Hunted (House of Night) Chapter 22:
Darius insists that Zoey really needs to get some rest, and her other friends display a sincere concern for her well-being:
‘How’s your nasty, ugly, gaping wound?’ Erin asked.
Don’t forget, the real Erin Bates is angry at how the fictional Erin is portrayed later.
Zoey tries to argue that there’s no time for her to rest and that they really need to escape. This leads us to a startling reminder of how little time has passed:
‘Raven Mockers are everywhere. Last night they were attacking people randomly. It was mass confusion then, and that helped us slip away.
Fucking hell! This whole book has been ONE DAY?????? Firstly, I’ve felt like they have been in the tunnels for weeks at least. Secondly, when they came back to the House of Night, it really sounded like things had gone through the kind of change that takes time as people acclimate to it and then become desensitised to the horror…but I guess Kalona’s handsomeness/mind control powers are just that strong.
Anyway, the gang start to discuss the mind control powers and who might be resistant to them. Damien figures out that because they’ve been touched by the elements (his words), that’s why they’re all able to resist Kalona. Well, no shit. I thought we had cracked that code awhile ago given almost everything can be explained by, “Oh, the elements!” in this series.
They also determine that any vampyres with psychic abilities are able to resist Kalona. Apparently, all the red fledglings have psychic abilities which is why they don’t fall for his angelic charms either. I hope this wasn’t covered earlier, because it is news to me.
Anyway, the gang tries to figure out which vamypres at the House of Night might be on their side:
And, as per usual, Damien got it right away. ‘Dragon, Professor Anastasia, and Professor Lenobia! They’re who I’d consider as the most intuitive after Neferet.’
‘It’s no coincidence their cats are here with us,’ Darius said.
‘They’re a sign, sent to us to let us know we’re on the right track,’ Damien said.
It didn’t seem important before, but the characters did comment last chapter about how weird it was that these extra cats were hanging out in their room. Again, it’s the usual House of Night plot development where they’re like, “Look! We’re on the right path because Nyx gave us a sign!” Where does Nyx draw the line with her intervention?
They also rightly question why Stark seems to be so under the influence of Kalona/Neferet when he was blessed by Nyx and is a red fledgling who should be immune. I would imagine this is going to actually be important later, but I’m definitely not convinced I’ll find the explanation satisfying given there has to be a really good reason he’s responding differently than all the other red fledglings.
At this point, everyone writes it off saying he was probably just a dick before he died, and I guess it’s possible he’s just using this as a cover to give into his darker urges, but I don’t think Zoey would have seen glimpses of the old Stark (albeit, who she hardly knew) coming through during their talk if this was the case. Zoey does not tell them anything about their conversation or the fact that she kissed him. Keeping secrets worked out really well for her last time, so this seems like a smart move.
The group agrees they’ll stay one more day and try to talk to the professors and also have Zoey rest up a little more.
Zoey goes to sleep and starts dreaming about one of the places from Aphrodite’s vision where she’s might die. I feel like Kalona is going to show up soon and again try to seduce Zoey. This is most certainly not a plot point that will become tiresome.
We’re extremely close to hitting our Patreon goal to start blogging about The Bachelor in a new Bad TV, Good Times feature. If that’s something you’d like to see or you’d like to support Bad Books, Good Times, please consider becoming a Patron.