Page 85 of Death Makes the Heart Grow Fonder

Tegan grabbed Greyson’s sleeve. “The relic.”

Greyson’s expression was tight. “I know. But we cannot find it if we die.”

Cal shifted fully.

Gray rippled over his skin, shoulders broadening, wings unfolding with a heavy snap that made the air vibrate. His eyes gleamed, ancient and fierce. He stepped in front of me like a wall.

“Stay behind me,” he said, voice deeper now, resonant.

I wanted to object, but my knees wobbled and the bond tugged. I did what my body demanded and stayed close.

Eve’s hands lifted again. This time she did not throw a single blast. She compressed the fire.

She shaped it.

Three tight spheres formed between her palms, pulsing like miniature suns. She held them for a beat, controlling the heat, then tossed one toward the nearest cluster.

It hit and burst.

Flame spread in a contained bloom, consuming three poltergeist-driven corpses at once. The spirits inside shrieked, a sound that made my teeth ache, then snapped apart as if they had been cut free.

Eve formed another sphere.

Faith’s voice rose over the chaos. “I love the witch equivalent of a Molotov cocktail.”

Eve shot her a look that suggested Faith was one joke away from being used as a shield.

Faith grinned anyway, because Faith could find humor in a burning hellscape if it kept her from screaming.

Eve lifted her arm to throw again.

Tegan lunged and grabbed her wrist.

“Stop,” Tegan snapped.

Eve’s eyes widened in fury. “Let go.”

“We cannot start a fire this close to a hospital,” Tegan hissed. “Do you want the building to go up?”

Eve’s jaw clenched. The fire sphere wavered, heat licking at her fingers.

Nishi stepped in on Tegan’s other side, voice tight. “Tegan is right. No wide throws.”

Eve’s shoulders rose and fell once. Her rage was a living thing, but she swallowed it back, forcing control.

“Fine,” she said through her teeth.

She compressed the fire again, tighter, more focused, then dropped it directly at her feet where two undead lunged, burning them without letting flame spread outward.

Cal’s wings beat once, pushing air, shoving a cluster of undead back. He grabbed one by the throat and flung it into another, bodies colliding in a heap.

“They keep rising,” Faith shouted.

Drathar’s laughter rolled across the lot again. “Keep burning, little flame. You are feeding the fear.”

Dagna smiled from behind him, then gave Eve a small wave as if they were at a social event.

Then she and Drathar started to step back, using the undead wall as cover.