She could speak until her throat was hoarse if she wanted. Even if she didn’t, she’d still be right beside me.
Almost.
I had almost reached my fate—and so had she.
I needed to hurry and secure the crossover. If I sensed it, then Harvest did. He was a part of me I’d cast out long ago to create something new. It made sense one of my creations would crave the very thing I’d waited eternities for.
But no one would get in the way of what I wanted.
“Look.” Kara clutched my arm, and I wished I could feel it. “What is that thing?”
Creatures existed in the Underworld that even I didn’t have names for. Witches created things. Warlocks mutated demons. Necromancers brought back the dead—unlike Harvest, who patched creatures together like toys from a nightmare.
But I’d not seen anything like the monstrosity cocking its head at us now.
Italmostlooked like a cow, judging by its ears. But the thing had no visible bone structure—its red ears pinned back as it rolled into a ball. A furry sphere barreled toward us.
“Is it safe?” Kara squealed, sticking out her hand.
I slapped it down and stepped in front of her. “Don’t touch it.”
She quirked a brow. “So, it’s mean?”
“I don’t know. Don’t touch it.” I tucked her behind me and growled a warning.
The thing skidded to a halt in front of me and shifted again—its limbs stretching until it resembled a dog-like creature. On four legs, its ears perked up. Up close, it still resembled a cow…if a cow had been born from Hell. The end of its tail wasn’t fur, but flames.
“Oh, my Hades!” Kara dropped to one knee, reaching toward it. “It’s so cute.”
My jaw ticked. “It’s hideous.”
“It has your unique pattern.” She ran her fingers over the creature’s fur where faint streaks of orange flickered through dark patches. The thing smashed its snout into her open palm, clearly delighted. “Another animal in Hell.”
Livestock?Was Hell getting livestock now? What else would become of Purgatory?
And she compared it to me?
“I won’t tolerate a comparison to a cow,” I muttered.
Kara’s eyes widened, then she looked at the creature anew. “Wait. This is a Hell cow?”
“I don’t know.”
“Does that mean bad cows come down here with you?”
My shoulders dropped, and I closed my eyes to take a long breath.
A bad cow?
When I opened them, she was grinning—eyes full of mischief, lips curled in that wicked way she always used before saying something worse.
Don’t laugh at her.
She couldn’t know how charming I found her ridiculousness.
“Let’s go.”
She gasped—and I groaned at the same time.
