Page 41 of In Between Death and the Devil

“They can change the realms.” He blinked innocently at me and placed his hand on his heart.

A laugh escaped before I could stop it, and he lit up as if he’d won something delightful. “You’re terrible.” I shook my head, pressing my lips together to keep from smiling.

“You’re not the first to say that.” He moved to the door. “See you around, Maeve.”

I watched the door shut behind him with bemusement. Such an idiot.

Star poked their head out of the flames, and I bent to place the bread I’d saved for them on the floor.

“He better have answers for me tonight,” I said, watching the salamander scurry down from the fire and claim their prize.

I checked the clock on the wall—two hours until I was to meet the Devil—and resumed pacing.

* * *

“Why is my curse like Death’s power?” I asked as I strode over to the Devil in the center of the Great Hall.

He was alone and standing in the middle, waiting for me with a satisfied gleam in his eyes. “Good evening, Maeve. Diving right in, I see.” His tunic was unlaced and open at the collar, showing off a hint of smooth skin and defined muscles. Between that, his usual bare arms, and the way his hair curled over his forehead in a tousled manner, he looked like temptation incarnate.

I had a sudden urge to touch him, to bury my face in his chest and see what all that exposed skin felt like against mine. Shaking it off, I tightened my grip on my thoughts. “Answer my question.” I was in no mood for games, or to give him his damn report. I felt ready to burst out of my skin. I needed him to tell me that it was a coincidence, and I wasn’t the reason the In Between was suddenly crumbling.

He regarded me for a moment. I could tell he was sensing my emotions. I was probably projecting. For once, I didn’t care.

“Because you’re the next Death.”

I stared at him, his words echoing in my head as my heartbeat thudded in my ears. Part of me had expected him to refuse to tell me, that I’d have to fight him for answers. Having him give in so easily felt like I’d missed a step going downstairs.

You’re the next Death.

The thought was slippery. I couldn’t grasp it. Or maybe I refused to. It was too big. Too heavy. Too impossible. Yet our deal wouldn’t let me dismiss it. I shrank back, curling inward to ward it off. “That’s impossible. You’re lying. Death is a god, just like you. Immortal. Eternal. I’m⁠—”

“We’re not.” He cut me off. “You’ve been lied to.” His tone brooked no opposition, but I refused to take him at his word.

“By whom?”

“Death.”

“Of course you’d say that. There’s no proof.” I crossed my arms.

“If Death is immortal, why do you have her powers?” He mirrored my stance, his expression hard.

I had no answer to that. His reasoning was circular, but I’d asked myself the same question, because it made no sense that I had them. “There has to be another reason.” I said finally.

“Like what?”

“I don’t know. Anything.” I flung a hand out to the side.

His expression was tinged with something that might be pity. “This is the reason.”

I shook my head and turned for the door. Expecting a reasonable answer from him was stupid. I should have known better.

“Every pair of Death and Devil are meant to be bonded by a Death Chord,” he said, stepping out of the darkness in front of me like he’d walked through it.

I jerked back, both at his sudden closeness and because the word ‘bonded’ snagged my attention. It made me think of the hook to the chest I’d felt during the transition. And then I’d seen him right before I woke up in the In Between. The hairs on the back of my neck rose, and my palms prickled.

“A Death Chord? Now you’re just making things up.” I tried for derision, but my voice shook.

He stared me down, the planes of his face looking like they’d been carved from marble. “The In Between is all about balance. It’s why souls are weighed to determine their next life. Why there are two castles, and two gods.” That, at least, tallied with what I’d been taught. “Death and I generate power through our duties—sending souls on to their next life or helping them face their previous one. Sometimes one of us will generate more power than the other.