the men's way back.
"Don't you see? He could have hurt me and he didn't. He isn't a demon! He can't help being the way he is!"
Arno shouldered her aside. "Don't think you're going to get away without being punished, either." Hana followed them up to the cave, her stomach churning with fear.
By the time everyone who'd been awakened by Arno's hunters understood what was happening, the sky outside had turned gray. It was almost dawn.
"You said we should wait and see if the Earth Goddess would tell you something about the demon while you slept," Arno said to Old Mother. "Has she?" Old Mother glanced at Hana sorrowfully, then back at Arno. She shook her head. Then she started to speak, but Arno was already talking loudly.
"Then let's kill him and get it over with. Take him outside."
"No!" Hana screamed. It didn't do any good. She was caught and held back in strong hands. The stranger gave her one look as he was driven outside in a circle of spears.