So I was in a fake garden. I scowled, surveying the lush greenery, the bright flowers. A fountain bubbled noiselessly behind me, and I narrowed my eyes, turning as a path opened up before me.
Where was I? How had I ended up here? Something stronger than grief, more poignant than regret, swept through me. It was the feeling that I’d forgotten something, something I never should have forgotten. Something crucial.
With nothing else to do, I walked along the path. My hand tightened around my knife, and water dripped from my clothes. I touched my t-shirt and then licked my finger. Saltwater.
There wasn’t room for fear here. A strange sort of calm enveloped me, but I trusted it about as much as a stranger in a dark alley, so I pushed it away.
And there was my mother.
The air disappeared from my lungs in a whoosh. For a split second, I could feel intense pressure on my chest, and then it was gone.
“Mom?”
She turned, and my heart broke a little. Memories began to trickle back, slowly at first, and then faster, until it hit me.
She was dead.
Mom smiled at me, and my eyes burned, my vision turning blurry as she stepped toward me. I’d forgotten how beautiful she was. Here, the dark circles that had been constantly beneath her eyes were gone. The frown lines that had etched their way into her forehead had disappeared. Every sign of the difficult life she’d lived, of the stress she’d dealt with every day… none of it remained.
“My darling.”
I choked out a sob, and then I was running, throwing myself into her arms.
“I missed you. I missed you so much.”
“I know. I can feel it, every time you think of me.” She pulled back slightly. “I’m so proud of you.”
My shoulders hunched. “Are you sure?”
She gave me a look and a laugh bubbled out of me.
Her lip trembled slightly. “I love you, Danica. But you have to go back.”
I frowned. “What do you mean?”
Her hands tightened around my upper arms, her eyes intent. “It’s not your time.”
The memories had paused while I talked to her, and now they punched into me, one after the other.
“He’s waiting for you,” Mom whispered. “He loves you so very much.”
“He’s a demon.”
She grinned at me, and I frowned. “You told me to stay away from the demons.”
“One benefit of crossing over is the ability to see the bigger picture. You had to meet him, and you must stay alive for what comes next. This isn’t your time.”
I was being torn in two. Samael waited, and if I died, he died too. But seeing my mom, being wrapped in her arms…
“I’ll always be here,” she told me firmly.
“I can’t do this,” I said. “I’m not strong enough.”
She shook her head. “You’re stronger than you could ever imagine. Tell Evie I love her.”
“Wait. Who murdered you?”
She shook her head. “You know I can’t tell you that.” The smile left her face, and her chin jutted out in an expression so much like Evie’s that my heart howled. “You’ll find what you need in the attic.”
