into his new room, but didn’t say a thing. Obviously, something was wrong. After moving all of his personal crap around and being tossed out of his own room, Thad couldn’t say he was sorry to see Ashi retreat into the bedroom like a kicked dog.
With a shrug, he cracked his beer open and settled down for a bit of explosive summer blockbuster action on the couch.
* * *
When Christoph started dragging himself back on the couch, Mouse moved in to help, offering a supporting hand. She wasn’t intending to scare him into a fit all over again, but no doubt as soon as he recalled she wasn’t just “the chick with the boobs,” but a vampire, he’d plaster himself to the ceiling.
Once he was sitting up, she pressed one of the steaming cups of tea into his hands and urged him to drink it. It had been heavily sweetened with honey, but it couldn’t hide the undertone of bitter herbs. A natural means of soothing nerves frayed to the breaking point to help ease him out of shock. Once she was sure he had a grip on the mug and wouldn’t slosh the contents all over himself and the couch, she took her own cup in one hand, sipping it while she scrawled him a note with the other.
You’re safe here, no one will hurt you. Drink the tea and please try to relax.
Analie watched as Christoph took the cup and sipped. His eyes had a hollow, staring quality. When Mouse showed him the note, he looked at it. Analie wasn’t sure if he even read it.
She wiped up the spill and took a sip of her own tea. She liked the honey, but the underlying bitterness made her hair fluff. She set the cup down.
Analie wondered about that one statement Mouse had made: he’s mine. She couldn’t imagine Christoph belonging to anyone. Maybe Mouse thought Christoph would get as close to her as he would to a packmate. It wasn’t uncommon for a Were to say “he’s mine,” meaning part of that Were’s group or beta pack.
Maybe she should tell Mouse about the Rattlesnake Talk.
“Hey, Mouse?” When the shifting shadows seemed to focus on her, Analie managed not to have a fluff attack. “I think there’s something I should tell you. About Goliaths.”
If shadows could look interested, Mouse’s certainly did.
“As soon as we’re old enough, or as soon as you join the pack, we get the Rattlesnake Talk. It’s what to do when we encounter a vampire.” Analie paused. She was trying to think of the least offensive way to put this. “This is like, really rude to vampires, maybe. So bear with me.”
Mouse motioned for her to continue.
“Basically, if we see a vampire when we’re walking down the street, you don’t look at them or sniff at them or anything. You keep your head down and go right past. If you find one standing around, not going anywhere, you find a different way around. You just get out of the area.”
Analie thought for a minute. “If you get into a—uh—‘bad situation’ with a vampire, you’re supposed to kick and punch and try to get away. You’re not supposed to go on the attack. If it gets really bad, you go for the throat.”
Mouse nodded slowly.
“With Ashi and Christoph, it’s not so bad,” Analie said, glancing up at the silent Were. “They joined—they weren’t born into the pack, like me. But we’re also told lots of stories about yo— about vampires. Like Lev, a Russian vampire who—”
“—gutted the prettiest boys and girls he could find and hung the carcasses on the eaves of their parents’ houses,” Christoph finished.
Analie winced. She was glad she couldn’t see Mouse’s expression. If she was horrified, Analie would feel bad. If she was calm, Analie didn’t know what she’d think.
“Y—yeah. Lev is sort of like our boogeyman. There are other stories, ones I’m technically not supposed to know about until I’m older.”
“Gil?” Christoph asked.
Analie couldn’t hold back a shiver. “Yeah. Gil, um, did... bad... things.”
“He snapped every bone in a woman’s body and then—”
Analie put a hand over his mouth. “My point is, we’re an ancient pack and we have over a thousand years of horror stories and constant warnings to make us hate vampires. All things considered, I think the three of us are handling this really well. Some better than others.”
Christoph moved her hand and sipped his tea.
“This—” Analie tugged Christoph’s collar and her whole arm lit up in pins and