Page 125 of Half Dead

I trudged forward and ignored the witch’s taunts as I attempted to pass her. “I don’t have time for this. Aite needs me.”

“Aite? Do you mean the goddess who died because she took an arrow intended for you?”

I clamped my hands over my ears and continued to walk. The ice fractured again. I kept going.

“You can’t turn your back on me, missy. We’re your conscience. We’ll follow you wherever you go.”

The other witches formed a chain in front of me.

“Good, then follow me to help Aite. She needs us.”

“Not a chance,” Penelope said.

I started forward. “Now who’s selfish?”

“The only way to get past us is to kill us,” Brenda added.

“You’re already dead, which means I’m in charge. Now move!” Power flowed through me as I willed them out of existence. The chain broke and another section of ice along with it. I had to reach Aite before we both succumbed to the frozen water.

I didn’t get far. A hulking figure sliced through the shadows and tackled me from the side. The world spun as I slid along the lake. A glacial chill seeped into my bones.

I stumbled slightly as I regained my balance, misjudging the slickness of the ice. “I hate winter,” I muttered, pulling myself upright.

I spun to face my attacker and immediately recognized the large djinn. Solomon’s face had haunted me ever since the day Matilda, the Night Mallt, had killed him to keep me safe. He’d worked for The Corporation and had been sent to check on the company vault hidden in Bruce’s house.

The unfortunate djinn had encountered Matilda and I instead.

Solomon’s dark eyes blazed with anger as he took another threatening step in my direction. “You,” he seethed.

“Me,” I said, dusting flakes of ice from my sleeves. I didn’t bother saying that I wasn’t the one who killed him. This was my subconscious attacking itself, after all; his blame was a reflection of my own.

And now I understood why Lucifer had chosen a frozen lake as the setting for the third trial.

Nice touch, I acknowledged. I’d be impressed if I didn’t want to murder the demon for it.

The djinn stomped toward me, each footstep more intimidating than the last. It was a wonder he didn’t split the icy surface wide open.

“You deserve punishment,” he said.

“I’m sorry, Solomon. I didn’t know she would kill you.”

“Lies!” He swept me aside with the kind of brute force that would’ve sent a regular person to the emergency room. My knee cracked against the ice, sending a rush of pain along my leg. Ignoring the throbbing knee, I stumbled to my feet. Maybe he was right. It was possible that, deep down, I’d known Matilda would protect me by whatever means necessary. I’d known from the start she was the Night Mallt and what her reputation entailed. How could I possibly plead ignorance?

“Please,” Aite cried.

Please.

If I had any hope of reaching her, I had to get past Solomon. “You’re right. I suspected that Matilda might take the matter too far, yet I did nothing to stop her. I was focused on my own survival.” I’d spent most of my life focused on my survival. It was the basic instinct of any living creature, yes, but I’d made it the basis of my entire personality. The primary focus of my existence.

“Why was your survival more important than mine?” he demanded. “Why did I have to die so that you could live?”

I had no good answer for that. Gunther would have a snappy retort ready like, “because she has main character energy,” but I knew Solomon was right. He didn’t deserve to die to protect me, and neither did Aite.

“You’re right. It wasn’t fair, but I can’t undo it. What do Ineed to do to convince you that I am truly sorry for what happened to you?”

He offered a one-word answer. “Vengeance.”

“I don’t want to fight you.”

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