The Host(70)

Jared grumbled something incoherent; I could only pick out Jeb’s name. Then he inhaled a sharp breath, blew it out, and said, “All right, then. I guess that’s the end of it.”

“That’s what it looks like.” Ian hesitated for a moment and then added, “Except… Well, it’s probably nothing at all.”

Jared tensed again; he didn’t like having his intelligence edited. “Go on.”

“No one but Kyle thinks much of it, and you know how Kyle is.”

Jared grunted his assent to that.

“You’ve got the best instincts for this kind of thing; I wanted your opinion. That’s why I’m here, taking my life into my hands to infiltrate the restricted area,” Ian said dryly, and then his voice was utterly serious again. “You see, there’s this one… a Seeker, no doubt about that—it packs a Glock.”

It took me a second to understand the word he used. It wasn’t a familiar part of Melanie’s vocabulary. When I understood that he was talking about a kind of gun, the wistful, envious tone in his voice made me feel slightly ill.

“Kyle was the first to notice how this one stood out. It didn’t seem important to the rest—certainly not part of the decision-making process. Oh, it had suggestions enough, from what we could see, but no one seemed to listen to it. Wish we could’ve heard what it was saying.…”

My skin prickled anxiously again.

“Anyway,” Ian continued, “when they called off the search, this one wasn’t happy with the decision. You know how the parasites are always so… very pleasant? This was weird—it’s the closest I’ve ever seen them come to an argument. Not a real argument, because none of the others argued back, but the unhappy one sure looked like it was arguing with them. The core group of Seekers disregarded it—they’re all gone.”

“But the unhappy one?” Jared asked.

“It got in a car and drove halfway to Phoenix. Then it drove back to Tucson. Then it drove west again.”

“Still searching.”

“Or very confused. It stopped at that convenience store by the peak. Talked to the parasite that worked there, though that one had already been questioned.”

“Huh,” Jared grunted. He was interested now, concentrating on the puzzle.

“Then it went for a hike up the peak—stupid little thing. Had to be burning alive, wearing black from head to toe.”

A spasm rocked through my body; I found myself off the floor, cringing against the back wall of my cell. My hands flew up instinctively to protect my face. I heard a hiss echo through the small space, and only after it faded did I realize it was mine.

“What was that?” Ian asked, his voice shocked.

I peeked through my fingers to see both of their faces leaning through the hole toward me. Ian’s was black, but part of Jared’s was lit, his features hard as stone.

I wanted to be still, invisible, but tremors I couldn’t control were shaking violently down my spine.

Jared leaned away and came back with the lamp in his hands.

“Look at its eyes,” Ian muttered. “It’s frightened.”

I could see both their expressions now, but I looked only at Jared. His gaze was tightly focused on me, calculating. I guessed he was thinking through what Ian had said, looking for the trigger to my behavior.

My body wouldn’t stop shaking.

She’ll never give up, Melanie moaned.

I know, I know, I moaned back.

When had our distaste turned to fear? My stomach knotted and heaved. Why couldn’t she just let me be dead like the rest of them had? When I was dead, would she hunt me still?

“Who is the Seeker in black?” Jared suddenly barked at me.

My lips trembled, but I didn’t answer. Silence was safest.

“I know you can talk,” Jared growled. “You talk to Jeb and Jamie. And now you’re going to talk to me.”

He climbed into the mouth of the cave, huffing with surprise at how tightly he had to fold himself to manage it. The low ceiling forced him to kneel, and that didn’t make him happy. I could see he’d rather stand over me.

I had nowhere to run. I was already wedged into the deepest corner. The cave barely had room for the two of us. I could feel his breath on my skin.

“Tell me what you know,” he ordered.





CHAPTER 19

Abandoned

Who is the Seeker in black? Why is it still searching?” Jared’s shout was deafening, echoing at me from all sides.

I hid behind my hands, waiting for the first blow.

“Ah—Jared?” Ian murmured. “Maybe you should let me…”

“Stay out of it!”

Ian’s voice got closer, and the rocks grated as he tried to follow Jared into the small space that was already too full. “Can’t you see it’s too scared to talk? Leave it alone for a sec —”