Page 13 of All Hallows Fate

“He’s with Neglect,” Death replied. “She’ll take care of him.”

“My dad?” I blurted, seizing onto those words and allowing the madman who’d grabbed me to carry me across the fog-doused courtyard and up castle steps partly crumbled. “I have a dad?”

“Yup,” the man carrying me said, his steps quickening as a cool darkness enveloped us. My heart jolted, panic tightening my belly, but an awkward glance up showed we’d just stepped into the foyer of the once-grand castle. I was impressed it still stood; there were entire swaths of it missing, mist churning over the empty spots. “And he’s every bit as fearsome as you, my lioness. He stabbed Cruelty all over. Shredded her to bits. It was impressive.” He quickly tacked on, “Not as impressive as you, obviously. No one can bludgeon someone quite so beautifully as you can.”

“Uh.” The blood must have been rushing to my head, because the compliment warmed my chest, as if my heart was accustomed to them. “Thanks?”

“You’re welcome. My name is Madde, by the way. But you should know, you call me love, and I don’t want to lose that name.”

My head began to pound, to float. “Madde? Or love?”

I didn’t realise I was moving until he’d whipped me down his body and my feet stumbled onto the floor. A moment later, I was pushed up against a wall beside a painting of a very dour man in a red silk shirt and ruff that looked a lot like the pale, crying man outside.

Madde’s mouth met mine before I could even begin to push him away, and every bit of resistance melted as I remembered this. Not the man, not any of our time spent together. But I remembered the feeling of kissing him. His frantic hands were familiar, his desperate, gasping kiss lurking in the black hole in my mind. And for a crazy second, I kissed him back.

“Madness! You stupid bastard,” someone snarled, and he was ripped away from me, leaving me reeling against the wall, my legs a little weak.

“Madness?” I echoed, and cleared my throat when my words came out husky and low. “That’s your name? Madness and Death.” I frowned at the beautiful Asian man who’d pulled Madde away.

“Misery,” he provided, unable to meet my stare. That hurt, too, an inexplicable pain that carved through my chest.

“Those aren’t normal names,” I pointed out.

Misery shrugged. “Names are hard to hold onto when we’re reborn. Do you know your death god name?”

“Death god?” I demanded, a little shrill. I knew I was a god, because someone had told me. I couldn’t recall who, but a dry, male voice clung to my mind, along with lessons imparted about magic and—and the paper screwed up in my hand. I unfolded it and cast a glance at the list.

A set of scales for Judgement.

A coil of iron to fix the gates.

A home for lost creatures.

A stone to summon spirits home.

A pained heart returned.

A kiss to save a death.

And at the bottom were three words: trust your bonds.

I didn’t know about bonds, but I trusted the man who wrote this list.

“Lioness,” Madde said, pulling my attention back to him—and the others, all clustered around me in the foyer of the vast castle. “Your name is Cat.”

“I know,” I murmured. Cactus Bengal-Tiger Wallison.

I glanced up as the heavily tattooed man moved closer, looking inclined to grab Madde if he kissed me again.

“Tor,” he answered my unspoken question. “Torment. And this cute motherfucker is Pain.”

“Pain?” I frowned. “Is that your curse? Are you in pain?”

“Right now?” the curly-haired man laughed bitterly, the tormented rasp of his voice at odds with the innocent softness of his face. “Yeah. I’m in pain.”

I sighed heavy enough to ruffle my hair, my shoulders slumping. I meant it when I apologised for not knowing them. I glanced at the list again, smoothing my thumb over the bottom line.

“We’re bonded, aren’t we?” I looked up, looked at all of them. Unnaturally handsome, physically intimidating, and rife with power. But melancholy, grieving—all of them.