Page 34 (2/2)

The chilled wind blows through our hair as we hike across the parking lot and Raven holds the bottom of her dress down and fiddles with her hair Inside her bra, the phone rings, and she does a little wiggle fronores the call

"Dahs as we push the front doors and a mist blows in our faces

I fan h the s on a stage near the farthest wall and e and black strea around coluhts flash down on the packed dance floor, where people ju There are witches, devils, vaels In the farthest corner, someone is fashioned in a Grim Reaper costume

"God, I hope there aren’t too many of theaze "Oh, Emmy, you don’t fear the Reaper, do you?"

I shoot her a blank stare "Is that supposed to be funny?"

She s in the world, touching her and not feeling her death We create a wide path with her wings as eave around the rooe Heads turn in our direction, but I keep focused on the co back here?!" I yell over the music

She points at the doors decorated with spider webs and an ENTER AT YOUR OWN RISK sign "There’s a haunted house back there and Asher just sent h it with some friends"

I sla me to turn around and run

"Em, what the hell?" She unclasps our ar at?"

My pulse races as I stare at the door "I’o in there"

She rolls her eyes and jerks me forward "Come on, we’ll be fine"

"Why can’t I justback at the dance floor

"Stop being a chicken!" She laughs and it bringsthe Reaper"

She pushes through the door and I follow her into the haunted house It’s dark inside and when the door shuts behind us, it suffocates the music There are skeletons in the entrance of a hallway forht the way down the path

I back up, but Raven wrenches ht whether you like it or not"

Shaking e after her One of the skeletons juhing The farther we go, the et, until there are none left and we’re s with evil laughs and a war onto her "I want to go back… this was aback here"

Her hand falls fro"

I stumble around in the dark with my hands sprawled out in front of me "Raven, where the hell are you?"

Behind raffiti on the wall I lower ht turns on and eate in front of ate and step into the next section, which is lined wall-to-ith ate slaers through the links, jerking it fiercely

The gate won’t budge, so I hurry, vigilantly, up the slender hall between the mirrored walls "Raven, please tell me where you are This isn’t funny anyhts flash off, then on again as a man appears at the end of the hall, with dark hair, kohl-lined eyes, black jeans, and a T-shirt A giant X brands his forehead

I squint through the blinking lights that reflect blindingly against the rins, expanding his ar tiure and a thousand deaths pour through , fire, pain, pain, pain I buckle forward, but he grasps my arm, rotates it behind reasy hair shines in the light and he scratches the X on his eye "You’re not playing the ga every question we ask and you’re not giving in It’s very disappointing"

"We," I say, hoping to throw him off "As in the Anamotti"

His face reer question that I think needs answering is who are the Anamotti? And who leads us?"

"I don’t knohat you’re getting at" I try to wrenchout a screa into my skin "Oh, I think you do It’s the perfect criroup who is chasing after her, when really you are part of it Earning her trust, so she’ll never see it co"

"Asher isn’t after me," I choke "He wouldn’t do that"

"What, lie?" A sly grin creeps over his face "Or try to kill you? How do you think he showed up so fast that night at the lake after I ran into you? And how do you think we knew you were going to be here tonight?"