Page 69 of Cheater Slicks

This must be what Jean-Claude had in mind for me, but Lord. I was terrified of materializing in a room with Dis Pater, giving him access to my physical body. I didn’t want to find myself locked in a cage in Abaddon next to Kierce. But I couldn’t live with myself if my inaction cost Matty or Vi their lives.

“Okay.” I rolled the tension from my shoulders. “How does this work?”

“I will go, and I will take you with me, and then you will know.”

“That sounds vague, dangerous, and generally unwise, but I don’t have any better options.”

“I will need this body.” She got to her feet. “I must have substance for you to grasp the process.”

“Harrow isn’t a rental car. You can’t just drive him around when the mood strikes.”

“He would agree.” She swung her legs over the side of the bed. “You know this.”

The bad thing was, I did know. He would agree out of guilt. He would let me run him into the ground to make us square. Even after calling a truce, he would sacrifice himself to atone.

As flattering as it would be to claim it had to do with our past, I was certain the present held sway over him. Lyle had done a lot of bad there at the end, and knowing Harrow, he would spend the rest of his life making up for it.

And that was before he kidnapped Matty, which he could have only seen as proof he was as twisted as his uncle. It would only spur him on to greater risks, like allowing Anunit to have her way, if he felt he was repairing the damage they had both done.

“Why did you kidnap him really? The truth this time.”

“You know this body, so you were unlikely to kill him before questioning him when I arrived here.”

“True,” I allowed, “but there’s got to be more to it than that for you to be a repeat offender.”

“I am not long for your world,” she said earnestly, convincing me she wasn’t trying to guilt-trip me. “I wished to savor its tastes and textures one last time before I go. I have lived a half-life for so long, and it has been its own kind of torture to never savor my food or truly experience sensation. This body was the ideal candidate for such an excursion.”

With her ability to manifest in the flesh, I hadn’t considered she lacked full use of her senses. But I could pity her while also holding her accountable. I couldn’t decide if I would trust the answer I got, but I had to ask. “Can I speak to him?”

“Yes.” Her eyes cut to the right. “I will give you five minutes.”

“You’ll give Harrow as long as he wants, and you’ll vacate his body if those are his terms.”

Her huff of annoyance was expected, but she allowed him to surface, her eyes rolling back.

“Harrow?” I gave him a moment to come back to himself. “Are you with me?”

“God, I wish I wasn’t,” he rasped, his voice raw from puking.

“I need Anunit’s help, and she claims it will go easier if she can borrow you for a while longer.”

“I haven’t felt this bad since I got strep back to back in the eighth grade.” He slumped on his bones. “I could hear your conversation. I’m good with the plan. Just maybe let this be the last time?”

Apparently, he had finally reached the end of his rope. I couldn’t say I blamed him. Anunit was running him ragged. Once we got home, I had to figure out how to block her from possessing him, or else he would never know peace.

“Thank you for doing this. Seriously. You’re going above and beyond.”

“I owed you.” His gaze fell to the floor. “I owed him.”

“Not after this.” I ducked down to catch his eye. “After this, we’re square. No debts. No grudges. No nothing. I mean it.”

Sticking out his hand like an olive branch, he asked, “Friends?”

Smiling until my cheeks hurt, I shook it hard. “Friends.”

“I’ve always wanted to see the East Coast.”

Between one breath and the next, his posture shifted, and he got to his feet. “We should go.”

---