Page 16 of Frosty and the Reaper

In order for the water to do that, it would take very powerful magic. On a breathless laugh, she said, “It’s like you created the Fountain of Youth.”

She lost her smile after he was silent for several long heartbeats.

“I didn’t create it. I just have access to it,” he finally admitted.

Her mouth dropped open in shock. “You have to be kidding me! We’re bathing in the Fountain of Youth?” Appalled by the very notion, she sputtered, “That’s just…how can you treat the freaking Fountain of Youth like a bathtub?”

She tried to get up, but he easily held her in place.

“Settle down, mate. This isn’t the Fountain of Youth. That is located higher up in the mountain near the base of the Tree of Life. We just have access to the overflow down here.”

By the gods, it just kept getting worse.

She groaned. “You own the Tree of Life, too?”

“I do notownit,” he stressed. “It was simply relocated to the island after too many people began fighting over it. In their quest to obtain its power, people almost destroyed it.”

Kami wasn’t sure she would ever get used to the fact that her mate was a living legend. She wondered what other secrets could be found on the island, then decided worrying about that would just make her head explode.

Shaking her head, she chuckled. “My sister is going to totally freak out when she hears about all of this.”

“Your sister is the new Queen of the Winter Kingdom,” he stated.

She nodded. “Jackie will be an excellent queen. Her mate, Micah, will help her rule the kingdom well. Even though he is not fae, everyone seems to have accepted him. He was the metal mage-dark angel hybrid before the reaper, Merlin, gifted him his god powers.”

Zander’s eyes seemed to dim with sadness. “Merlin made a great sacrifice for all of us. Once the curse hit us and we were taken into the Realm of Illusions, he was able to create the sanctuary that protected us all these years.”

“He was your friend?”

“He was. A very good friend. He was a strong spellcaster with a wealth of knowledge. Micah is a fortunate soul to be given such a gift.”

“I can’t wait for you to meet them.”

He stroked a hand down her hair. “We shall see them again soon. I promise.”

Nodding, she pushed that aside for now. Lifting the amulet she was wearing, she glared at it. “Why am I wearing this thing again? And why isn’t it glowing anymore?”

“I put it back on you to temporarily help control the effects of the mating frenzy. And it will no longer glow since I reset it. You used your magic to activate it, but it was not meant for you. He made it with his own mate in mind, but there might be a reason it ended up in your hands.”

“You know who made this?”

He nodded. “It was Death.”

“Oh, hell no. I’m wearing something made by Death?”

“Would it help if I told you he is a good friend of mine?”

“I’m not sure if that makes it better or worse. The whole Horsemen thing is still freaking me out a little.”

“I can tell,” he said, stroking her hair in a soothing motion. “Death made the amulet long ago, but I had forgotten about it. It is fortuitous that you have it, since I should be able to use it to find him. He went missing a long time ago. I was searching for him before I was cursed, and now, I will have to take up the task again.”

“You want to find Death?” She groaned. “Even saying that sounds so ominous.”

“I believe he might be in a similar situation like I was, held captive somewhere. Or perhaps he put himself in stasis for some reason. If not, there would have been some sign of him. It is imperative that I find him as soon as possible.”

Kami didn’t know what to say in response to that. If his friend had disappeared before he was cursed, that was ages ago. He was probably long gone. It had taken a handful of the strongest supernaturals to put Zander in a sleep spell, so she didn’t even want to imagine what would have been capable of killing Death himself.

“He is still alive. If he had died, I would have felt it. Besides, we are very difficult to kill. Only the other Horsemen would be able to take one of us out. That was one of the reasons I was cursed into sleep instead of dying like the original spellcasters had intended.”