Page 76 of Death is My BFF

I had a heightened need to take a step back, so I did. “And by him, you mean . . . ”

“The creature you were referencing today in my office. Death.”

He clearly expected some sort of crazy reaction, and heck, I expected one too. When I didn’t even flinch, he ran his thumb over his bottom lip and continued.

“Your car accident with Devin wasn’t an accident. It was a planned intervention to protect you. If you want to know more, I can tell you everything right now. But if you choose to leave and go back to your friend, I won’t track you down again. This is a onetime offer.”

Deciding to throw caution to the wind, as I often found myself doing with David, I nodded. “Fine, I’m listening.”

David tossed my backpack to me like it was a feather. I caught it with a grunt.Freaking textbooks.

“We knew about your existence a few weeks ago, tracked you down, and intercepted one of Death’s encounters with you. That’s what Devin and I do. Track down gifted people, with unusual circumstances like yours, and protect them.”

Robotically, I slid my arms into the straps of my backpack.

Somehow, I was able to formulate a sentence, so I did. “What kind of circumstance is mine?”

“You died, Faith. Before you could cross over to the other side, you were brought back to life. Now your soul is marked bythe Kissof Death.”

“The Kiss of Death,” I said, laughing at the ridiculousness that was my life. “Let me get this straight. You’re telling me, when an individual has an unusual situation like mine, such as the Kiss of Death, you and Devin are the ones who intervene?”

David crammed his hands into his pockets and scanned our surroundings. I watched him carefully for any nervous tics, but just like yesterday, he was a master at keeping a straight face. “That’s exactly what I’m saying.”

“And what proof do you have of this?”

“None I’m allowed to show you.”

“How convenient!”

“Listen, I know how this looks. When this conversation is over, you can decide whether or not you believe me.”

I regarded him skeptically. “Why are you doing this?”

David shifted in an uncomfortable way. “Because I care about you,” he murmured. “I don’t want to see you get hurt.”

My heart fluttered. I repressed any nagging feelings and stared coolly at him. I could have been completely wrong about him; I’d jumped to conclusions with hardly any concrete evidence. Now was my chance to hear him out and make a decision afterward.

“Tell me everything.”

“There are only a few beings left like Devin and me. We’re called the Carrions. The Sixth Phylum of Angels. We accompany dark entities when they die and make sure their deaths are permanent. By dark entities, I’m referring to demons, vampires, ghouls, evil creatures that lurk in the night. We help keep your world at a balance between good and evil, so it isn’t taken over by darkness.”

I twisted the ring on my finger around and around. “Alrighty . . . ”

“Devin is my boss, and my mentor. I consider him a father figure because I’ve known him for so long, but we’re not related. He showed me the ropes when I was a rookie. My eyes are sensitive to bright light because I’ve spent more lifetimes than you can imagine tracking down night creatures in the dark. And the reason why I could take on that angel in my office is because I’m much stronger and faster than a human.”

Jesus Christ. I tried to keep my cool after that second info dump, but my heart was pounding a mile a minute as I now mulled over a thousand racing thoughts.

“Lifetimes,” I said finally. “You’ve spentlifetimestracking down these creatures.”

“Yes.”

“Which would make you?”

“Much older than I appear,” he conceded. “Existence-wise . . .

I’m a couple centuries old.”

I reached up and gripped the material of my flannel over my chest. “That’s—that’s not possible.”

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