Page 62 of Living with Death

“And why are you trying?”

I narrow my eyes. “Because it's the right thing to do.”

He licks his lips. “Of course.”

I watch him for a moment before I ask, “Is it pointless?”

“That will be her choice.”

“So you don't know when a person will die?”

“Sometimes I do. But other times, it's about free will. Mortals affect the timeline by the choices they make.”

“Did you know I was going to die?”

He shakes his head and turns to look back out. “We'll need to drive for a few more hours. Why don't you rest?”

I look at my watch, squinting to see it's after ten. This morning, I went for a run, shopped for new curtains to hang throughout my home, and called someone to get a quote on redoing the kitchen and ripping out that wall. I'm thrilled to be doing something with the house, finally. It's going to be a fun project. The day weighs on me, and the car's sound makes me heavy-eyed. “I think I will.”

I lean my head back and watch the sky. Clouds drift over the moon, and the stars are hardly visible. I inhale contently, and a few moments before sleep comes, I say, “You'll need to mark reading a book off the bucket list.”

Chapter Twenty

Azrael

Now

Mabel sleeps beside me, the only sound being the car's soft hum. The clouds drift, revealing the moon, its light weaving through the trees as we head toward the manor.

I want to show her a beautiful night before she decides to hate me and send me back to my miserable existence. She'll know what I've done and think I'm a monster.

Being feared is nothing new for me, but the idea of her being afraid of me burns. I hate that we got a late start, but we needed to eat, and she made a phone call to her mother, which wasn't pleasant. The woman doesn’t know how to let Mabel be.

Her mother infuriates me.

I look over at Mabel sleeping, her head resting on the door, her lashes fanned over her pale skin. The moon shines on her, making the scattered freckles over her cheeks and the bridge of her nose more prominent.

It's been over a week since I started speaking to her. I have little time left. I run my thumb over my finger, gazing back out the window.

The thought saddens me, no longer being around her, speaking to her. I'll have to return to the In-Between, and I'll never be able to show myself again.

I certainly didn't think I would find so much joy walking among the mortals. It has been an experience I’ll never forget. Up ahead, I can see the winding road which leads to the manor. “Mabel,” I say.

She doesn't stir.

I lean over. “Mabel, darling. Wake up.”

“Hmm,” she says, her sweet voice sleepy and sexy.

“Wake up,” I whisper in her ear.

She blinks, looking over at me.

I smile as she wakes. “We're here.”

She yawns, and I tap on the partition. The driver lets it down, looking in his rearview mirror. “You can stop up ahead.”

“But sir, there's no way to get up there.”

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