Hale shrugged. “They’re from HR.”
“HR?” Cameron asked.
“Human Resources,” Hale explained. It didn’t sound so problematic when he said it that way.
“I can’t get us out without Ossy, so we need to hide.” I didn’t even know how I’d gotten us to the Between, and I was only guessing that was where we were.
Cameron stopped walking. He chanted something under his breath. “They can’t see us anymore. I used an invisibility spell. They can hear us, though. So we’ve got to talk softly.”
It really paid to have a witch around.
“Can you show me how to do that?” Hale whispered.
“I’d love to teach you. My grandmas will help, too.” His grandmas must be the bakery ladies.
“So tell me about the beloved thing. Besides the fact that we all apparently have a hot reaper, they are hot, right?”
“Every single one of them,” Hale chimed in.
Cameron’s eyes sparkled with mischief. “So far, I don’t see a downside.”
“There is one. Beloveds can walk between realms, which means they may collapse the veil between the living and the dead. That’s why the god of death, the guy you sold a coffee to, wants us gone.”
“He was trying to hurt me? He seemed so nice.” Cameron scowled.
I stiffened at the sight of a nearby shadow and put a finger to my lips. We stood in silence, holding our breath.
I needed Ossy in a big way. This was even bigger than when I was stuck at the office.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Ossy
The Between was a vast, empty space. It stretched on for eternity. I wanted to call Phin’s name, but demons lay between us, blending in better than I did. If Phin answered me, it would alert them, too.
Donnie Death dogged my heels, but I wasn’t too worried. Cael kept a close eye on him, darting glances his way when Donn thought he wasn’t looking. It was ridiculous, the way they dodged each other when they didn’t want to.
It was all hands on deck. The reapers fanned out as if we were searching a forest for a dead body. Except I knew Phin was here somewhere. I could feel his presence.
“Do you know what happens when someone who isn’t me goes into the afterlife and then comes back out?” Donn raised his eyebrows, expecting an answer. I tried to ignore him, or at least not let him steal my focus. This was about finding Phin, not about Donn trying to get me to leave Phin.
“You’re wasting your time if you think I’ll let you have Phin.”
“The veil collapses, which means there will be no doors separating the living realm from death. It means souls can walkback and forth between the living realm and the afterlife. Do you know what havoc that would wreak?”
“I’m sorry about that. I hope it doesn’t happen. I’m still not leaving Phin.”
“This is my existence. My purpose. I’ve watched the people I love die. I’ve watched people kill themselves and each other. Slavery. Famine. People letting others go without basic needs. Humans are cruel to one another.” Donn shook his head. “Life and death is how I can help humans. It’s the role I play. I’m pointless if the veil falls.”
Cael drew Donn to him. “You’ll never be that. Not to me.”
Donn let Cael comfort him. Not for the first time did I see worry in Donn’s expression. He seemed to calm around Cael. He’d always been even-keeled whenever Ossy had seen him, though that hadn’t been very often. As head of the Soul Management Bureau, Donn was the boss of all bosses, so he wasn’t exactly someone you made friends with.
And I could see where he had a point about humans. They weren’t very nice to each other. That alone was a cause for concern. Honestly, that alone really chapped my ass. So I got Donn’s point. But there was one problem. “None of this is Phin’s fault. Or Elliot’s. Or Hale’s. Or any of the other beloveds. Or yours. You shouldn’t punish yourself just because Cael loves you.”
“I do not walk through the door to the afterlife, Osiris. I have never walked through that door. Even gods do not do it. The door is only for those souls without a body. I cannot allow anyone to break the veil. Not even myself. It would be catastrophic.” Donn sighed and shook his head. “I thought sending the souls to Hollowbrook would teach you all what it would be like to have the living and the dead mingling together. Even for a day or two, the souls collect until there are more dead than living. Imagine constantly reaping the same soul.”
I shuddered at the thought. Doing the same job day after day would feel like Groundhog Day.
