Page 38 of Death Makes the Heart Grow Fonder

I blinked. “Yes.”

Mina’s grin returned. “I need you to look scary.”

“That’s rude,” I said.

Mina shrugged. “Sorry. Can you do the thing?”

Faith’s eyes narrowed. “What thing?”

Mina’s gaze locked onto the alley where two corpses had just stumbled out and paused, confused by the shifting crowd and the fire.

“The control thing,” Mina said. “The necromancy thing.”

My stomach dropped.

Of course she would go there. Mina had grown up in coven politics. She didn’t see taboos. She saw tools.

Eve’s voice rose. “Mina, no.”

Mina looked at her mother, expression earnest. “Mom, if we can make this look like a scene, if we can show zombies that aren’t eating people, if we can make it look staged, we can save lives. We can stop the panic. We can stop the filming.”

Delia’s gaze slid to me, cool and assessing. “Can you control them?”

I didn’t answer right away.

Because the truth was, I could.

The truth was, something was interfering tonight. The tether I’d felt wasn’t passive. It was active, tight, like a line pulled by someone who didn’t want to share.

If I reached for the undead now, in front of everyone, and failed, Lucinda would be very pleased.

And people would die while I struggled.

Faith stepped closer, voice low. “We can pin a few first. Those binding nails from Andel. If you’re going to try, do it with restraints.”

Nishi nodded once, already pulling a small pouch from her belt. She handed it to Faith. “Use these. Don’t waste them.”

Faith peeked inside, then looked at me. “You control. I anchor.”

My mouth went dry. “And Mina films.”

Mina’s grin turned feral with excitement. “Yes. Thank you. I promise to make you look mysterious and competent.”

“That’s not what I’m worried about,” I muttered.

Victor’s gaze flicked to us. “Make it fast.”

Delia’s expression remained neutral. “And contained.”

We moved.

Nishi signaled her hunters, and they shifted, drawing a line closer to the alley mouth, forcing the next few undead into a narrow section of street between a parked car and a lamppost. Victor’s officers held the crowd back, shouting at people to stop filming.

Nobody listened, but at least they stayed behind metal.

Eve lifted her hands, hellfire hovering but not released. She held it like a threat, ready to drop the moment things went sideways.

Faith stepped forward with two binding nails in hand and a small hammer she’d taken from somewhere I didn’t ask about.