“Sure.” I lifted my chin. “I had friends. Sort of. But they're all dead too. And it's not as if their descendants are going to swing by my grave. But that's not the worst of it. I recognize those flowers. That type of flower. I can see them in my head, and the sight of them scares the shit out of me.”
“Why?” Lex asked.
“Because they always show up right before I die.”
“We're going.” Jake grabbed my free hand. “Now.”
“Yup,” I said.
Jake and I hurried away from one of my final resting spots, working in tandem—his stare scanning to the left whileI watched our right flank. The other hounds took the rear, following without protest. We worked in silence, traversing the cemetery like a battlefield or an enemy stronghold. Nothing jumped out at us. No one tried to kill me. And there were no other crows to be seen. At last, we made it past the gates. Then to the car. We practically jumped in, and Jake drove us away. We didn't speak until the cemetery was out of view.
“Someone knows about your past life,” Cyrus broke the silence.
“Yes, that has occurred to me,” I muttered. “The flowers feel like a taunt.”
“More like a threat.” Jake shifted gears and sped up.
Lex leaned between the front seats. “Tell us more about your life as Agnes.”
“It was my last life. The last name I owned.” I stared out the window, into the side mirror.
Was that crow following us? I could see a black smudge in the sky, but it was too high up for me to be sure. Suddenly, the image of the Death card came to me. The skeletal rider. The banner. The battlefield behind them. The scene came to life in my mind. Rapt, I watched as a crow cawed and flew across the battlefield. The pale rider turned to look at me. His eye sockets flared to life.
Had to be Hades. That was my new motto. Hades was Death, and he had sent me that crow. But why?
Shaking my head, I went on, “I was with Louis, and then he sent me here.”
“Motherfucker,” Jake muttered.
I lifted a brow at him.
He slid a look at me. “Cowardly and cruel.”
“Yeah, it was.” I frowned. “And Louis was neither of those things.”
Jake glanced at me again.
“After all that's been going on, I'm wondering if someone else put me on that ship.”
“Maybe the same person who put flowers on your grave,” Cyrus said. “What kind were they?”
“Hyacinth,” Jake and I said together.
I lifted a brow at him.
He shrugged.
“Are you sure?” Cyrus asked.
Jake nodded.
“Why does that matter?” I asked.
“It may not, but the most likely culprit is Silas, and he's Greek. The Greeks love to hide clues in their torments. Everything is a fucking riddle to solve or a maze to navigate.”
“Torments,” I huffed. “Great. What's this guy's problem with me?”
“I don't know, but it's odd that Silas was so focused on destroying us until you arrived.” Cyrus peered out the back window. “That crow is following us.”
