Page 25 of The Bone Man

“Their bodies have vanished,” the mouth in his stomach hisses, “and the terror they wreak no longer haunts the night. They do not return to the demon plane, and they do not come home.”

Nickodemus stares down at the hole, his stringy, black hair hanging over his monstrous face. “Find what is hunting in the Bone Yard, Darius of Fumontis and Lady Merripen, and you will have your wish.”

Darius and I move to the edge of the hole and stare down into the darkness.

Even without the city council’s directive, this threat would have to be dealt with. A monster that will steal nightmares is a danger to all.

Darius holds out his hand. “My lady?”

I place my palm within his hot grip and step down into the boogeyman’s grave.

under the bone yard

- Darius -

“Be careful, my lady,”I caution as we move away from the limited light of the boogeyman’s lair. “The ground is uneven.”

Merri steps off to the side. “Would you rather take the lead?”

“Yes.” I ignore the sarcasm in her tone and step forward as I summon fire to my fingertips.

The spreading light reveals a roughly dug-out tunnel leading several dozen feet forward at a gentle decline before it curves out of view.

Merri runs a hand over the wall and dirt crumbles beneath her touch. “I’m going to be pissed if this thing collapses on top of us.”

"Suffocation and being crushed are both horrible ways to die." I shiver as I remember Lady Casira, the demon assigned to administer my punishment for oath-breaking, dealing out both tortures. "I will kill you before I allow you to suffer through either fate, my lady."

Her gaze shifts to me. “Darius…”

“Please, do not look at me with pity.” I turn from her to lead the way deeper into the tunnel. “It was a mere blip in the time I have lived. Do not dwell on it.”

Merri’s hand touches my back. “It was a recent blip, though. We are immortal, not inhuman.”

I snort. “Only half of you is human, and I’m not human at all.”

Her hand falls away. "You know what I mean. Centuries of existence don't make what we live through now less painful. Or haunting."

The pain in her voice pulls my gaze to her. “What haunts you, my lady?”

“Recently?” Her golden eyes reflect the fire in my hand. “I watched a child cut your heart from your body.”

“A sacrifice I volunteered for,” I remind her. “It was not unwilling.”

Her lips twist with remembered pain. “And then you disintegrated in my arms.”

My heart thumps hard. “You held me?”

“Marc and I both.” She looks away. “We were planning a memorial for you.”

“Ah.” A pleased sigh slips from me to know that the two people I hold most dear wished to celebrate my existence. “I would like to see that very much.”

She chuffs out a laugh. “Memorials are for the dead, and you are not dead.”

“I could lie very still,” I insist. “Will you beat your chest and weep over my prone form?”

She shoves me into motion once more. “I’ll set you on fire if you keep pushing this.”

I peer over my shoulder. “Your flames are a pleasure to embrace.”

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