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“The knife please,” says Raziel. “My patience is not infinite.”

I reach into my coat pocket and slowly take out the amber blade.

“Lovely,” says the Magistrate. “Now set it on the ground between us.”

I drop it in the dirt.

Vehuel lies back down, rubs her eyes with the heels of her hands.

“You fool. You have doomed Creation.”

“Fuck Creation. Your kind broke it a long time ago and now you’re blaming me for taking care of one of the few people I ever cared about?”

“Don’t do it, Jim. Take it back,” says Alice.

“I can’t let you be murdered twice.”

“Enough,” says Raziel. “Move back and take Vehuel with you. Once I have th

e amber knife, you may have your little angel back. Of course, you might find that her opinion of you has changed.”

“I don’t think so. We are who we are. Isn’t that right, Alice?”

“That’s right,” she says, and closes her eyes.

Raziel says, “For one last time. Move back.”

“No.”

I raise my boot and slam the heel down on the knife, shattering it into a million pieces.

“What have you done?” he yells. But that’s the last thing he manages to bleat out of his smug face.

Raziel lets go of Alice and collapses to his knees. The piece of wood falls from his hand. As he goes down, I see Cherry behind him. She’s trembling. I get it now. She stabbed the bastard in the back with a piece of the killer wood before I even had a chance to move. I wonder how long she’d been planning on killing him? It took her long enough.

Alice is on the ground next to her boss.

“Are you mad?” Vehuel says. “Out of sentimentality you destroyed Death’s weapon? Do you know what this means?”

“That if I destroy nine more I get a free sandwich?”

“Without death, mortal life has no meaning. I know that seems cruel, but endless, pointless life is a true Hell. And you have brought it on all of your own people.”

“No I didn’t.”

I pick up the amber knife. It’s in one piece.

“But I saw you crush it.”

“I’m half angel, remember? If I can’t do hoodoo that will trick another angel, then what am I good for?”

Alice swats my leg.

“You idiot. What if it hadn’t worked?”

“I knew it would. Come on, now. You knew what I was doing.”

“You’re insane. I had no idea at all.”