Page 24 of Famine

The horseman doesn’t respond to that. But now my mind is hyper-focused on his injuries. I can still see his horrible, mangled body lying in the mud like he’d been discarded.

“How did you survive what happened to you?” I ask.

There’s a pause.

“I cannot die,” he finally says.

He cannot die?

“Oh.”

The silence stretches out.

“What’s your name?” I ask. As far as I’m aware, there are four horsemen, and I don’t have a single clue which one this is.

I swear I feel him looking at me with those frightful green eyes. In the darkness he begins to laugh.

“You don’t know?” he finally says. “I’m Famine, the third horseman of the apocalypse, and I’m here to kill you all.”

Chapter 9

Five years ago

Anitápolis, Brazil

Despite his words, he doesn’t kill me. At least not right then.

However, he continues to laugh and laugh, raising the hairs along my arms. Now would be a really good time to move my head off of his shoulder and scoot my dumb little ass out of here.

Why do I always get myself into these messes?

Famine is still laughing and laughing and laughing. The man has officiallylost it. Somewhere along the way, his laughter changes, deepening until he’s not laughing butsobbing.

I lay in his arms, feeling even more awkward and uncomfortable than I did before. I don’t know what I expected when I saved him, but I don’t think it was this.

The third horseman of the apocalypse is having a mental breakdown right next to me.

The sound is awful, his shoulders heaving with each sob.

I don’t know what to do. I thought the hard part would be saving him, but it’s clear that while the horseman’s body is safe—for now—his mind isn’t. It’s still caged in whatever prison he’s been locked up in, and I don’t know how to set it free.

Finally, because I can think of nothing better, I reach out and begin stroking his hair again.

“Ssshhh,” I murmur, “it’s okay. It’s going to be okay.” The empty platitudes slip from my lips. I have no clue what I’m saying. Of course nothing is okay and it won’t be okay, and I should not be makingFamine(holy shit!) feel better.

Under my touch his cries taper off until he’s left taking in ragged breaths of air.

My hand stills.

“Don’t stop,” he says, his voice broken.

I resume my ministrations. For a long time the two of us are quiet.

“So, you’re Famine?” I finally say. “What does that mean?”

“Mortal, I have no idea what you’re asking.” He sounds exasperated. Weary and exasperated.

“Um,” I say, “do you have any special powers?” I clarify.

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