Page 16 of Bride of Death

Only, last night’s antics at the bar replay through my head in the next moment, making me question that mantra.

Mating games.

Bride of Death.

New accommodations.

Though, Ghost didn’t try to drag me anywhere last night, nor did he come for me while I slept. So maybe it was all some big joke? A weird Death Fae prank?

Is he even a Death Fae?I wonder.

Shaking off the question, I focus on my shower, the chilled water making my movements quick as my teeth chatter.

Apparently, all the water in the Netherworld Village is like this. It makes me miss the warmth from the palace.

But I can’t go back there. I love Alina, and I’m happy for her and her mates. However, I need to find myself. To learn how to survive.To figure out where I fit in…

Some of the fae at the bar have talked about other kingdoms and realms. I pretend to ignore them while listening to every word, searching for hints of a place I might like to go.

So far, none of them have appealed to me, though. At least not based on their conversations.

However, I know where some of the portals are that take fae to alternate worlds. They’re in the tunnel—the one that links the Netherworld Kingdom to the Morpheus Kingdom.

I’ve walked over there more than once, tempted to go inside and find the portals for myself.

But each time, I’ve been spooked by the eerie sensations surrounding the entrance. It’s almost like the tunnel is a portal in itself.

Turning off the water, I wrap a towel around myself and step out of the small glass enclosure to stare into the circular mirror above my sink.

The bathroom is definitely a downgrade from the palatial one attached to my guest suite in the palace. However, I prefer this space to that one because this room is mine. As is the bed and the couch and my small kitchen.

Gnarls sends my paycheck to the village fund to help pay for my rent and utilities. I’m also given a stipend at the local Skull Mart for my groceries. Fortunately, they have an aisle dedicated to human food. Apparently, a lot of the fae like “other-world cuisine.”

If only I recognized half the items in the aisle. I don’t. But that’s mostly related to my home world being different from the Human Realm here.

So complicated, I think, not for the first time.Alternate dimensions. Fae. Monsters.

I shake my head. “It’s a wonder I’m still standing some days,” I tell myself as I brush my hair and finish up in the bathroom.

Pip is pacing right outside the door, his white hands tucked behind his back as he floats back and forth. His big, hollowed-out eyes meet mine, the bright blue flames flickering to life in what almost looks like a smile as he perks up.

“It was only ten minutes,” I tell him.

But he twirls again like he did after I thanked him for the dead flower, his cloak whispering across the floor.

I smile, amused by his excitement. It didn’t take long for me to accept his presence here. He’s just so endearing. And it’s clear he doesn’t mean me any harm. Instead, he seems to want to help me.

Which is probably why I smell burning in the kitchen.

“Oh, Pip,” I groan. “Did you try making me breakfast again?” Because the last time he did that, the toast ended up black and the eggs rotted in the pan.

I don’t quite understand his lethal touch, but it’s clearly not meant for living things.

Hence the reason I try to step around him and not through him. I don’t want to end up like the flowers or the food.

Pip dances again, swishing around and leading me to the kitchen. “I told you before that I appreciate the gesture, but I prefer to?—”

My words end on a yelp as a flame bursts from the stovetop.