Page 126 of Death and Do-Overs

I was sitting on a train when a woman in a black cloak slipped in beside me. She told me Nevermore was “scary bad” and I should choose a different path. She said the competition was to the death. I found her strange, and her warning strange. I was not perturbed.

I was approached by a yellow fox. He knew my exact supernatural nature. He invited me to participate in The Competition.

I agreed.

I was bound to Nevermore until a winner was chosen.

Otis, scared and lost, asked to form an alliance. Given the vast strength of the others I’d encountered since the start, I agreed.

When I realized exactly how little chance I had to succeed, when I realized that Mar could be affected, I knew I had to end my run.

I asked Otis to kill me. When he refused, I begged until he agreed.

I gasped as I watched everything play out again and again in my head.

Nie hadn’t been forced into The Competition, she’d chosen it.

She was so different from the rest of us, including the Marnie I was now with her as a part of me.

I looked down at the empty box where Nie’s body had been.

“We can’t leave until we end this.” I looked at Otis. “Only then will your curse be broken.”

“I cannot fight my brother’s mate,” Otis said.

“We have to find another way,” I agreed.

“Mate?” Greta and Shark Imogen said in unison.

“After we deal with the bad fox. Not Noodles,” I said. “Another one.”

Our only hope was one of us could sneak up behind him before we got possessed, or better yet, Imogen could bodysnatch him first. If kitsune turned into people, that meant Imogen’s magic might work on them.

We returned to the room, leaving our swords, Levi, and Imogen’s body in the hall. Then, all at once, we tried to sneak inside from different angles.

As soon as I stepped across the threshold, I was frozen.

Everyone was frozen.

Shark Man snapped his teeth. “Where am I?”

Actual Imogen stepped into the room from the hall while the fox was distracted.

I waited for her body to collapse again as she took over the creature.

She didn’t.

Instead, the fox turned to her and smiled.

“Is this really the best you’ve got?” he said. “How very disappointing.”

It was over. Our only hope had been Imogen, and she’d failed.

I focused on moving even the teeniest, tiniest bit.

Maybe it was because I’d already gone through this once, or maybe because the fox was controlling so many of us at once, but I was able to break my hand free.

I looked at Greta, who was slowly reaching into our messenger bag for the potions Rose had given us.

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