Page 86 of The Prince of Demons

“Good,” Reaper said. Then he snapped, and the cards flipped.

I told him to deal and deal again, and my eagerness resulted in a house win.

I grimaced and took another hit of soju. This wasn’t going well so far.

Reaper leaned over the table, deep voice steady. “Why does Gaksi want you to go on a date?”

I inhaled. Might as well rip off the band-aid.

I answered evenly, even though my insides were quaking. “Because he knows I’m lonely.”

Reaper remained expressionless. Which was good, because I could never handle the shame of him thinking I was defective.

“Elaborate,” he pressed. Perhaps it was the alcohol or the comforting shawl of his shadows, but the words burst through me.

“Because I am lonely. I have been for a while. Mom’s whole life is her children, so whenever I messed up, it’s like she took it personally as a failure of her parenting. So I avoided her out of my fear of failure, and my only real companion became Gaksi, which meant I had to be homeschooled because I refused to go anywhere without him. Despite my excitement to meet new people at Aether, Cordelia and Aubrey are my only friends. Everyone else is just more competition. An adversary waiting to happen. I was always on the defensive growing up, waiting for my mom to find some new flaw in me, for someone at cheer practice to treat me like garbage, or for Gaksi to push me too far, and I think my inherent standoffishness impedes me making real friends.”

My spirit howled. I’d never spoken that much in one setting, let alone been that vulnerable with anybody. I finished my glass. The shadows tipped the soju, refilling it for me.

Reaper was silent, brow furrowed. I could tell he was deep in thought, but thankfully, he only re-dealt. I won. Thankfully. I needed a break.

“What’s your greatest fear?” There. It was a two-way street; if I opened up, he should too. Karma.

He swirled his chalice absentmindedly. “I won’t bring my kingdom back to where it used to be.” He took a sip.

“Elaborate,” I encouraged, repeating his own words back to him.

“My job has been relatively static for years. Transport souls, do whatever odd tasks my father requests of me, but all that has been upset recently. The veil weakened, the gumiho jumped out, and I’ve been here for months without any real leads. My father already thinks of me as a failed prince. An unworthy, dishonorable child. Eventually, my kingdom will share the same belief. They already think I am a rather young and foolhardy prince as it is.”

His lip curled in disgust. So he was insecure then, too. I wondered how many dead souls lived in his kingdom. Were there consequences to them disliking him? Or was it like an honor thing? That he took it personally when he was disliked? We had that in common.

Perhaps I should not have called him worthless earlier…

He dealt another hand.

Seven and three for me, which made ten. I’ve already gotten here. Might as well make the night memorable andpush.

“Again.”

One.

“Again.”

Seven.

“Again.”

“You’re bold.” He glanced at me over the cards. “You know, I have a personal question waiting for you next. If you lose, I get to ask.” He smiled at me like I was a meager fly, trapped in a mastermind spider’s web.

“Again,” I repeated. I wasn’t afraid. What was he going to do, try to kill me again? He’d never succeeded.

Three.

“Blackjack!” I shouted, slamming my hands down on the table.

He cleared his throat. “Go on then.”

I pursed my lips for a moment, thinking.

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