Page 3 of Death Match

“Looks like we both won,” he whispered and kissed me again, before walking us both into the standing shower.

* * *

Eli’s placewas located in the Holdings, a bunch of connecting cul-de-sacs lined with identical, cookie cutter houses. All painted the same, pale tan color with brown shutters and front doors. Trippy to look at but I guess it made everyone equal that way. Everyone from the first angels to the Guardians lived here, and now me.

Together, Eli and I walked out of the Holdings toward the center of Heaven. Another example of why I was reminded of Disney World? All roads led to a center feature. In Disney, it was the castle. In Heaven? It was a pool of water, a little bigger in size than a kiddie pool.

When we reached it, I stared into the crystal blue depths like I always did when we walked by, wondering why Heaven had something so random as its central hub.

Looking over at Eli, I hooked a thumb toward the pool. “Okay, I have to ask. Is this a wishing well or something? It’s a bit too small to be a community bath.”

He chuckled before steering me closer to it. “It’s neither. Called the oasis, this is our window to the living world. It’s how Guardians are able to keep an eye on their charges. It’s how I was able to see you throughout all your lives.”

I leaned forward and saw only my reflection staring back at me. Dull brown hair, even duller eyes, and a permanent scowl. Yep. That was me all right. “Can you see anyone? Could I see Kay and Zachary if I wanted?”

Or Cole?I shook his name out of my head and scolded myself. Over the past few weeks, I’d done my damnedest to keep the half demon out of my thoughts. It was easier when Eli was…distractingme, but every now and again, Cole managed to weasel his way back into my head.

At least I wasn’t hearing his voice in my ear anymore or imagining he was nearby when he wasn’t. That had been downright annoying.

Besides, I was happy now. I knew who I was. I had my path to take. And I was with Eli. We had history together.

So, whenever I had these momentary relapses in judgment, like now, I had to remind myself that Cole was nothing to me, just like I had been nothing to him. I had moved on.

Eli’s gaze roamed over my face, seeming to see the inner dialog I was having with myself. He didn’t mention it though. He just said, “You’ll be able to access the oasis and all the other things Heaven has to offer once you complete the Trials.”

Annoyance pinched at me. It always came down to the Trials, didn’t it? He had managed to find a way to worm them into almost every conversation we had, especially lately.

I knew what lay ahead. Iknew.No need to keep rubbing it in my face every second of every day.

Hoping to avoid that topicagain,I forced the conversation back to the original one. Back to the oasis. “Can you show me how it works?”

He smiled. “Absolutely.” He dipped a finger into the water and closed his eyes.

I stared. The small waves from Eli’s touch disturbed the clarity, and my reflection slowly vanished from sight. What replaced it was the familiar yellow walls, fully stocked display cases, and little two person tables of Oh! Kay’s Pastry Shop. And there was my friend, Kay, cleaning the tall glass windows that overlooked the downtown streets of Fairport while little Zachary snoozed in his rocker nearby.

Automatically, I grinned. The magical pool gave us a bird’s eye view of the shop, and from what I could see, it looked beautiful—just as it used to look before Xaver destroyed the place. Right down to the dainty doilies and china settings on the tables, Kay had managed to reclaim her vision for her store again. And honestly, I was thrilled.

From what I could see, she was, too. She stepped back and observed her handy work on the clean glass and smiled. Then, she walked over to the door and switched the closed sign to open.

Oh! Kay’s was finally open again.

“She seems to be back on her feet, now,” Eli said as we both watched the scene play out.

Even though I was so happy for her, my heart ached. God, I missed her. I would give anything to be able to tell her all the chaos going on in my mind. From my confusing, budding feelings for Eli, to my reservations about the Trials and being one of Heaven’s warriors.

With her constant positivity, she always knew just what to say to make me feel better, and I needed that right now.

“Jade?”

I shook myself out of my self-pity and answered Eli’s earlier question without looking at him. “She does. Seem to be on her feet again, that is.”

The waves continued to flow outwards, obscuring the image of Kay and her store before returning to its natural blue.

“Jade,” Eli repeated gentler, “we don’t need to do this if you’re truly not ready.”

“Do what?” It was a filler question—something just to buy me some time to gather myself. I knew what he meant, but he answered me anyway.

“Meet Michael. We can do it tomorrow if you prefer.”

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