Page 18 of Ride or Die (The Body Shop #5)

“Ithas has his workshop in Abaddon, and your soul is tied to the burial grounds on my world. That’s why you didn’t sense her.

” I straightened when a deep rumble set the chandelier swaying above us.

“He made it sound like he was using the children as incubators for the bone fragment, so he might have kept them in Abaddon to monitor. I’m not sure why he dumped me at St. Mary’s, unless he decided early on I had a better chance of success than my predecessors. ”

Since he allowed me to grow up, maybe I was part social experiment too. Or, if Dis Pater believed I was The One, he might have wanted to keep an eye on me too. The only way for that to happen was if I was on Earth. St. Mary’s Home for Children was, perhaps, a compromise.

Placing me there prevented me from imprinting on either of them, since I was raised by neither of them. An orphanage removed both of them from the equation until the time was right to kill me. From that point on, I wasn’t sure what the plan had been or where Kierce fit in.

But I did view his torching of St. Mary’s in a new light.

Really, given how quick Dis Pater was to end me at the first opportunity, I wouldn’t be surprised to learn he placed me at St. Mary’s because the Perchten were known to kill children.

Which made me curious if Ithas had discovered the institution’s reputation and demanded Dis Pater send someone to dispatch the predators before they targeted me.

Pity Kierce had come too late. Probably by Dis Pater’s design. I had been even more likely to die on the streets than under the sisters’ care. Statistically speaking. But they underestimated the lengths I would go to provide for my family and keep them safe.

“There is no knowing the mind of someone,” Anunit said, ears flicking forward, “who would hurt children for their own gain.”

With a grunt, Anunit swatted me aside before the gaudy chandelier smashed near where Ankou had been standing, and I landed hard on my shoulder. “Oof.”

Anunit sniffed every inch of me, inspecting me for damage, and a jagged shard pierced my heart at the subtle shift in her behavior. She and I had grown close, but she wasn’t treating me like before. She was acting as if I had grown more precious for possessing a fragment of her daughter.

“Fuck a duck.” Ankou shot out of the darkness. “Did you do that?”

“Oh, yeah. Sorry about that. I got bored and decided it would be fun to swing from the chandelier,” I said bitterly, wishing he would go back where he came from. “Guess I had one too many beignets.”

“I need to check in.” He grew fidgety. “Be back in a bit.”

After he disappeared, I counted to ten and then shoved to my feet. The best I could do if Kierce—or the others—were trying to save me was do my part. “We need to search the area.”

For a tense moment, I wasn’t sure Anunit would stand, but she rose and padded to my side. “All right.”

“There can’t be much down here, or they would have restrained us.”

Neither Ithas nor Ankou had acted concerned we had been left to our own devices, and that was telling.

“They do not believe we will escape this place.”

“Can we teleport out?” I read the answer on her face. “Are there wards we can break or…?”

“I cannot tell.” She shook her head. “The scent of chemicals burns my nose when I breathe too deeply.”

“Odd that I can zip in and out of Dis Pater’s home but the same isn’t true of this place.”

“Blood and bone should form a more powerful bond,” she agreed, “but perhaps it is the nature of your consort, and his connection to Dis Pater, that allows you entrance?”

“I’m not sure.”

I massaged my temples, the circular motions knocking a new thought loose, one I wouldn’t share with Anunit because it relegated her daughter to a mere object.

One that Dis Pater likely wrapped in protections to ensure his priceless treasure wouldn’t be ruined before he used it.

If a spell had lived in the sword, in the bone, then the wards on his house might recognize it in me.

As one of his possessions, carrying his magic, the wards could have let me pass without taking issue.

The same exemption wouldn’t apply to Ithas.

“Look.” She butted her head against my hip. “Light.”

A narrow slice cut across the floor, illuminating the clear outline of a door. “Shall we?”

Expecting it to be locked, you could have knocked me over with a feather when it swung open under my hand to reveal a small room with a simple window overlooking the bleak wasteland of Abaddon.

Which, knowing what I did about Dis Pater’s allotment, how it mirrored his beachside home, meant Ithas enjoyed this view.

And people thought I was weird.

Without a weapon to break it, I couldn’t do much besides pound a fist on the heavy glasslike material. It didn’t budge. It didn’t even vibrate aside from a faint hum under my palm when I pressed my hand to it.

“It’s a ward,” I realized, marveling at the application despite my best efforts to snub all things Ithas.

“Then it can be broken,” she growled, sounding more like herself. “We must find where it anchors.”

Try as I might, I couldn’t locate any points along the frame. The technique was too advanced for me. The fact Ithas had it in his home meant he likely invented it. It might be the only instance like it in any world.

“No wonder they weren’t worried about sticking us down here.”

“We will find a way.”

“We’re not leaving without Dinorah,” I promised her. “I doubt we can get our hands on Ithas’s research. Most of it is likely in his head anyway. But we can make sure he loses his access to both Dinorah and me. That will stop him from trying this again.”

“He should be made to suffer for what he has done.”

“We’ll figure out a fitting punishment for him and for Dis Pater.

We owe it to the past victims to prevent future ones.

” A clattering noise in the room behind us drew me to the doorway, but there was no one.

If Ankou had come back to spy on me, he was failing at being stealthy. “Do you smell anyone?”

Walking to my side, she lifted her head and inhaled, her tail lashing once before footsteps rang out.

“Ah.” Ithas strolled into view. “There you are, daughter.” He gestured toward the chandelier, and I realized the sound had been him kicking aside a crystal. “I apologize for the disturbance. It’s dangerous living in Abaddon, even for someone such as me.”

“Oh, don’t worry about us.” I pasted on a fake smile. “We entertained ourselves.”

“Ah. Yes. This is one of my observatories.” He appeared pleased by the fact I was showing interest. “This particular window is a favorite of mine in spring. That’s when the juvenile mirashii return to their nesting grounds and stake their claims. Fascinating creatures.

I have a few ideas for improvements, but they’re a lower priority.

Merely a hobby. Not a commission or anything pressing. ”

Of course he had created the mirashii. Or tampered with them until they became so nightmarish.

Hearing his regard for them drove home the fact the obsidian landscape we first entered had been in his territory. This was the reflection of his soul. Dark. Bleak. Deadly. It fit him like a glove.

“The mirashii were hunting me.” I watched for his reaction. “You would let them attack your own daughter?”

“There are no mirashii for leagues.” He chuckled. “They won’t return until spring, as I said.”

For him to be so convinced, I had to believe Dis Pater was the one who decided to sic them on me.

And, I had to say, all signs pointed toward him wanting to kill me—for good—before I got anywhere near Ithas.

He must have known Ithas would shelter me as long as he remained fascinated with me, and he couldn’t risk Ithas choosing to harbor me within reach of a god killing blade long term.

With the enthusiasm of someone experiencing an epiphany, he lifted a finger. “I should have asked earlier, but are you hungry?”

“I’m good, but thanks.”

A frown knit his brow but then cleared with a new idea. “Thirsty?”

“I drank a ton before I got here.”

“Oh.” He snapped his fingers. “Do you need to use the facilities?”

For a guy who went around creating life willy-nilly, he was grasping to recall my basic bodily functions. “Where is the bathroom?”

“Just there.” He indicated a dark section of wall. “There’s no door, but everything works.”

Oh joy.

Had the bathroom been on a different floor, I would have leapt at the chance to explore further, but this room had all the amenities apparently. “I’m fine for the moment, but I’ll let you know.”

“Then perhaps you and I ought to sit and discuss our next steps.”

Hopefully, my next steps would carry me right out of here. “That sounds good.”

With an absent flick of his wrist, he summoned a table with two chairs.

The same movement cleaned the shattered crystals and removed the chandelier.

A single candle flickered on the tabletop, allowing me a better look at the features he had selected for me.

He even pulled out my chair like a gentleman.

Meanwhile Anunit prowled a square around us, her gaze never leaving my face, her claws flexing sharp.

“Now.” He sat across from me. “Tell me how you came to be the Alcheyvāhā guardian. Spare no details. Explain the connection you share with the burial grounds and this bond with Anunit. The hope was that you could access the magics on your own, through your power and bloodline, but you far exceeded my expectations when Anunit herself crowned you guardian of her people.” He leaned back.

“That she is here, that she chooses to travel with you, is a marvel. You are everything I set out to achieve and more.”

“Thanks,” I said bitterly, biting my tongue to rein in my temper until I got him to part with Dinorah.