I WALK BESIDE RYNNE on our way back to the base. I pull my coat around me, more out of shame than to fight off the cold. Arsen was right there, defenseless, and I couldn’t bring myself to finish the job. I couldn’t bring myself to avenge my parents.
Rynne comments, “You haven’t said a word. What are you thinking?”
I ask, “Just how hard is it to kill a demon?”
“It depends.”
“But is it hard for you to kill them?”
“The mentor I was with died to see to a demon’s end. It’s very hard.”
“Do they play with your emotions to make you feel like you don’t want to kill them? Can they manipulate happy emotions?”
Rynne glances back at me. “Is that how Arsen made you feel? Happy?”
“I-I guess,” I confess. “But then I came back to my senses.”
“Demons have the power to taint people with darkness.”
“But darkness isn’t what I was feeling.”
Rynne goes silent.
“He did something to me,” I whisper. “When I was in there with him, it was like my hate disappeared and was replaced by that warm feeling you get in your chest when you see someone you…” I swallow. “See someone you love.”
“It wasn’t love. It’s like you’ve been saying. He’s manipulating you. Hold on to the truth.”
“But what is the truth?”
“Arsen is a demon. He doesn’t deserve your pity, and he certainly doesn’t deserve your love.” There’s an edge in Rynne’s voice that I’ve never heard before.
But he’s right. What I’m saying… it’s complete nonsense. Whatever Arsen did to me messed with my head. That must have been his plan all along. He’s playing with me. Everything that happened back in that warehouse was all an act. He was never vulnerable. He’s just getting a high off of the hunt. He’s happily ruining my life. Next time I see him, I won’t hesitate. I won’t let him control me like that ever again.
We’ve passed multiple warehouses and now we’re coming up on the base. There’s an unusual amount of activity out front.
“Tasia! Rynne!” Fiona exclaims as she abruptly stops saying whatever it was she was saying to the hunters in front of her.
She cuts through the hunters to get to me and Rynne. For a moment, I think she’s going to hug me, but the relief on her face is eclipsed by a furious scowl. She’s so angry. I think I can see a glimmer of red in her almost coal-black eyes. If I wasn’t in trouble before, I am now.
“Where were you both?” she demands. “Rynne, you just ran off without any explanation, and then when I came back to the base, Tasia was gone, too. Someone had better start talking.”
“I found Arsen,” I say.
Fiona’s face pales to a color I’ve never seen on her dark skin.
“I’m not hurt,” I add, “and that’s probably thanks to Rynne.”
Rynne shakes his head, but he doesn’t say anything.
“I can’t believe this,” Fiona says, exasperated. “Both of you, get inside.” Then she turns to the other hunters outside of the base. “Everyone go back to your business.”
When we’re safely inside the lobby, I shed my backpack and coat. I sit on a bench and wait for Fiona to get back to her disciplining. I know there’s no point in trying to avoid it. Besides, I deserve it. Arsen played me so easily. It’s amazing I haven’t died yet.
Rynne sits beside me as Fiona walks over to us. She addresses Rynne first. “You killed that vampire. You didn’t even give her the chance to consider offing her thralls. Now hunter teams are going to have to comb through Philadelphia to kill them instead. You left your team without any explanation. You were off your game tonight. I’ve never seen you so unfocused. It’s like your mind was somewhere else. Teamwork is about communication, following your team leader, and looking out for your teammates.”
She sighs. “You might know a lot about hunting, but I might have prematurely placed you in Gold Team’s ranks. Or maybe I’ve just been working you too hard. I’m taking you off the team and all missions until I say otherwise. Focus on recharging. Think about your actions. I will give you another chance, but it will be your last. We have no use for those who aren’t willing to work in a team.”
“Understood,” Rynne replies.
“I don’t know how you found Tasia first, but thanks for looking out for her,” Fiona adds begrudgingly. I can’t tell what she really thinks about him finding me.
“Tasia,” she says, turning her attention to me. “You snuck out of your room and attempted to take Arsen on all by yourself. Never mind the fact that you’ve never been on an actual mission before, you tried to do this by yourself. No one in the EEA fights alone. We have team units for a reason. Our teams keep us safe. You’re lucky you weren’t killed.”
She sighs again and brings her right hand to her forehead, trying to smooth out the scowl that hasn’t left once since she started lecturing us. “Go to your rooms,” she says. “Neither of you are allowed to leave your rooms until I say so.”
Fiona tells Donovan to escort me to my room, and she has Miguel escort Rynne to his. I keep Rynne in my sight for as long as possible before we have to part ways for our separate rooms. I try to puzzle through what Fiona said about Rynne leaving without an explanation and about him being unfocused. Did he somehow know I was in danger? He did arrive at… the perfect time. But that’s ridiculous. How could he?