Page 73 of Malice

“So… it’s like an out of body experience.”

“It’s exactly that.”

Otto sits at my feet, wagging his tail as he looks up at me. I scoop him into my arms. “What do we do while we wait?”

“You might want to put some pants on.”

I glance down at my barely covered body. “Almost forgot.”

“Not that I mind, but I doubt Aster wants me ogling his man.”

“I’m not his—” The objection falls away. Why am I defending myself to a ghost anyway? “Wilder broke the spell over the house?”

“Knocked on the door and strolled right in.”

“And how is he involved in all of this?”

“Like Aster said, Wilder is another Chaser. I contacted him looking for tips.”

“Right. He’s a friend?”

“Friendly. Helpful. He keeps to himself. He’s the oldest Chaser I know.”

“He looks thirty-something.”

“He was when he died. He’s been a Chaser for over two hundred years.”

My jaw drops. “What? Two hundred years? That’s impossible. He’s not human?”

“He’s a Chaser.”

“You’ve said that, like, five times. Is Wilder human?”

“Yes, but he’s a Chaser, so he’s basically immortal. Like a vampire.”

“Vampires aren’t real.”

Crash chuckles. “Oh, really? I know a few vampires who might disagree.”

“Wha—” I cut myself off, shaking my head. I can’t deal with that knowledge right now. “Wilder can’t die?”

“He can, but not easily. He could get hit by a train and brush it off. Only a Horror can kill a Chaser. They go for the heart or they trick them into exchanging souls and end up in the Below.”

“Somehow nothing you’re saying makes sense, but it also kind of does.”

“The underworld is a confusing place.”

I nod, glancing at Aster. “Does that mean he can’t die?”

“Yep.”

Well shit. Even if we did manage to make this into some kind of relationship, I’ll grow old and die eventually and he won’t. What a mind fuck.

“He can keep you if he wants to,” Crash says, grinning wildly as he does some kind of shimmy with his shoulders. “I mean, if you both want that. You have to consent too.”

My heart flutters in my chest. “What does that mean?”

“It’s a whole thing that he should explain, but long story really short, you can be together.”

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