Page 83 of Death is My Ride or Die

“Be realistic.” Death flattened his hand on the wall beside my head. “No amount of training would allow you to win against an ancient creature like Ahrimad, or a demigod like my father, or, for the matter,me. If I can take my scythe back on the full moon, I can avoid entering the otherworld altogether.”

“And what if you fail? What if you epically fail like you did in the corn maze against your father? What if the consequences are greater than the risks? Did you ever think about that?”

His temper flared. Shadows bit into my wrists and ankles like thorns on a rose. I writhed against the darkness, but to my frustration, it didn’t budge. Death’s mouth quirked up on one side as he witnessed the struggle.

“I told you,” I said in a huff, “I’ve had a gut feeling we’re supposed to follow Ace’s vision. I’m supposed to go with you. You might think you’re so high and mighty going up against fate, but some of us can’t afford the repercussions. I have a family to think about. I havemyself. I’m not immortal like you are.”

Death’s jaw tightened. “You’re not strong enough to fight against Ahrimad. End of story.”

Neither are you!I so desperately wanted to scream.

“All this time, you never intended to take me with you to fight Ahrimad. You toyed with the idea of it to keep me complacent!” My fingers tingled, power rushing through my veins. Shadows hissed against my hands, retreating down my forearms and freeing my wrists from the wall. Death must have known that I was about to explode again because he struck like a viper and snatched my hands in his.

“Enough,” he warned in a low, authoritative voice. “You’ve only been training defensively for a short time. As long as you have the one thing Ahrimad needs the most, as long as you’re the Chosen, the one who can read theBook of the Dead, you’ve got a massive target on your back.”

“You want to talk about risk? All of evil wants a piece of me. I’m not safe anywhere I go. But you, you’ve kept me . . . relatively safe.”Give or take a few villain-esque instances. . . “Even if it’s for your own benefit,” I added, mostly to remind myself. “And now you’re going to hand me off to Lucifer when everything is at stake? You lose your scythe for good, you’re donezo. Then what? Everyone gets so hung up on the consequences of magic, but what happens whenDeath himselfis gone? Open your eyes, Death. Every time we are apart, things take a turn for the worse. We’re stronger together.”

Death released my hands at once and took a step back.

A lump formed in my throat at the rejection. “You saw what Malphas was able to do to my mind. Who’s to say they won’t figure out a way to reach me from inside this penthouse? Who’s to say Ahrimad won’t make his move thesecondhe knows you’ve handed me off to somebody else?”

Death raked a hand through his hair. “Even if I wanted to take you with me,” he said, biting off the reluctant words, “Lucifer would never allow it.”

“Ah, so that’s why you didn’t tell Lucifer about Ace’s vision. Lucifer’s got you with your tail between your legs—”

“Watch it.”Shadows curled over Death’s broad shoulders and cracked at the air like whips. His deep voice altered to a monstrous, otherworldly snarl. “I obey Lucifer’s command out of respect. A concept you, an impertinent little mortal brat, know nothing about.” A sharp smirk edged his mouth. “I am pleased to see that I’ve finally broken you down to anger rather than pitiful tears, but I would think twice as to what you do with this anger next—”

Death’s sentence cut off as I placed my hand on his chest. Meeting the intensity of his gaze, I slowly lifted my fingers up to his face, swiping my thumb over his velvety soft bottom lip. His mouth parted under my touch, revealing the tips of serrated teeth.

“You’llneverbreak me,” I whispered. “Not when I own you as much as you own me.”

Blackness washed over Death’s catlike eyes, dispersing from his vertical pupils into the white sclera. He inhaled a rough breath. The darkness swiftly retreated to where it belonged, but it was never far away.

He moved closer. He must have because I was suddenly consumed by him. My fingers shifted from his mouth across the rough stubble on his jaw and into the back of his silken hair. He was a god up close. A masterpiece. A poison. He was everything, and no matter how much I tried to deny it, I wanted all of him and, selfishly, more. His head dipped until his mouth hovered over mine, his undead heart pounding against my palm.

“If you ever lay a claim on me like that again,” Death said, “be prepared to prove it.” The low, dangerous rasp of his threat dripped with a dark, carnal intention that speared my core.

But I wouldn’t let him get the upper hand. “All this time, you were training me for nothing. You lied to me, but that’s not what hurts the most.” I stared deep into his wicked eyes, daring to meet his evil soul. “It was the look on your face when Lucifer commanded you to tell me the truth. It was the second of hesitation where you didn’t know which secret to share.”

Death’s face remained unmoved, but the knob in his throat dipped as he swallowed.

“Someone is at the front door, King D.”

The panel beside the door lit up as his security system notified him. Frowning, Death jabbed a gloved finger into the screen. The camera pointing into the hallway outside his penthouse displayed footage of the entryway. All we could see was a playing card in front of the lens.

“Ace of spades,” I said with a smile.

Death released a small snarl and stormed down the hall. He threw open his front door so hard that he broke the doorstop.

“Ah, I sense I am interrupting an important conversation!” announced a familiar French-accented voice. “Allow me to, how you say,stir the pot.”

Ace shouldered Death to the side as he swaggered into the penthouse like he owned the place. Wearing an oversized white-and-gray faux-fur winter coat over an all-white suit, the man dripped lavish elegance.

“Ma chérie, you look magnificent.” He bent over my hand to kiss the back of it. Over the warlock’s shoulder, Death’s eyes went feral. As if sensing the Grim Reaper’s rage, Ace lowered his sunglasses down the bridge of his nose to give me a playful wink. “Ready for our hot date?”

Ace’s timing could not have been any more perfect.

“Sure am!” I said cheerfully.

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