Then I went to the gym that Dailey had reserved for her first Guild meeting. I wasn’t really sure what to expect, but I was looking forward to being distracted, to have something else to fill up my brain. There wasn’t the usual chatter as we waited for her to arrive. It was mostly twelfth-grade students with a sprinkling of others from the eleventh and tenth grades. There were no Niners at all. We all smiled questioningly at each other, but no one had any answers.

“Good, you’re all here.” Ms. Dailey strode in with a welcoming nod. “We have a lot of work to do, so let’s get started.”

One of the students raised his hand. “Um, Ms. Dailey?”

“Yes, Justin?”

“What exactly are we starting?”

She chuckled. “I’ve handpicked you all as the best this school has to offer. You’re all honor students or well on your way to becoming such. And now, you’ll be even better.” She smiled at us. “We’ll cover fighting, of course, and weaponry and tactics, but also stealth and technology and other, newer ways to win the fight. It’s no secret that recently Hel-Blar have been crawling all over campus, Violet Hill, and even surrounding villages. If we’re to contain this new threat, the League will need more help. And my Guild will be first on call, before any other student group. I’m excited to get started.”

She gave us a list of books we needed to take out from the library and the password for the private Web site she was putting together for us. I left feeling better than I had all day. I had a purpose again, and options. And confidence in the Helios-Ra, despite recent evidence to the contrary. I waited until everyone else had cleared out.

“Yes, Hunter, what is it?” Ms. Dailey asked when she noticed I was still hovering nearby.

“Could I talk to you for a minute?” I asked awkwardly. “It’s … private.”

“Certainly.” She frowned worriedly. “What’s wrong?”

“It’s about all the sick students.”

“Oh, Hunter, that’s not for you to worry about. You’re a strong, healthy girl.”

“It’s not that. It’s …” I hoped I was doing the right thing. I was pretty sure Ms. Dailey would hear me out and not drag me to the headmistress or the school shrink. “There’s some kind of pill going around,” I told her. “I think it’s making people sick.”

She looked startled. “Drugs? Already?”

I blinked. “What do you mean already?”

“It’s only the first week of school. Usually the pills don’t start circulating until mid-terms.” She shook her head.

I smiled uneasily. “I don’t think this is that kind of pill.”

“Oh?”

“I don’t have the chemical breakdown yet, but this one’s dangerous. Really dangerous. And … vampires don’t like it.”

“Vampires?” she sighed. “Hunter, what have gotten yourself into?”

“Nothing good,” I admitted. “Will you help me?”

“After the speech I just gave everyone? Of course I will.”

Relief flooded through me and I had to swallow a nervous giggle. “Thank you, Ms. Dailey! The pills are little and white and have ‘TH’ stamped on them. Savannah was taking them just before she got sick and I think Will was too.”

White lines bracketed her mouth. “We’ll get to the bottom of this, Hunter.” She flicked the gym lights off. “Now let’s not say another word about it until I can do some research of my own. The walls have ears.”

I nearly skipped down the stairs. She winked at me before turning down the lane toward the teachers’ residence, heels clacking. Teachers like Ms. Dailey were rare. I hadn’t forgotten how she’d stood up for me when York busted me at the first drill. If it came to it, at least we now had someone on the faculty we could trust.

Bolstered, I was grinning when Quinn popped out of the edge of the woods and scared the breath right out me. I leaped into the air, shrieking.

So much for Dailey’s training.

Quinn laughed so hard he bent right over. I laughed too and pulled his ponytail. “Shut up.”

“Hunter, you’re adorable.”

“Excuse me, I am fierce and kick-ass.”

“That too.” He took my hand, his thumb rubbing over my palm. “And you’re cute in your workout shorts.”

I was suddenly aware of all my bare leg. I absolutely refused to blush. His grin widened.

“What are you doing here?” I asked him.

His hand moved comfortingly over my wrist and up my arm. “I’m here to take you on a date.”

I blinked. “A date?” I repeated as if it was a foreign word I’d never heard before.

“You know, where we go out, hold hands, cast longing glances at each other? It’s tradition. You might have heard of it.”

“But I have class.”

“Class?” Now he was looking at me as if I was speaking a different language. “But it’s ten o’clock at night.”

“We have classes until midnight.” I smiled pointedly. “The thing about vampires is that they kind of like the night. It’s tradition. You might have heard of it?”

“Oh, smart mouth.” He grinned back. “Sexy.”

He prowled forward, maneuvering me against the trunk of a tall pine tree. The branches started dozens of feet above us, spreading out branches like a green parasol. The ground was soft, carpeted in rust-colored needles.