Page 10 of Veil of Death and Shadow

“Itisyou.” My tongue was rough and dry as I tried to find the words. “So you didn’t die.”

The crow just stared at me, still and silent—and with the judgmental air of a cat.

Right.

Not dead. Just playing dead.

A crow who played opossum. I nodded, satisfied. I could live with that reality.

It didn’t matter that I’d been truly certain that I had, in fact, watched it die—that I’d witnessed the light fade from its glassy dark eyes.

I was knocked out, maybe I remembered things incorrectly.

The bird let out another caw before awkwardly zooming into the air, clearly bored with my processing speed. Its flight pattern was rough and stilted as it tried to gain air. With no more warning than that, it landed on my right shoulder again, settling down into the crook of my neck as if the spot had been specifically designed as a place for him to rest.

Tentatively, I reached my left hand up and stroked the top of his head.

He nestled gently into my fingers, before burrowing down against my neck and going quite still, as if that was all there was to be said.

“Okay,” I sighed. “I guess you’re coming with me.” I shifted so that I could get a look at him, “but only until we get your wing healed up.” I sighed, my chest loosening up a bit, now that I was fairly certain the bird wasn’t, in fact, trying to kill me. At least Sora will be happy. She loves animals.” Once I convinced myself that I was being stalked by Death, I’d made a very conscious decision to never have a pet. A person could only process so much grief in one lifetime. “No getting comfortable though, understand? You’re a wild animal and wild animals belong in thewild.” Sora might cave, but I sure as hell wouldn’t. “Once your wing is healed, you’re back on your?—”

The words dissolved on my tongue.

Fuck.

Sora.

Anniversary Extraordinaire.

I was so incredibly late.

My phone was dead.

And I was talking to a fucking zombie crow.

Whispering a quick “hang on,” I took off through the park, my pace uneven and tense at first, as I tried to adjust to the feel of a bird on my shoulder without knocking him off, but evening out by the time I finally got to Frank’s.

I burst through the door, my hands on my knees, as I bent over, panting. Running was very muchnotmy thing. “I know, I know, I’m late. I’m sorry, I can explain. Sort of. Seriously you won’t bel —”

My gaze shot to our usual booth. It was empty. I glanced around. The entire place was empty actually, the usual bustle of the small diner absent altogether.

The too-bright light above me flickered a few times, illuminating the strangeness of the quiet scene.

How long had I been out for? It couldn’t have beenthatlong, could it? It was still light out.

Frank’s was open every day, from dawn until well after the night rush. The man hardly slept or took a break.

In fact, we usually ended most of our late nights here, ready for a mediocre but greasy cure for whatever future hangover we had brewing. The place wasn’t exactly a tourist hotbed, but it was neverthisempty.

“Frank?” I called out, reaching around the counter where I knew he kept a few stray phone chargers. “You here? How long ago did Sora leave?”

I plugged my phone in, but the light illuminating the diner flickered and then went out altogether.

A quick glance at my phone told me the charger wasn’t working either.

Maybe there was some electrical issue? Power outage? Did he forget to pay the power company?

Hard to picture Frank closing the diner down even for that.

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