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the granddaughter of the voodoo queen. She brought me to see you the first day you arrived. I was fascinated with your spunk. My father was looking for my mate and I went to him with the request to have you. He said we must wait. That if it was meant to happen then fate would play into our hands. When the doctors said you would not see another day, your mother went to the nurse and she brought you to the old voodoo queen who summoned me.” I forced myself to stop. She needed time to process all of this. I’d just been waiting so long to tell her all these things. Time was short. Dankmar would find her soon. Our time was limited and I wanted so badly to make her understand.

“A life cannot be spared for free. The cost is a life for a life. I saved your life and in doing so bought your soul. It has been mine since the day you were healed. I’ve been near you ever since.”

The frown on Pagan’s face puckered her forehead. “None of this makes sense. Why did you become human? Why did you ignore me for years? Why did you pretend with me? Why do you want me? Why can’t you just let me go?”

She was ready to listen.

Then I felt his power. The life around us stilled. Not even the birds would remain in Death’s presence. I’d been so close to making her understand. So damn close .

“He’s here. How the hell did Dankmar get here so quickly?” Without a backward glance I left her there. I wasn’t ready to face Dankmar . He still held all the cards— h er love and his authority over life.

8. He is Death. See him for who he is - Leif

“ If’n de gurl won come den ahm gonna take an udder,” Father informed me announcing his appearance. Standing outside the high school where I’d been following P agan for the past three years, watching her and waiting on her, I’d thought taking her from her soul’s mate would be my biggest hurdle but her mate had made it way too easy.

“Father,” I replied in greeting. “I don’t want another. You know that. I want Pagan.”

“De gurl needs a push in da right direction, huh.”

“You taking another soul isn’t going to affect her. She won’t realize that you took a soul in her place. And I’m not telling her that. It would make me appear as an even bigger monster in her eyes than I already do.”

Father let out an eery c huckle, “I dinna say who woulda t ake her place, hmmm.”

“What is that supposed to mean?” I asked concern at his humor jerking my thoughts off Pagan and my reentrance to her human world.

“ Ahm gonna make shur dat gurl makes da right choice. Dats all.”

“What do you mean?” I asked but it was too late. He was gone. With a frustrated sigh , I jerked my backpack up on my shoulder and headed for the front doors of the high school. Pagan wasn’t scared of the boy she’d always known as a classmate. I needed to remind her that I was still that guy. Nothing had changed.

~*~

“Speaking of hotness, here comes your last drool-worthy boyfriend,” Pagan’s best friend since childhood whispered as I made my way toward them.

Right as I reached her locker, she closed it a little too loudly before turning to face me. I wanted to laugh at her angry glare but I figured that wouldn’t win me any points. Seeing her brave enough to be angry with me was a nice change. Anything was better than her being terrified of me.

“Leif,” she mumbled. Her eyes darted everywhere but directly at me. She was so dang cute.

“Pagan, it’s good to see you too.”

“What do you need?” She sna pped and Miranda elbowed her a little too hard. I clinched my fist to keep from reaching out and grabbing her friend ’ s arm and moving her away from Pagan.

“Well, I was wondering about the tutoring. I mean, now that I’m back I need to keep up my grade and you know I can’t do it without your help.”

Pagan’s eyes finally focused on me and went wide. That hadn’t been what she was expecting me to say. Good. “Ah, well, when you left I filled your spot.