Rampant (7 page)

Again, the darkness quivered, deepest indigo on black. But then, as I had that night in the forest, I saw it more clearly. I…
felt
it. Just beyond the arch it stood, waiting for me, waiting for the boys, waiting to pounce. Far bigger than Bonegrinder. Far bigger than any zhi. Dappled skin, a heavy, dark mane, and a long, evil horn.

“Are you all right?” Giovanni asked, taking my arm and pulling me back toward him. “I’ve never seen anyone move so fast,” he went on. “You looked like you disappeared for a second.”

I realized that we were somehow right at the gate. In the blink of an eye, I’d crossed the entire courtyard, flashed forward, just as I had chasing Bonegrinder that afternoon.

The unicorn at the entrance took a few steps forward, then paused, just beyond the reach of the moonlight. It was the color of midnight, of shadows, of nightmares. I’d never seen anything like it. Why was it waiting? We were defenseless. Tipsy and tired and weapon free.

“You should try for a track scholarship when you do get to college if you can sprint like that.”

I looked at him, blinking, trying to clear my head, but I only saw blood and death. “There’s something out there…. Get back. You’ll get hurt.” I couldn’t have another Brandt on my hands.

“What are you talking about?” He asked. He stretched his neck into the darkness, until he was inches from the creature.

Couldn’t he feel its breath on his face? Couldn’t he see how it
taunted me with his death? One snap of its jaws and Giovanni would be gone. Almost two decades of art and nice hands and rare smiles. I pictured the corduroy lines on Brandt’s face, remembered his blood pouring into the leaves. We had no golden bottle. We had nothing.

The unicorn’s horn arced almost over Giovanni’s head. It stood still, flesh and not flesh, hallucination and threat all at once. Perhaps my uncle was right, and those who saw such things were indeed mad. This wasn’t Bonegrinder, all fluff and hoof and rabid-puppy attitude. This was a monster. This was magic.

“No,” I whispered.
Get away. Get away.

“Hate to tell you, Astrid the Warrior, but there’s nothing out there.”

The kirin—for that was what it was—parted its lips above Giovanni’s scalp. I saw a flash of teeth. And in that moment, it looked me right in the eyes and dared me to come for it.

I kicked off my heels and sprang.

T
HE KIRIN WAS MADE OF
night itself. I clung to its back, able to do little more than hang on to its cold, damp coat as it bucked and reared, tossing its head in a vain attempt to snare me with its horn. Up close I could see it wasn’t invisible at all, merely brindled in the colors of midnight. And yet, as it spun in silent struggle, its hooves making no sound on the cobblestones, the world around us flickered like a mirage, the figure of Giovanni blurring as we whirled away. Could he see me? Would he hear me if I screamed?

I crawled up the creature’s spine, grabbing handfuls of black mane that slid through my fingers like wet weeds. Now I could hear it breathe, hot puffs of air that stank of rot and singed my nostrils as I choked them down. My hand closed around its horn, warm and hard as a baseball bat on a summer day. I squeezed. I pulled. The kirin went berserk, twisting and twirling, leaping and jouncing me. I could hear Phil shouting my name, could make out three blurry figures at the gate, but I couldn’t draw breath to yell back. My hands slipped from the horn, down the
creature’s face; and I dug in desperately, until I felt something squish beneath my thumb. Its eye.

I recoiled in horror, and the kirin bucked once more.

The moon swung in an arc and I crashed against the ground, fire starbursting through my arm. I cradled my hands above my head, certain any second I’d feel hooves crushing my skull into the pavement. Something warm dripped on my face, and then Phil was at my side, pulling me into a sitting position.

“Get up,” she hissed. “It’s gone.”

I rubbed the back of my head where it had bounced painfully against the stone. No cuts, but there would definitely be a lump tomorrow.

“Dude,” Seth said. “Are you some kind of acrobat? Lay off the back handsprings without a mat, huh?”

When I pulled my hand away, there was blood running down my arm. I blinked at it, half dazed.

“You’re hurt—” Phil said, frowning.

I looked beyond her, to where Giovanni stood, as silent as any kirin.

“Put pressure on it,” she went on.

Rivulets of blood were running from my elbow to my wrist from a deep, fiery gash on my inner arm.

“Seriously, though,” Seth was saying. “What did you think you were doing out there?”

“What was it?” Phil asked, ignoring her date.

“A kirin,” I whispered back. “I’m sure of it.”

“On the streets of Rome?”

Unable to get our attention, Seth turned to Giovanni. “What was she doing diving off the wall?”

Giovanni shook his head, but he didn’t take his eyes off me.
“I’m not…sure. The way she moved…she just vanished.”

Phil was still talking. “I guess if there can be coyotes at LAX, there can be kirin in downtown Rome….”

I shook her off—the cut wasn’t deep anyway—and stood. “I wasn’t doing gymnastics. There was something out there.”

“Some
thing?
” Seth chuckled. “Like what, a monster? You told this kid too many myths today, Jo. Now she’s seeing gorgons and cyclopses.”

“Hey,” Phil said, her voice turning dangerous. “Watch your mouth.” She turned to me. “Come on, Astrid. Let’s get you cleaned up.”

Giovanni was still staring, but he hadn’t moved a step in my direction. Hadn’t even asked if I was okay.

“We can’t leave them alone out here,” I said. “What if it’s nearby?”

Phil closed her eyes like some whacked-out psychic. “It’s not. Can’t you tell?”

No. I felt covered in kirin. Filled with it. Kirin caked my body like oil, burned within my blood. I hugged my arms to my chest and shuddered.

“Uh, ladies?” Seth said. “We’re going to take off.” He tugged on his friend’s arm. Giovanni backed up a few steps but didn’t turn around.

I wanted to say we weren’t freaks, that whatever he saw, there was a rational, non-invisible-unicorn explanation. But what was the point? Brandt hadn’t believed the mad goat story. Not even Phil’s charm was having much of an effect on them. “Be safe,” was all I could manage.

Giovanni looked like he would speak then, but Seth strode off, and he only hesitated for a second before following.

“Jerks!” Phil stamped her foot. “I hate boys. One second they have their tongues down your throat, the next second they bail. I hope they
do
get eaten by unicorns. It would serve Seth right for making fun of you.”

I watched their figures recede into the darkness and held my breath, but if a unicorn was stalking them, I couldn’t tell.

“Well, that sucked. What a downer to end a great evening, huh?” Phil said.

“A great evening that started with me getting my purse stolen?”

Phil pursed her lips. “Oh yeah. Well, nothing we can do now. Come on, let’s take care of your arm. I can’t believe you went after it like that! What do you know about killing unicorns yet?”

I tucked my chin into my chest. “I don’t know why I did it—it was stupid. I didn’t even have a weapon. But it just…looked at me. It was going to
eat
Giovanni.”

“So you thought you’d let it get you instead?” Phil sighed, looped her hand through my uninjured arm, and guided me back into the courtyard toward the doors of the Cloisters. “Your mom would kill me if she knew I was letting you jump on unicorns your first week here.”

“Lilith would kill you if she knew you were taking me on dates.”

“That’s true.” Phil grinned. “I think it’s the curse of single moms. They’re afraid of their kid falling into the same trap.”

No, Lilith wanted to ensure my hunter eligibility. I glanced down at my arm. Dried blood crusted on my skin, but the wound looked like little more than a scratch. Phil pulled open the giant doors, and we tiptoed into the rotunda. It was even creepier by
night. No lights glistened off the gilt mosaics, and all I could make out of “Bucephalus” was an amorphous, menacing bulk; the hint of the horn; and those two, glowing, pit-like eyes.

“Have fun?”

We both jumped. A light flicked on, and I blinked at Cory, who pointed a large flashlight at us like an interrogation lamp. Neil stood next to her, his arms crossed over his chest.

“Where have you two been?” he asked.

Phil straightened. “We went out.”

Cory directed the beam of her light at my arm. “Must have been a wild night.”

“There was a kirin—” I began, but Neil cut me off.

“You are not to leave the grounds without permission. Imagine my shock when I was trying to introduce a new hunter and her parents this evening, only to discover that I’d lost a minor under my supervision.”

“What’s the big deal?” Phil asked. “I took her out for dinner. I’m her cousin. I can do that.”

“Astrid’s mother put her in our care, not yours. Though you’re not a minor, I don’t entirely approve of the fact that you’re here without the knowledge of your parents. But what I do know is that you arrived without invitation or announcement and the next thing I know, you’re vanishing with my hunters.”

“
Your
hunters?” Phil replied. “What is it that makes you qualified to be in charge?”

Neil ignored that. “Astrid, you will wash up and go to your room. Philippa, you will come to my office at once.”

I stepped forward. “Not without me, she won’t.” She’d defended me to Seth, now I could do the same. “Phil didn’t force me to go anywhere. If we’re going to get in trouble, we’re
going to do it together.” What was the worst he could do—kick me out? Bring it on!

Neil frowned. “Fine.” He turned and stalked off to his office. We followed, and Cory trailed behind until Neil practically slammed the door in her face.

“Pardon the mess,” he said in a tone lacking any trace of apology. Neil’s office was crowded with books and papers, computer printouts of satellite photos, and yellowed sketches of unicorns. The walls, however, were painted a smooth cream, and there was no sign anywhere of unicorn bones.

He shifted a pile of folders from a bench to the floor, and gestured for us to sit. We did, and then he took his sweet time parading around the corner of the desk and sinking into his own chair. His shirt was rumpled, his hair more so, and I thought I detected bags under his eyes. I felt a stab of guilt that he’d been worrying all evening. I’d done enough babysitting to know how tough it was to have parents show up when you didn’t have everything perfectly under control.

“I’ll hear your explanation.”

“That’s it,” Phil said. “There is none. We went out. We had fun. Last I checked, those things were not illegal.”

“If you believe that, then why didn’t you inform me?” Ooh, score a point for Neil.

Phil was smooth, though. “If we’d asked, why would you have said no?”

He pointed at my arm. “Is that not reason enough for you? Your cousin was attacked by a unicorn tonight. An untrained hunter is in danger any time she’s not inside. Don’t you get it? The
potentia illicere
—the unicorn is drawn to the hunter, always. And tonight, it came for
her
.”

“I beg to differ,” Phil replied. “From what I heard,
she
attacked
it
.”

I nodded in support. And perhaps now wouldn’t be the best time to bring up my lost passport.

“What you heard from whom?”

“Her date.”

Now Neil stood up. “You must be joking. Not only did you remove my charge from the Cloisters without permission but you set her up on a date?” He shook his head in disbelief. “Have you no respect for what we’re doing here?”

“I don’t see how we’ve jeopardized anything.” Phil rose in turn.

“There’s no dating allowed. That goes against every rule of the Order.”

Phil laughed. “Please. I’ve been dating for years and I’m still an eligible unicorn hunter. What do you take us for? We just met these guys!”

“So
you’re
dating, too, then.” He crossed his arms. “These points aren’t negotiable.”

She shrugged. “You’re the one desperate for unicorn hunters. How many is it you have coming now, six? Nine? Against how many unicorns?” She smiled. “
Everything
here is negotiable.”

He leaned forward and smiled every bit as charmingly. “Not that. I assume you know
those
rules.”

I groaned. “Don’t you get it yet, Phil? This isn’t a summer program. It’s a lifestyle choice. If we’re going to be hunters, then that’s it. That’s all we’re going to be. Not girlfriends, not wives, not mothers…”

Phil looked at me, appalled. “So that’s what Aunt Lilith meant. And you agreed to this?”

What were my options? Maybe I would have fought harder if I felt like I was giving up anything. But after Brandt, it wasn’t like I had much of a chance with any of the boys back home. And things with Giovanni hadn’t been going anywhere even before the kirin showed up. Maybe I wasn’t cut out for romance, unicorn hunting or no.

“Well, that’s just ridiculous!” she cried. “How do you expect anyone to submit to that?”

“Now you see why we’re having such a hard time,” Neil said. “The historical stigma is a tough mantle to shed. Half the extant family lines are descended from the female side—a population who rarely had descendants before the unicorns became extinct. Even if they’re aware of their heritage, few are in support of it. Resistance was expected.”

“Then why follow the old rules?” I asked. “You’re saying you’re willing to lose Philippa because she doesn’t want to give up every aspect of her life to be a hunter. That you’re willing to give up all of us. I’m here because my mom is making me, and because, as you say, I’m a minor. You’re trying to recruit more hunters and you’re just making it harder on yourself. Wouldn’t it be better to change the rules to suit the fact that nowadays women are more independent?”

“To what end?” Neil asked. “Spend time training girls who ditch us the moment they decide to take their relationships to the next level?”

I didn’t have an answer for that.

“I understand your points, believe me,” Neil said, sitting back down. “I deeply resent being forced into the position of caring about your personal affairs. It’s none of my business. But there was a reason that the Order of the Lioness was formed in the
guise of a convent, and it had nothing to do with Catholicism. By taking the hunters out of the secular world, the Order removed any possibility that they would lose them to it.” He gestured to Phil. “You’re nineteen; you say you’ve been dating for several years; and yet, you’re still…
eligible
. Do you have any idea how rare that is in this age?”

“Call me a loser to my face, why don’t you?” Phil said.

But Neil was not to be sidetracked. “Especially someone as attractive and vibrant as you are. To be perfectly frank, if I hadn’t seen you pass the trial by zhi with my own eyes, I’d be hard-pressed to believe it.”

The look of surprise on both of our faces made him blush, and he backtracked. “You’re the oldest girl here by several years.”

“How does her age have anything to do with it!” I exclaimed. “You think because she’s pretty and nice and fun that she should be having sex?”

“No!” Neil ran his hand through his hair. “Don’t you see?
I
don’t care. I didn’t make the rules. But I have to follow them. The old way
worked.
”

“The old way,” I said, “was developed in a society where women were nothing more than chattel.”

“Nothing more than what?” Phil’s brow furrowed.

“Possessions.” Neil explained, and slumped in his seat. “I know. And, to some extent, I agree. I see the problems inherent in asking teenagers to make a lifelong commitment. But we don’t know how long it will take to have any hunters ready to fulfill their duty. In the old days, you would have been trained from childhood and you would hunt well into old age. So what do we set the terms at? Four years, like military service? Thirty, like the vestal virgins of ancient Rome?”

“Thirty!” Phil choked. “Might as well be a lifetime.”

Or we got killed in action on our first hunt. There was always that option. I checked out the scratch on my arm, which had scabbed over completely. What had I been thinking, to leap at the kirin like that? I could have been killed tonight.

“Why do you get to be the one to set the terms?” I asked. “Who appoints the don? How does that work?”