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of

"Well" The girl glanced around the porch, where there was dearly no place to sit "Ah"

Hannah was eirl had asked, "Do you entertain all your visitors outside?" She

turned around and opened the back door "Coirl said and

shts of the kitchen, she was even ly beautiful

Exquisite features, skin like silk Lips that made Hannah think of adjectives like full and ripe And eyes

that were like nothing Hannah had ever seen before

They were large, almond-shaped, heavy-lashed, and luminous But it wasn’t just that Every time Hannah

looked, they seeany to jungle-leaf green

to larkspur purple to

"If you reirl said She rested an elbow on

the kitchen table and propped her chin on her fist Hannah said one word "Thierry" "Yes, From the way

you say that, irl had an extraordinary voice as well; low

and pleasant, with a faint husky throb in it Hannah lifted her shoulders "Well, there’s still a lot I don’t

know about hierous And I’ve already told hio

away"

"Have you really? How reht of it as being so brave

"I mean, you do realize hoerful he is? He’s a Lord of the Night World, the head of all the ers- "call out a hundred little vampires and olves Not

to as"

"What are you trying to say? That I shouldn’t have told hio away? I don’t care how many monsters

he can call out," Hannah said sharply

"No Of course you don’t Like I said, you’re brave" The girl regarded her with eyes the deep purple of

bittersweet nightshade "I just want you to realize what he’s capable of He could have this whole county

wiped out He can be very cruel and very childish-if he doesn’t get what he wants he’ll sio into rages?"

"All the tiht came to Hannah suddenly She didn’t knohere it ca about this girl that bothered her, soers That felt like a lie

"Who are you?" she said directly When the girl’s eyes-now burnt sienna-lifted to hers this time, she held

them "I mean, why are you so interested in

me? Why are you even here, in Montana, where I am? Is it just a coincidence?"

"Of course not I caain I’m interested in you

because-well, I’ve known Thierry since his childhood, before he becaation to stop hiaze easily "And my nameis Maya"

She said the last words slowly, and she see Hannah for a reaction But the na to Hannah And Hannah siirl called Maya was

lying or not

"I know you’ve warned hts "But I don’t

re me I don’t even knohat you are-I mean, are you

somebody who’s been reincarnated like me? Or are you ?" She left the question open-ended As a

matter of fact, she knew Maya wasn’t huraceful

If Maya claimed she was, Hannah would know for sure it was a deception

"I’m a vampire," Maya said calmly and without hesitation "I lived with Thierry’s tribe in the days when

you lived with the Three Rivers clan In fact, I’m the one who actually made him into a vampire I

shouldn’t have done it; I should have realized he was one of those people who couldn’t handle it But I

didn’t know he’d go crazy and become what he is" She looked off into the distance "I suppose that’s

why I feel responsible for him," she finished

softly Then she looked back at Hannah "Any other questions?"

"Hundreds," Hannah said "About the Night World, and about what’s happened toto be able to answer ht World-and anyway, it’s safer for you not to know As for your past lives, well, you don’t really

want to knohat he’s done to you each tirueso

at Hannah earnestly "What you should do now is put the past behind you and forget about all this Try to

have a happy future"

It was exactly what Hannah had decided to do earlier So why did she feel like bristling now? She

weighed different responses and finally said, "If he wants to kill ht? Instead of talking to , but see "He wants you to

love him first, and then he kills you I know, it’s sick, it’s twisted, but it’s the way he is He seems to think

it has to be that way, since it was that way the first ti inside her stood up to say that this was a lie And the idea that Thierry was

obsessed certainly rang true At last she said slowly, "Thank you for co to warn me I do appreciate

it"

"No, you don’t," Maya said "I wouldn’t either if sos I didn’t want to hear

But maybe someday you will thank ain"

Hannah walked her to the back door and let her out

On the porch, Maya turned "He really is insane, you know!" she said "You’ll probably begin to have,

doubts again But he’s obsessive and unstable, just like any stalker; and he’s really capable of anything

Don’t be fooled"

"I don’t think I’ain," Hannah said, unreasonably annoyed "So it’s going to be

kind of hard to foolact Just as Thierry had, she turned and siht

Hannah stared out into the darkness for a minute or so Then she went back into the kitchen and called

Paul Winfield’s nu e aboutif we could maybe do it tomorrow-or anyway so if it was soht as well give hiression There are soure out"

She felt better after she hung up One way or another, she would get at the truth

She headed into her bedroorim smile

And stopped dead on the threshold

Thierry was sitting on her bed

For a moment Hannah stood frozen Then she said sharply, "What are you doing here?" At the saotten in The ere shut and only opened from inside

Hewith Maya

"I had to see you," Thierry said He looked- strange His dark eyes see inside His face was tense and grim

"I told you to keep away from me" Hannah kept fear out of her voice-but she was scared There was a

sort of electricity in the air, but it wasn’t a good electricity It was purely dangerous

"I know you did, and I tried But I can’t stay away, Hannah I just can’t It makes mecrazy"

And with that, he stood up

Hannah’s heart see hard She fought to keep her

face calm

He’s fast, a little voice in her head seenized the dark wind voice, the

cool voice of reason There’s no point in running from him, because he can catch you in a second

"You have to understand," Thierry was saying "Please try to understand I need you We were "

He took a step toward her His eyes were black and fathomless, and Hannah could alht Maya was right He ood front, but underneath he’s just

plain crazy like any stalker

"Say you understand," Thierry said He reached a pleading hand toward her

"I understand," Hannah said grio away"

"I can’t I have to ether, the ere meant to be And there’s only one way

to do that"

There was sos were protruding, indenting his lower

Hannah felt a cold fist dose over her heart

"You have to join the Night World, Hannah You have to become like me I promise you, once it’s over,

you’ll be happy"

"Happy?" A wave of sickening revulsion swept over Hannah "As a monster like you? I was happy

before you ever showed up I’d be happy if you’d just keep out of ! The cool wind voice was screaht to listen

"You’re disgusting I hate you And nothing can j ever et to finish In one swift rabbed her