Page 104 of Half Dead

“No spoilers,” I said. “I expected you to be reading something likeCrime and Punishment.”

The god winced. “No, definitely not. If a story doesn’t have a happy ending, I don’t want to invest. The real world is harsh enough.”

Bruce and the god studied his reflection.

“Not as bad as I feared,” Bruce said.

Ch’u-Chiang shrugged. “I’ve seen worse. At least you haven’t desecrated any graves.”

I winced. “What constitutes desecrating a grave?”

“I’m focused on Bruce,” the god snapped. “You’ll get your turn.”

The two men spoke in low murmurs.

I picked up the book and opened to the marked page. I’d readSense and Sensibilitymultiple times as a teenager but not since then. I remembered hating Lucy Steele and her manipulative, deceptive tactics to convince Elinor that Edward was off the table. I wondered whether I’d have more compassion for Lucy now that I was older and allegedly wiser.

Probably not.

“You’re up, Melinoe.” He snapped his fingers. “Let’s go. I have to finish the next chapter before my next judgment.”

Reluctantly I left the book on the bench and joined the god at the mirror.

“This should prove interesting,” he said. “I’ve never passed judgment on someone outside our pantheon before.”

“It doesn’t really count,” I told him. “I have my own underworld to manage.” Possibly, but hopefully not.

He gripped my chin and forced me to face the mirror. “You must look at your reflection or the mirror won’t work.”

I sucked in a breath and met my gaze. A ball of dread uncoiled in my stomach and spread to my extremities. My face seemed paler than normal, albeit well moisturized thanks to a sheen of perspiration. My hands began to tremble.

“Relax, girl. What do you have to fear?” Ch’u-Chiang asked.

“I’m a goddess of nightmares, ghosts, and darkness,” I reminded him.

He studied the mirror. “Yes, I can see that.”

“I’ve killed.”

“And you’ve saved. And healed.” He exhaled. “Your fears are unnecessary, goddess of the night. If it were solely up to me, I would reincarnate you right now.”

Relief flooded me, washing away the remnants of dread. “Been there, got the human T-shirt.”

“I cannot say the same for your demon prince of hell, however.”

I scrutinized my reflection. “You can see Kane?”

“A limited view, granted, but enough to know where he would end up in Ti-yu.”

“Good thing he isn’t here to be judged.” I peered at my reflection. “Is that a tree?”

The god leaned closer. “Ah, yes. Ailanthus. The tree of paradise.”

“Why am I seeing a tree?”

He clapped my shoulder. “Because you’ve been judged worthy of what you seek.”

My heart hammered in my chest as I took a step backward. “Are we done here?”

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