My stomach drops as another pang of fear bursts in my chest. He wasn’t there to help me, yet I had gambledeverythingon hoping he was. Stupid, stupid, stupid.
“Why would you want to kill me?”
The smile is gone from his expression, replaced by a calculating intensity, maybe even a bit of curiosity.
“I kill because taking a human’s life means adding to my own. It’s how I stay alive, but it’s certainly nothing personal.” He shrugs, as if that makes any of this better.
Nothing personal? Fuck that. This is mylifewe’re talking about. He gave me the first spark of hope I’ve had in years just to yank it away. That’s infinitely more painful than the fact that he wanted—wants—to kill me.
I would’ve rather died the first time than know that the small bit of optimism I’d allowed myself had all been a lie.
“So you’re, what, a demon?” I croak. The old man’s warning from earlier echoes in my mind.They say the devil lives in these woods.
He laughs, and I can immediately see how he’d so easily be able to lure people to him with his devilish good looks and mysterious charm. Even his voice and his laughter are alluring in that dark, dangerous sort of way.
I walked right into the trap he’d set for me, one he’s probably set for countless others.
“If that's what you want to call me. I’ve been called many things: angel, demon, revenant, vampire, incubus. Humans have a way of taking one thing and turning it into a dozen different myths with slight variations.” He moves, and the wooden porch creaks as he steps down a stair closer to me. I instinctively move backward.
“What are youreally, then?”
“Many of us have adopted the term ‘Liminal beings,’ or ‘Liminals’ for short. We exist in the space between life and death, taking humans’ lives to add to our own,” he explains. “Immortal as long as we work for it.”
My mind races to process this impossible information while simultaneously acknowledging that my life is inimmediate danger. I've escaped one monster only to deliver myself directly into the hands of another. I’m still not entirely convinced he’s not a demon with a prettier name.
“Why me?” I whisper. “Of all the people you could have chosen, why did you have to choose me?”
He cocks an eyebrow. “Why does it matter? You wanted to die anyway, didn’t you?” His gaze flickers to my bandaged forearms.
The question hits like a punch to the gut. I had almost forgotten that he's seen me at my lowest—bleeding out in a bathtub by my own hand.
“Because I'm curious,” I say, grasping at anything that might keep him talking. But night is falling, and the darkness seems to creep in through the thick woods around us. "Since you're going to kill me anyway, why not tell me?"
There’s that laugh again. Too enticing to be natural. “Where's the fun in telling you everything?”
Fury and despair flare through my fear as I realize I’m more angry at myself than anything. How fucking naive I’ve been.
“Please don't kill me.” It’s a pathetic plea, but it’s all I have left.
He smirks. He fuckingsmirks. “You wanted to die so badly only a few days ago. What’s changed?”
I open my mouth to speak, but no words come out. Honestly, it’s a good question, and I’m not sure what my answer is. Maybe it’s a fleeting moment of curiosity, maybe it’s some primal instinct wired into my brain that doesn’t want to die at the hands of a predator.
If I’m going to die, I’d rather do it myself than give a man the satisfaction of killing me.
I’m also away from Joel, something I never thought possible, and even though I have very little money, no placeto live, and nothing other than the suitcase at my feet, I feel lost but liberated. Untethered.
At least, Idid, until I saw him.
But in order to see where my life could go from here, I need to convince him to let me live. I have no good argument, though. “Call it a new outlook on life,” I say. “But it’s not like you can’t find any other human to kill. I’m one in eight billion people on this earth right now. You saw how miserable my life was. Please, just let me enjoy my freedom from him for a little bit longer.”
My voice catches on a sob at my final plea, but I manage to keep the tears from falling.
He’s quiet for much too long before he says, “Perhaps we can arrange something… make a deal.”
“What kind of deal?” Warning sirens blare in my head as every book, myth, and short story I’ve read about making bargains with supernatural creatures comes to mind. In all essence, this would be making a deal with the devil. But what choice do I have? I have no way out of here, and even if I did, I couldn’t go back to Joel. I have no home anymore.
He crosses his arms and leans against the wooden post at the foot of the stairs as he stares me down. “To be determined. I’ll think about it and let you know. But for now, you’ll have to stay here.”
