“I can’t teleport.”
“Why?”
“I can’t tell you why. Not yet, anyway.” Same thing, different day. Ossy would never change. The pit in my stomach deepened. I truly was alone in whatever was going on. “I have to go. Stop calling me.”
“Baby, please. I’m trying to save your life.”
Wait. What? “You think my life is in danger?”
“Yes.” Ossy sounded so convinced of the danger. He believed it. Or was he a good liar?
The laugh was strained. Tension took hold.
I stood and headed to the kitchen. I filled the tea kettle with tap water and set it on the burner before turning on the heat. Chamomile tea always calmed my nerves. “That’s the biggest lie you’ve ever told.”
Ossy growled, something I had never heard him do before. “I have never lied to you. Ever, Phineas Reaper.”
Reaper wasn’t my last name. It was Ossy’s. Him calling me by his name stole every retort I had, just as much as his adamancy that he wasn’t a liar did. “I...”
I tried to think of a time when Ossy might have lied, but I couldn’t. His excuses for not showing up had always seemed absent-minded, but they weren’t. It was Ossy deflecting. He hadn’t wanted to get serious. “You never wanted to have a relationship. And Reaper is not my last name.”
“I do. I swear it, baby.” As sincere as Ossy sounded, I knew I couldn’t believe him.
“Why?” Why wasn’t Ossy chasing waves and bar-hopping? That was what he did before. It was what I could count on when it came to Ossy.
“I’ll explain everything when I get there. I promise.”
My heart couldn’t take it any more. “You’re deflecting again.”
“I am not.” He so was.
“I’m not listening to you tell me how much I mean to you, only to have you ditch me again. How many more times do I have to be an afterthought? Just admit you don’t want to get serious, and let’s end things once and for all. I need some sort of closure. And for the love of the gods, please have Morgana call me.” I should have ended the call, but for a reason that had everything to do with hope, I hung on to hear Ossy’s next words.
“I will not, under any circumstances, leave you. Ever. Again.” Ossy paused. I could hear him breathing as if the words had cost him a lot of energy. “I’m sorry for how I was before.”
“Before what, Ossy?” As far as I was concerned, nothing had changed. Well, except for the reapers, including Morgana, who no longer showed up for work. That was a big change. Fucking huge, in fact. And I wasn’t the only one who would notice eventually.
“Don’t go to work. But if you do, don’t use Bureau resources. Not teleportation or the Bureau’s communication system. If you listen to nothing else, please listen to that.” So Ossy feared the Bureau. Which, okay, made sense. Kind of. We worked for the god of death. There should be some level of fear, right? It came with the territory.
Wait. So, no using the Bureau’s systems? Did that mean... it did. Didn’t it? Oh, no. No. No. Please, for the love of the gods, please don’t let the reapers fuck with the Bureau. “You need to stop, Ossy. Please. Don’t do what you’re doing. Don’t go against the Bureau.”
“You’re the smartest one of us all.” Was that respect in Ossy’s voice, or pride? “I have to, baby. We all have to.”
“Why?” What could possibly be so important that the reapers would mess up their job?
“I want to see your face when I tell you. It needs to be face-to-face.”
“So you’re dumping me. The whole reaper division is, isn’t it?”
Ossy sighed. “I’m coming for you. Just hold on.”
“Don’t drag me into whatever you and the rest of the reapers are doing?” The reapers left the Bureau, leaving me behind. I expected it from Ossy, but not from the rest of them, especially Morgana.
Chapter Six
Ossy
Ezul had heard the entire conversation. His expression gave nothing away, which made me feel as though I were in the hot seat. The car was confining. Ezul might be a demon, but his hearing was as sharp as a dog’s. I fought the urge to explain myself. I didn’t owe Ezul anything. Or that was what I told myself, but he had been the head of HR, and fraternizing with a co-worker was probably against the rules in the handbook. Not that I would know. I’d never read the thing.
