Page 29 (1/2)

My gaze went to the front of the building Fire licked along the roof, butWhich ie, the cheerful receptionist who’d been working there yesterday, ht still be alive

And I couldn’t escape the sudden notion that I needed to check--not only to save her life if that were possible, but for the sake of our mission

My clairvoyance sure picked the oddest tiathered across the other side of the road, but few of the in hh , an unpleasant coh I had no flesh I slipped through the ugly hole blown in the side of the building and made my way above the debris that had once been a corridor The storage units on either side were little od knohat else hanging out of theutted body

But the wall between the storage section and the office area was still basically intact, and though it was barely visible through the smoke and fla lie, tilted inward by the force of the explosion Fla the inside ceiling I went through, y for shoved inside e, despite the buffer of the standing wall Furniture was strewn everywhere, paper and glass littered the floor, and the front ere srills covering them The air was afor any sign of life, but couldn’t i The desk where the receptionist had been sitting had tipped over sideways and was now covered by part of the ceiling There was no sign of life But, by the same token, there was no evidence of blood or broken body parts

Then what sounded like a groan came from under the debris of the desk I swore mentally and shifted back to flesh The air was so dah, and the thick, heavy s in ie?" I had to shout to be heard above all the noise "Where are you?"

No answer caroan It was definitely co bits of plaster and rubbish fro the desk and tossed the, and the walls arounda jagged piece of wood as dust and bricks fell around an to crack alar the rest of it down

I swore and drew Amaya Don’t cut or burn the wo her blade, the lilac flaht in the ser chunks of wood, plaster, andthe s else

Froie? Can you hearpiece of wood, then thrust it up and back

There was a pause, then a weak, "Here Help"

So shiers tightening around Ae of an elderly woman and had a kind face and sorrowful blue eyes

"You can’t have her," I said fiercely "She’s not going to die"

"That is neither your decision nor mine," the reaper replied softly

I blinked None of them had ever talked to me before None of them except Azriel, anyway

"That is because you have never spoken directly to any of us before now," she said, her expression somewhat arabbed another chunk of wood and threw it away

A flash of familiar heat across ht you weren’t co in here in flesh form," he said

"Yeah, well, you kneas a lie, so why sound so aggrieved now?" I shoved another piece of wood out of the way "You could help, you know"

"I cannot interfere in this one’s life or death, Risa, and you know that"

"Da you to help me remove some of the rubbish on top of her"

"I cannot"

"Well, fuck you both, then!" I raised Aht her down hard Her blade hit the desk and, with a resounding crack, split it in two As her lilac fla into the wood, I raised a foot and kicked half of the desk with all the force I couldthe bloody and bruised torso of the young receptionist

I squatted beside her and gently brushed the hair froh she didn’t open her eyes, and the ination on s were trapped under the remains of the desk, and the blood I hadn’t seen earlier was there Everywhere I bit et you out of here, okay?"

Her eyes fluttered open She blinked, and just for a moment, confusion briefly outshone the pain in her eyes "You Changed again"