Page 40 of The Last Days of Lilah Goodluck

I shake my head. “No.”

“Shame” is all she says, and goes back to digging.

“I have some questions.”

“What a surprise.”

I slide my sunglasses to the top of my head. The sun is warm, and it is a beautiful day. A dragonfly lands near my hand, its body a shimmering metallic green in the sunlight. It’s like everyday magic. Fall was always my favorite season. But maybe I was wrong. Maybe it should be spring. Those cooler days before boob-sweat season kicks in. “If you can see these things, why don’t you use them for yourself?”

“My ability is a gift. It is not to be misused for personal gain.”

“Do you know when you’ll die?”

“No,” she says. “But I never wanted to know.”

“Maybe I didn’t either. Did that ever occur to you?”

“You get what you’re given. Sometimes you have to take the good with the bad.” She nudges her wire-rim glasses farther up her nose. “How’s the prince?”

“He’s not really a prince.”

“The right blood flows through his veins.” She shrugs. “I never understood all the nonsense about being born out of wedlock. The supposed shame of it. It’s good that society has moved on from such bullshit.”

“Yeah.”

“Of course, they’re counting on their blue blood to elevate them above the rest of us,” she says. “If the old rules don’t apply, then there’s nothing saying they’re any better. Just their money and everything else they stole over the years and refuse to return.”

“Not a fan of the monarchy?”

“Never saw the point.” She takes a swig from her nearby water bottle. “What do you want?”

“Not to die.”

She laughs. “We all want that. Well...most of us.”

“I want not to die on Sunday.”

“Mmm.” Her gaze softens. “Can’t help you, sorry. I am not all-powerful, I just deliver the message.”

I sit forward, choosing my words with care. “If I were to stay away from him, have nothing to do with him, would that stop the last two predictions from coming true? Would it put a stop to it all?”

“Do you really want to do that?”

“No. Of course not. I like him.”

“There’s your problem. He’s already in your heart.”

I snort. “I’m not in love with him. Sheesh.”

“I didn’t say you were. But you’re not immune to him either. You two are already on your way to becoming.” She pulls off a gardening glove and takes one of the crystals hanging around her neck in hand. Her gaze goes hazy as she stares off into the middle distance. “I’m not unsympathetic to your plight. But I can’t help you.”

“Can’t or won’t?”

She just sighs.

“There’s nothing I can do?” I ask.

“You can make the most of the time you have left.”

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