'Til Death We Meet Again (A Grim Awakening Book 3) Read online

  “No,” he shook his head.

  “Nothing at all?” Killian asked again.

  “Nothing besides dreams of being the demon… and going after Melanie.” He lowered his head and wouldn’t meet my eyes. I wanted to reach out to him and tell him that none of what happened while he was the charred demon was his fault, but I knew nothing I could say would ease what he must be feeling.

  I felt out of place and disconnected with everything. I thought the more I knew about why Fear did what he did to me, things would feel different. The only thing that was different was my best friend dying and being controlled by a demon Fear placed inside him. How much more would Ryan have to suffer before I could finally save him?

  “The demon is feeding you memories as a means to break you,” Killian told him. “He knows you trying to kill Melanie will break you quicker than he ever could.” Did I hear a hint of praise in his voice toward Ryan?

  I used the chance to turn toward Sky while Ryan was focused on Killian’s words. I moved my face in front of hers and grabbed hold of her. “Sky, please. Look at him. Do you really see someone you should fear?” Her huge, beaded blue eyes fell on Ryan again. “Because all I see is a tortured soul that’s in this mess because of me.”

  Sky took a deep sigh and pulled away from me. I looked back and saw Killian staring at me. I couldn’t decipher the look on his face. And maybe, just maybe, that look was because he couldn’t decipher me either.

  Our stare down was over when we noticed Sky inching toward Ryan. He didn’t even notice at first. When he lifted his head and saw her, he froze. Rixen roared down at us, but he didn’t sound angry… more like he wanted his presence known.

  Ryan was too terrified of scaring her to even move. She moved closer, and closer, until she waited for him to make the next move. And he finally did. He brought his hand to the place between her eyes where he rubbed her down to her snout. She moved her face closer for him, even closing her eyes and showing trust.

  I was smiling long before Ryan looked over at me in amazement.

  _____

  Once we were back inside, Ryan met my eyes. “When you speak to Tess, tell her that I moved on from this world and that I’m sorry I chose to leave before saying goodbye.” My throat tightened. “I don’t ever want her to know the truth.” With those words, he disappeared into another room and I didn’t stop him.

  “Come on, there’s a room I want to show you,” I looked to Killian just as he grabbed my hand. My chest grew warm as well as my stomach, but I felt guilty for the way I felt. “Melanie.” He was tense and I could tell he wanted to say something as his hand tightened around mine.

  He didn’t say anything else, instead, he led me up one of the stairways by the hand. We were quiet and I took those silent seconds to recollect my thoughts. We passed two bedrooms before we stopped at a closed door. This door was different than the others, it had a rocky appearance and something was engraved into the door, but I had no clue what because I didn’t even know what language it was.

  He held a key out to me as he released my hand. “What?” I asked him.

  He grinned because Killian always took delight in my confusion. That was to be expected from someone as vain as him. He took enjoyment in his regard for himself and what he knew that others did not. But, that wasn’t entirely true, I knew he had a protective nature and a big heart, and I mostly liked calling him vain just because he was too good to be true sometimes.

  I would continue to unravel the things that made Killian who he was and discover just who it was that I fell in love with.

  “Stop grinning and just tell me, so that we can both grin about it together,” I nagged at him.

  “Just think of something you want and unlock the door with the key.”

  He placed the key in my hand. “Huh?” He laughed and I couldn’t help but smile. What was he so excited to show me?

  “Always with the questions,” he told me. “Just think of something—anything. Just make sure it’s something you like.”

  I squinted my eyes at him before turning to the door. Something I liked… I sighed. It was hard to think of something in this situation. I didn’t even know what was going to happen.

  Oh, I got one!

  Ice cream cake!

  I unlocked the door and opened it. This place was much more than an ice cream shop. There was ice cream everywhere. There was a bar filled with ice cream cakes on the right and a row of ice cream machines lined up beside the bar. Ice cream was being made in the back of the room with… was that a robot? My mouth finally opened. “Oh my God.” There was even a couch made from ice cream! Everything was cold and yummy looking.

  Killian laughed beside me. “Is ice cream the only thing you thought of?”

  “Technically, I thought of ice cream cake,” I clarified and he didn’t seem impressed. “What? You said to think of something and I did.”

  He shook his head at me. “You need a better imagination than that, Love, if you plan to use my key.” His key? I arched my eyebrow at him as he reached for the key. “Here, let me show you how to properly use it.”

  I moved my hand away so that he couldn’t take it from me. “No, I’ll try again.” We stepped out of the room and shut it back.

  Here I go all over again as I studied the key in my hand. Hmm.

  Oh, I got a good one!

  I stuck the key in again and opened the door. Food paradise! Only this time I did better. One side of the room was dedicated to nothing but chicken being rotated on racks. The other side was a replica of the restaurant Happy Days and I drooled as the mechanic female made a milkshake. She placed a cheeseburger and fries next to the milkshake. “That would be for me,” I told him as I hurried into the room, but I took one look at the chicken again and stopped. Mashed potatoes… rolls…and all kinds of sides that could be added with the chicken. I looked to the cheeseburger again. “Man, this is a hard decision,” I mumbled to myself, chewing on my bottom lip.

  I could hear the grin in his voice as he moved behind me. “I’m starting to see a pattern here. Are you hungry?”

  “Yeah, I didn’t get to eat anything because the Reaper sitting at our kitchen table scared the life out of me this morning.” I went for the milkshake and grabbed it before going to the other side of the room to eat the chicken.

  Killian joined me on a barstool as I ate. He was watching me with a smile. “Earlier,” I started. “Did the Reaper have something to tell you about Fear?”

  He leaned forward in his seat with a sigh. “I don’t know yet.”

  I gave him a confused frown. I sat my fork down. “This room is magical and all… I get it, this is your way to get me to relax, but what happens now?”

  He tucked a piece of hair that had fallen out of my ponytail behind my ear. “Can’t you let me take care of everything?”

  He already knew the answer to that. “I want this all to be over.” He reached out for my hand. “Will he try to merge with Grim again?” I asked.

  He shook his head. “Whatever you did to me on that rooftop was permanent. There’s no separating going on anymore, thanks to you.” He squeezed my hand, and I gave him a small smile.

  “I don’t even know what the heck I did on the rooftop,” I admitted sheepishly. “Just whenever I use the power, things become clear and I automatically know what to do… I only knew I didn’t want to lose you.”

  Neither of us had brought up the fact that I would die and he would lose me one day since we left that rooftop, but right now, it felt like it was hanging in the air between us.

  “I’m not going anywhere.” His eyes held that dark intensity as his thumb rubbed across mine. “You’re here with me, but your mind’s not. It’s clear by the expression on your face.”

  “I am,” I told him quickly. “It’s just… will this with Fear ever be over, and if it does end, what will happen between us?”

  “Marcus will die by my hands, it’s only a matter of when it’s going to happen. When he dies, your ties with F
ear should end as well.”

  “And Ryan, too?”

  He dropped his gaze from mine for a second, but it was enough to frighten me. “Okay, I’m going to tell you what’s going to happen. When this is all over with, you will be by my side whenever you want and the same applies to when I want you—so don’t look to be getting away from me. And as for dealing with Fear, that makes our time together short right now, so when we are alone, forget everything else.” I felt my face getting hot, and I hoped I wasn’t red in the face. Any sort of emotion I felt showed on my face way too easily.

  Large hands snaked around my waist and pulled me close. “I want you to promise me to leave your worries behind when we’re alone.”

  “I’ll try,” I whispered, although it was never hard when his hands were on me.

  He sighed. “There’s something else you want to ask, right?” He could read me too well.

  “What will happen to Ryan once this is all over?”

  His hand was tangled in my ponytail. I stood between his legs while he sat hugging me. “That’s up to Ryan.” His voice was low.

  “What does that mean?” I searched his handsome face for an answer.

  “He’s different.”

  “What do you mean?” There was an edge to my voice. “But we’re going to save him. Right?”

  “What are you expecting to happen to him?” He countered my question with another question.

  “Is there something I don’t know?”

  “Grim,” Lincoln’s voice drifted from the doorway. We both turned. Only the front of his body was visible at the door, the rest of his horse body was hidden in the hallway. “I didn’t want to interrupt… okay, maybe I didn’t mind since it’s so fun to get the little human riled up, but the Reapers are back.” I glared at his words.

  “What did they find?” I backed away so that he could stand.

  “Ten more portal chips have already gone missing since you last spoke to them,” Lincoln told him, and Killian’s eyes pinched together in aggravation.

  “What’s a portal chip?” I interrupted.

  “I’m the only person that can fade out of time to get to another place. With that being said, any demon that wants to enter the human world or travel to a different place in the Underworld needs one, and only certain demons are allowed to have the chips because if the wrong demons get a hold of them then your world would be in trouble,” Killian answered.

  “But I’ve seen Molly, and Fear, as well as Vengeance, disappear like you do.” I frowned and his eyes lit up with a smile. Why was he always smiling every time I asked a question?

  “In the human world, Molly can disappear a certain distance away without a portal chip just because she is a ghost. Fear and Vengeance use portal chips even though you never see them use it. The day Molly opened a portal for you to go to Fear’s, she was using one and she uses one every time she’s in the Underworld.”

  I nodded with my mouth open in a big giant O.

  Killian looked back to Lincoln after answering my question. “Have they found out if Fear is the one taking them?” Killian asked and Lincoln shook his head. “I’m guessing there’s still no signs of Molly, either? Fear has his own eyes and ears in the Underworld, we are bound to find someone that can give us answers.”

  Chapter Four

  Melanie

  After Lincoln dropped the news of more portals being stolen, Killian decided to take me home. I didn’t get to say goodbye to Ryan before I left and knew a day spent here could measure out as weeks being gone there…

  It was still morning back home—more like a few minutes were all that passed while I was gone and I was already ready for a nap.

  But I had to see Tess and tell her what Ryan had told me to say…

  I waited a few hours before driving over to her place to give her time to sleep. It was after noon when I arrived and knocked on the door when I saw that her parents were home. Which was weird if you knew them because her dad, Dan, was always away on business and her mom, Linda—well I didn’t even know how she managed to stay gone all the time.

  Dan answered the door and it was extremely awkward because I hardly knew him even after all the years I’ve been friends with Ryan and Tess. “Hey, Melanie, it’s good to see you,” he told me, and I smiled stupidly.

  “Hi, Dan. I’m here to see Tess.” I mentally slapped myself because, of course, I was here to see her.

  “Hey, Melanie,” Linda joined in on the meet-and-greet at their door.

  “Melanie!” Tess yelled from her room. I slipped off my shoes and hurried to her bedroom. I shut the door as soon as I was inside and gave her a look that spoke volumes. “I know, I’m scared, too,” she told me. We knew each other so long that we understood each other’s facial expressions.

  “I can’t believe your parents are both home at the same time,” I admitted.

  Her sandy brown hair was matted to her face and she was still lying in bed. She looked like a raccoon with the eyeliner caked underneath her eye. She raised up with a sigh. “You saved me from having to put up with those two any longer!”

  “Huh?” I flopped down on the bed and couldn’t suppress my grin.

  “They’ve been wanting to take me out and do stuff, ya know, go out and hang and be a family.” By the look on her face and sound in her voice, you would think that meant the end of the world. Which only explained how dysfunctional her family had been for her and Ryan all their lives. “It’s weirding me out.”

  I only shook my head and laughed in response. “So, where’s Ryan? He needs to know what kind of crap I’m going through with our parents?”

  My smile dropped and we were already at the conversation that I dreaded. “Ryan’s not coming back, Tess,” I forced myself to look her straight in the eyes.

  I watched her face morph into surprise, followed by hurt. “What do you mean?”

  I squeezed my hands together. “I mean; he’s moved on from this world. I don’t think he wanted to stay a ghost any longer,” I told her what Ryan wanted her to know even when my heart wanted me not to lie. But if I spoke the truth and she found out what happened to him because of me… she would never forgive me.

  She was clearly upset, but her next expression surprised me. She almost looked relieved. “Did he even say goodbye before he… I’m disappointed that he didn’t tell me—well, tell me through you before he left. But this is a good thing, right? We always talked about how ghosts weren’t meant to roam with the living, that they needed to move on.”

  My eyes were watering, and I knew I was on the verge of tears so I quickly wiped them away. “Yeah, that is what we always said. And I think Ryan would have told you goodbye if he had gotten the chance but maybe when it’s time, it’s time,” I cleared my throat and looked down at my hands.

  “My brother… he was a good guy, right? That’s why it hurts so much for us to let him go.” Her tears finally fell and with hers, came mine. She cried, I cried for her and for Ryan and the fact that they lost each other because of the mess that came with knowing me. I moved over the bed to hug her.

  “Boohoo, what will I ever do without my brother,” I recognized that patronizing voice and turned around quickly. Penny stood in her blacked-out getup with an amusing grin.

  “What?” The word tumbled from my mouth before I remembered that only I could see her. I couldn’t stop myself from glaring at her, though.

  “Why are you surprised to see me?” She smiled as she stepped around in the room. “Grim has me watching over that thing next to you. Do you realize how hard it is to deal with her?” she let out an exhausted sigh.

  “What is it?” Tess asked me.

  “Nothing…” I stumbled with my words. I tried to ignore Penny since she must be here to watch over Tess. I’d admit that I disliked Penny entirely on the fact that she had slept with Killian, but she didn’t try to make me like her either…

  Crap, my insecurities were bubbling up, and I didn’t even know how to handle them. Why would he put Penny som
ewhere where I would run into her? I looked her way again, and she was still standing there with a smirk. Her and those dang busty boobs and… UGH!

  “Have you talked to Mike at all?” I asked Tess because I cared and I needed to ignore my own growing insecurities and focus on someone else’s.

  “He’s been calling nonstop, but I still haven’t answered.” She glanced at her phone on the pillow.

  “You’re gonna have to eventually hear him out.” Because Vengeance was to blame, not Mike.

  “I know,” she said quickly. “I’m just scared.”

  I understood all too well. “I also have something to tell you.” She looked up and waited for me to go on. “I’m dating Killian.”

  Penny snorted next to us, and I tried to ignore the trickling of fear crawling up my throat by the way she was acting.

  I waited for Tess to get mad but for now, the only thing that blew up were the size of her eyes. “I guess it’s kind of not surprising since he picked you up after school the other day, but I thought you hated him. What happened?” She didn’t seem upset, just curious, and I sighed in relief.

  But I didn’t want to discuss Killian with Penny around. “He’s amazing,” I started out. “I just misjudged him when I first met him… well, he did act like a prick at first, but I didn’t act any better.” I grinned as I thought about how we first met.

  “Melanie, you’re grinning like an idiot,” Tess told me, but I didn’t miss the grin on her face either.

  I stayed and hung out with Tess a while longer before going home. Penny followed me outside, and I scowled at her as soon as we were alone. “Are you really here to watch over Tess?”

  She sighed. “Yeah, remember Grim did send me to watch over your mom and brother during the time you were staying at his place, but now he has me watching over Tess in case Fear goes after her because of you or her brother.” She couldn’t help but add, “He didn’t want me staying over at your place now that you were going to be there.”

  I got in my car and drove off because I couldn’t even think of one smart remark.