House of Night 8
P.C. & Kristin Cast
1. Neferet lures men from the Sons of Erebus into her bed, but none of them are good enough for her because she has been with Kalona. She plans for the death of another Son of Erebus’ mate because he hesitates in calling her Nyx Incarnate. She throws one named Kronos out of her room and goes to wear Kalona is in a Darkness induced coma trying to defeat Zoey by keeping her from returning to her own body. The Darkness reminds her she made a deal: to be able to control it, she must sacrifice an innocent it couldn’t taint. A light comes into the room; Kalona’s soul has returned. The Darkness entwines it and goes into his body with it. Neferet, as a healer, does what she can to lessen his poin. She thinks that because he is back, he must have completed his mission. He asks to see the sky and she orders the Sons of Erebus to take him outside to a bench.
2. Kalona tells Neferet that Zoey’s friends rallied around her to heal her shattered soul. After that, Nyx intervened to reward her. Neferet knows she will have to get Zoey back to Oklahoma to be able to defeat her. She points out that Kalona will have to be punished for killing Heath Luck. He points out it was both of them that did it, but she can’t have her reputation ruined. He doesn’t plan to sit in the shadows pretending to heal from fake wounds. Neferet feeds the Darkness blood from her wrists and then sends it after him for 100 lashings. She tells it not to mar him permanently before walking away to continue her plans. She sees a bull in the shadows watching her with approval.
3. Zoey thinks Sgiach’s (vampire queen) throne room (and entire castle) is beautiful, but she is alone as everyone is off doing other things. Queen Sgiach joins her after checking her email. She has been wondering why the sunlight affects Stark the way it does. Zoey has already sent word to the High Council about Kalona and feels like she needs a break. Sgiach tells her to stay as long as she needs to truly rest and the battle will be there when she returns home. Her guardian, Seoras, comes in to tell Zoey that Stark is awake and asking for her. He tells her he is in the grove. Zoey is surprised Stark is outside. Sgiach tells her to take her scarf with her (even though they don’t feel weather changes) obliges. When she gets to him, he is looking better and acting more like himself. She tells him she was worried he might not come back this time and that she is tired of people leaving. He tells her he knew the risks when he gave his oath and nothing has changed. He promises to be with her for the rest of their lives. She asks if he is okay with staying there longer and he agrees to it. He kisses her and she finds it hard to think straight when he does. He asks her to tie her wishes for the future with his to the hanging tree and she agrees.
4. Zoey is upset she has to tear a piece off her new scarf to tie a knot in the hanging tree. Stark says they have to use cloths that mean something to them. He uses a piece of his plaid quilt. They tie their knot wishing to always be together. Aphrodite comes out with her phone and tells Zoey that she has to be the one to tell Jack they aren’t coming home yet since he is planning a big party. Zoey makes the call and expects Jack to be upset, but he is very understanding. She gives the phone back to Aphrodite and she storms off upset that Zoey is sending her and Darius back to Tulsa to fight Neferet without them. As Zoey and Stark start walking back to the castle, Zoey sees a white mist come around the castle and turn the black bull on the flag white. She shivers and Stark tells her he will protect her. She pushes away her gut feeling that they are in danger.
5. Kramisha gives Stevie Rae a copy of the two poems she wrote out. They are both talking about how Stevie Rae will deal with a beast that they won’t know whose side it is on. Stevie Rae acts like she has no idea what they are talking about, but she knows the poems are referring to her relationship with Rephaim. She says she is under a lot of pressure with her best friend almost dying and her boyfriend going crazy. As she tries to walk away from Kramisha, she runs into Dragon. Stevie Rae reluctantly shows him the poems. At first, he thinks the beast must be the black bull, but Kramisha points out there wasn’t a question of whose side the black bull was on. He asks to take the poems to study them and Stevie Rae lets him. He suggest she tell Zoey about them. Stevie Rae says she plans to when Zoey gets back. Dragon tells her about Zoey and Stark staying on Skye longer and Jack continuing his ritual preparations during the delay.
6. Jack has chosen the place of power by the tree where Kalona burst from the ground. He takes a sword he borrowed from Dragon (blade up so as not to dull it) as inspiration for the origami swords he is making to decorate the tree. Damien isn’t sure about the place, but Jack says it is a place of power and it needs some positivity since so evil has been the one controlling the power lately. Damien warns him that he thinks Zoey might be gone for a long time to heal. Jack has a feeling she will be back sooner than they are expectingDamien takes Duchess for a jog. Jack uses a ladder to start hanging the swords. Suddenly, he sees Neferet at the base of the tree. She asks him for a favor and that she would grant him one in return. He says he has everything he wants and they don’t fight for the same side. She binds him on the ladder and says he will make the perfect sacrifice. She says to wait until midnight. Jack knows what is going to happen and sings along with the recording of Defying Gravity he has on repeat. When midnight strikes, he falls off the ladder and onto the sword. He dies and his soul separates from his body. Nyx is there to comfort him and all his worldly pain is gone. She says he and Damien will be together again.
7. Rephaim is on the roof of the deserted Gilcrease Manor trying to decide what to do next. He is bonded to Stevie Rae, but his father returned to their realm and will expect his service. Kalona appears and is angry. He questions why Rephaim didn’t join him in Italy. Rephaim explains what happened as truthfully as he can without telling his father about Stevie Rae. He was not able to kill Zoey, so Neferet holds dominion over his spirit as long as he is immortal. He is sure the oath can be broken and he is willing to take any consequences that comes from it. He plans to distract Neferet while she tries to start a war between Vampires and humans. Kalona is positive Stevie Rae is the way to do this. They take off into the dark night. The little girl appears to Rephaim and tells him he has to protect Stevie Rae. She reminds him he is part human and love is the only thing he can take with him to the other side when he dies.
8. The members of the House of Night council are meeting. Most of them are suspicious of Neferet’s behavior. When she enters the meeting, she tries to explain away all that happened and puts the blame anywhere but on herself. Stevie Rae starts to call her out. Just after midnight, they hear a noise coming from outside. Stevie Rae recognizes Damien’s voice and starts running to the doors. She runs into Drew on her way out who tells her Jack is dead. They all get to the tree and see Damien and Duchess mourning over Jack’s body. Stevie Rae is positive Neferet is behind Jack’s death. Damien says he saw Jack fall off the ladder with no one around him. Dragon points out Neferet was in the meeting with them. Stevie Rae needs Zoey to come back.
9. Zoey is out in the garden with Sgiach. The queen tells Zoey there is an ancient power in the island and Zoey can harness it while she is there. She has Zoey summon the elements and sprites for each on appear around them. Sgiach cuts Zoey’s hand and flings her blood around them. The sprites that touch the blood become real. Zoey dances with them for a few minutes and doesn’t quite register the bull is among the sprites. Sgiach says she is considering taking on new students to open their island to the new world (though still keep it protected). When they are done, Seoras comes out to give Stark’s bow and arrows to Zoey. He says Stark cannot ignore his goddess given talents after all he has been through. He tells Zoey she will have to convince him.
10. Zoey takes the bow and arrow down to the shore where Stark is training with a sword and shield. She asks him if he will teach her how to shoot. He sets up the shield and tries ti show her how to stand and hold the bow. She asks him to show her himself and he hesitates. He is afraid of hurting someone again. She tells him he has made his choice to be on the side of Light. She trusts him completely and so he should trust himself. He shoots and then lets her try. Her first arrow falls short and he gets behind her to show her how ti stand. She can feel the magic as the arrow flies free and hits the target. Stark admits he has missed it. They both feel like they belong on the island and consider not leaving. That night in bed, Zoey tells Stark she likes it when he touches her. He tells her she is the first person he has been in love with. They have sex again.
11. Kalona and Rephaim are in the penthouse suite Neferet bought for Kalona to stay in. When she enters unannounced, Kalona is annoyed. Rephaim suggests Kalona track Zoey’s activities through her dreams, but Neferet doesn’t want them using the connection they have. She wants to focus on the rebellious red fledglings that are giving into Darkness. She goes to take a bath and Kalona sends Rephaim to watch Stevie Rae and report back. He thinks she is the key to his success. He goes to the roof and sets his spirit on a journey to find Zoey. The spell at the castle on Skye gives him pause, but he still goes through it. He is surprised to find himself looking down at Zoey and having sex with her. He is shocked out of Stark’s body and realizes his connection is now with Zoey’s guardian since he used part of his immortality to try to kill him in the Otherworld. He starts laughing. Neferet comes out onto the roof to scold him for not being in her bed like she ordered. He says he wants to have sex on the roof and they do. Stark knows something is off for a few moments while he is in bed with Zoey, but by the end of the night, he forgets about it and falls asleep with Zoey in his arms.
12. Rephaim first flies to the depot where Stevie Rae has stayed with the red fledglings, but clearly there is no one there. He goes over to the school and finds Dallas using his technological abilities to break into the school. They mention they stay in the tunnels underneath during the day. He is disgusted with how Nicole hangs on Dallas and becomes angry thinking that Stevie Rae was with him. He flies to the wall of the house of night and sees the results of Neferet’s sacrifice. Stevie Rae and Dragon do what they can to comfort Damien and Duchess. Rephaim sees Dragon in pain and knows he caused it. It is the first time he has ever felt remorse and knows he will have to pay for blindly obeying his father later. Stevie Rae sees Rephaim and tells her friend they need to get inside because Darkness is still lurking around.
13. Stevie Rae stays with Damien until he and Duchess fall asleep in his room. Aphrodite comes rushing in furious that no one has called Zoey to tell her yet. Stevie Rae gets her out into the hall and expresses her concerns with telling Zoey what happened. Aphrodite calls Zoey and it goes to Voicemail. Stevie Rae grabs the phone and leaves a message for Zoey to call her as soon as she can. They argue a bit on what to do. They agree Neferet killed Jack, but have no proof and therefore cannot go to the vampire high council. Stevie Rae gets angry and her eyes glow red. She tells Aphrodite and Darius to stay and watch over Damien and to call the twins if they need a break. Stevie Rae storms off moving quickly and runs into Eric. She is frustrated and snaps at him until he reminds her he was previously Jack’s roommate. He asks if Neferet was behind Jack’s death and Stevie Rae reluctantly tells him. He says he is glad to be transferring to the LA House of Night. Stevie Rae is furious he is abandoning the fight and storms off. As she is going to Zoey’s car, Kramisha comes up to her. Stevie Rae tells her she can’t listen just then because she only has a few hours until sunrise and she has to do something first. She drives off to the Gilcrease and goes to the roof. She summons Earth to send a message to Rephaim that she needs to talk to him.
14. Rephaim hears Stevie Rae’s call and follows the green glowing trail to her. He hopes to find a balance to not betray her or his father. Stevie Rae embraces Rephaim when he lands on the rooftop. He tells her about Neferet needing a sacrifice to keep Kalona’s soul bound and she used Jack for it. Zoey calls Stevie Rae back, but she quickly tells her friend she’ll have to call her back. Rephaim tells her what he can but explains he cannot betray his father. Kalona wants Zoey to return to distract Neferet so he can break the binding. Kalona and Neferet intend to use the rouges and possibly Stevie Rae herself. They believe she can be turned to Darkness, and Rephaim points out they don’t know her like he does. Rephaim tells her to come back to the Gilcreas and summon him when she needs him like she did just then. He can’t tell her where he is staying without betraying his father. He makes her promise not to go looking for him or to confront the red rouges alone. The share a moment before they part ways.
15. Zoey cries as Stevie Rae tells her what has been going on. She tells her best friend she is coming back to Tulsa. As soon as Stark wakes up when the sun sets, she plans for them to get on a plane and go home. She realizes Tulsa really is her home. Zoey tells Sgaich and Seoras that she has to go home and assures them it is because it is where she belongs and not because of Neferet’s manipulation. She asks them to come with her. They decline saying their place is on Skye. Zoey tries to tell them just standing by while Darkness takes over is not on option for the path of Light, but they say they have their own jobs to do there. Sgaich gives her a necklace with a Skye marble on it. Stark wakes up and joins the group. He could feel Zoey’s sadness and she tells him about Jack’s death. He asks when they leave. Zoey looks back at the Sky marble and sees a hole in the middle of it. Suddenly, the room is gone and she sees mermaids and aquatic life. When she wakes up, she is on the ground. Sgaich tells her the marble is a seer stone and will help her find magic. She asks what to do when she finds the magic. Seoras tells her she’ll know whether to rejoice or run. Stark says he’ll be with her no matter which it is.
16. Stevie Rae is trying to comfort Damien when Neferet walks into his room. She thinks she can see something slithering around the former-high-priestess’ feet. Aphrodite follows shortly after. Neferet announces they are giving Jack the funeral of a full vampire. Since there was a lot of confusion on her standings, she is going to let Zoey lead the funeral and lite the pyre. As soon as she leaves, Stevie Rae and Aphrodite confirm they both think she is up to something. Damien starts wailing that he can’t take it. They try to tell him he will be okay, but neither of them have experienced a loss like this before. They promise it will be better when Zoey gets back. They offer to go get the dog supplies from Jack’s room that the twins have been packing up. Down the hall, Kramisha stops Stevie Rae and says she has an important message for her. Stevie Rae tries to avoid the communication saying she has too much on her plate. Kramisha hands her the piece of paper with the poem on it and says it is the third warning she has gotten about her. She tells her to go out and commune with earth while she reads the poem.
17. Stevie Rae goes outside and reads the hiaku Kramisha wrote. It talks about telling the truth and Rephaim will have to chose his freedom. She hears crying by the gate and follows the sound to find her mother crying on the other end. She has a wreath, a green candle, and a picture of Stevie Rae. When she sees her daughter, she is convinced she is a ghost. Stevie Rae tells her she died, but somehow came back to life as a red vampire. She tells her all about becoming the first full red vampire and the entire truth about Rephaim. Her mother says she can’t give up on him if she thinks there is good in him. She is grateful to the raven mocker for saving Stevie Rae more than once. She points out that he is already defying his father for her and will eventually chose her.
18. Rephaim goes back to the Mayo penthouse where Kalona and Neferet are. Neferet is telling them she is stepping aside to let Zoey do the funeral because they don’t expect her to. If Zoey were to try to speak out against her without any proof, the high council will be even more convinced she isn’t credible. Rephaim questions her and Kalona steps in to clarify. Neferet thinks Stevie Rae is corruptible because she saw her when she first turned red. Rephaim questions her again. Neferet asks why the other raven mockers haven’t returned. Kalona says they follow him only and will come when called. She tells him to gather them before she leaves. Rephaim states how much he hates watching Kalona have to take Neferet’s orders. He waits for a punishment from his father, but it doesn’t come. Kalona reveals to him when he was in the other world, he was able to kill Stark thinking it would break Zoey and she would not return to the mortal world. When she did not, Nyx took part of his immortality and put it into Stark. He was able to enter Stark briefly through the connection. He plans to use that connection to try to convince Zoey she should speak out against Neferet and destroy her credibility. Rephaim points out if Kalona gave up part of his immortality to Stark, is he no longer fully immortal. The wording of the oath Kalona spoke to Neferet is she will have dominion over his soul for as long as he is immortal. Rephaim questions if the oath is already broken because he is not fully immortal. Kalona plans to test it by attempting to openly defy her.
19. Zoey tries to pick out an outfit for the ceremony with Stevie Rae’s help. Aphrodite strolls in and goes through Zoey’s closet. She hands her the dress she gave her for her first Dark Daughters meeting. Though her memories in it aren’t good, she admits it is perfect for the occasion and puts it on. The twins arrive and welcome Zoey home. They start joking around and Zoey reminds them they should be serious. Damien arrives with Stark and Darius. None of them know what Neferet has planned, but they all agree they will not start anything, only respond. Damien says he cannot handle battling Neferet and they all promise to protect him. They start heading for the center of the school in front of Nyx’s temple and Zoey sees Erik on a bench crying.
20. Zoey sends the others along and tells Damien he should mediate before the ceremony. Aphrodite and Darius hang back to watch over her. She talks to Erik and finds out he is not only upset about Jack, but he was given the mark of Nyx’s labyrinth. For the next few years, he will remain at the Tulsa House of Night to find newly turned fledglings and bring them in. Aphrodite makes a fuss and Zoey sends her and Darius along. Zoey and Erik decide to be friends and walk to the funeral together. Zoey enters and Stark greets her followed by the rest of the school. She hugs Damien before she gets started. She then turns to the rest of the crowd and has spirit amplify her voice so everyone can hear. She tells them Jack is in the Otherworld with Nyx and is free of pain and sorrow. She has Shaunee help her lite the pyre. Neferet appears and asks Zoey to stand witness.
21. Neferet strips herself out of her clothes and approaches Zoey. She admits to wringing her and the entire house of night and asks forgiveness. Zoey sees through her plan. If she denies her, everyone will think she is just holding a grudge and a bad high priestess. Stark and Stevie Rae both shake their head no at her indicating Neferet has not actually changed. She says she forgives her, but it will be up to Nyx whether or not the goddess forgives her. Neferet looks up into the sky and calls out Rephaim above them. She uses Darkness to pull him to the ground. Stevie Rae summons earth to put a protective barrier around him. She admits the truth to them all. Zoey questions her motives and Stevie Rae reminds her that Zoey kept helping Stevie Rae back to the light when she was engulfed in Darkness. Rephaim takes all the blame and admits he didn’t my start to change until after meeting Stevie Rae. Neferet shouts out that those touched by darkness cannot change. Aphrodite points out she just admitted to giving into Darkness and asked for forgiveness which Zoey granted. Neferet breaks Stevie Rae’s barrier and takes the Red One to the ground with Darkness. She and sends Dragon after his wife’s murderer. Rephaim ignores the threat to help Stevie Rae. Kalona appears between the attacking warriors and his son. He calls for Rephaim’s help.
22. As Kalona fights off the Sons of Erebus and Dragon, Rephaim only defends himself and his father. She points this out to her friends before she starts heading towards the raven mocker. Zoey tries to stop her, but Stevie Rae asks her to trust her. Zoey does and decides to go with her. The others join and they call their elements into a circle. Stevie Rae puts a protective barrier around Kalona and Rephaim. Neferet tries to tell everyone Zoey had sided with Darkness, but Aphrodite reminds them all that Zoey recently returned from Nyx’s realm. Stevie Rae asks Kalona to give Rephaim a choice. They declare their love for each other. Kalona gives him the choice of serving him or loving Stevie Rae. He chooses Stevie Rae ans Kalona warns him that it will shred him to pieces when she stops loving him. Kalona takes off and a white feather falls from the sky. Stevie Rae reaches for it and feels the sting of Darkness. Her shield goes down and Neferet orders Dragon to attack Rephaim.
23. Zoey steps in between Dragon and Rephaim. Stark and Darius join her. Nyx appears before them all. She approaches Damien first and tells him Jack is happy. He will live on and remember their great love. She tells Dragon he has some choices to make about how his life is going to go. She tells Neferet forgiveness must be earned. Rephaim asks forgiveness and she can see his sincere regrets at all the things he has done. He is willing to take whatever punishment she dishes out. She decides to make him a human during the night, but a raven during the day. There is a shooting pain and the. He looks down at how his body has changed. Once Nyx leaves, Rephaim offers a life debt to Dragon for killing his mate. Dragon declines and cannot bare to look at him. Zoey thinks Dragon is turning towards Darkness and warns him to stay on Nyx’s path. When Neferet tries to twist the goddesses words around, Stevie Rae decides she is leaving with Rephaim to live in the Depot again. All her friends and the red fledglings agree to go with them. Stevie Rae and Rephaim share their first kiss. Zoey says they will be back for their belongings and classes.
24. Neferet wanders away from the school and ends up in a human cemetery talking to the white bull. She takes off the shirt Stark gave her and bows down to it. It is intrigued by the idea of having such a loyal servant. She touches it and it is pleased. It tells her it can make her a vessel to replace Kalona and serve her if she sacrifices a wise old woman with strong ties to the earth. Neferet knows exactly who to sacrifice. It tells her to get on its back, and it will it will take her there. Linda Heffer (Zoey’s mom) caught her husband cheating on her with the church secretary when she went to surprise him with lunch. She drives up to her mother’s house at 4 am to hope she can help her fix her life and reconnect with Zoey. Sylvia isn’t there when she arrives, but has left a not for her daughter saying where she is and hoping she will still be there when she returns. Linda goes inside, pours herself a glass of wine and picks out a romance novel. Someone knocks at the door and she answers it to find a naked Neferet on the doorstep.
25. Neferet is surprised when Linda answers the door instead of Sylvia. Linda sees the bull and invites Neferet in to get away from it while it freezes the lavender plants around it. Neferet decides she cannot wait for Sylvia to return and drags Linda outside. She asks the bull if she will work as a sacrifice. The bull says the better the sacrifice, the better the vessel. Linda will work, but the vessel will not be as good as if she used Sylvia. Neferet is tired of waiting. She asks for a weapon and a knife appears in her hand. She slits Linda’s throat and Darkness reaches out it tendrils to absorb it all. Neferet gives herself to Darkness completely. Nyx approaches Heath in the Otherworld and gives him three options for his future. He can stay in the Otherworld and be content forever. He can reincarnate down the line and find his soulmate again. Or since the sacrifice was imperfect, there is a space in Neferet’s empty vessel for a soul. He can be reincarnated into it without any memories and try to not succumb to Darkness. Heath asks if that would help Zoey and Nyx tells him it will. He chooses that option and Nyx makes an orb of light, says a few words, and sends him down to the vessel.
26. The bull left Neferet on the balcony of the penthouse suite. She says the incantation it told her to recite and a blond young man forms before her. He kneels on front of her and she names him Aurox. Stark and Zoey take over Dallas’ old room at the Depot. As they lie in bed and start making out, Stark suddenly becomes to rough and Zoey has to use her powers to push him away. He apologizes and says he doesn’t know what came over him. They start talking about how all the teachers stayed behind at the a house of Night. They both worry about Dragon but wonder if they could forgive the person that killed their mate. Zoey thinks forgiveness has to be earned like Nyx told Kalona in the Otherworld and Neferet earlier that night. Zoey falls asleep and Nyx tells her to be a silent observer. Linda is greeted by Nyx. She thinks she was on the wrong side. Nyx explains being weak isnmt the same as being evil. Linda had been at her mother’s to try to turn her life around and reconnect with her daughter. She asks to wait in Nyx’s realm for Zoey and Nyx agrees. Zoey wakes up crying because she finally feel like her mother loves her. Stark holds her as she cries.