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“Cut the deck.”
    Krishani forcefully pulled some of the cards off the pile. He slapped them down and turned, looking at the ceiling. Shimma sometimes wondered why he did that, why he wasn’t more interested in unveiling the results. Half the time he lingered, or fidgeted with the surroundings as she told him what the cards meant. She didn’t have half the knick-knacks she used to so he stood there, hands behind his back, eyes on the curtain.
    Shimma turned the card over, a gasp passing her lips, her eyes wide.
    “How bad?”
    “Um, it’s impossible.…” Shimma trailed off, her eyes glued to the card. At first she thought it was a mistake. It couldn’t happen, in thousands of years, it hadn’t happened. She pulled her whole body taut, feeling like wires running through her muscles.
    Krishani dropped his gaze to the table, and she saw the shock in his eyes, followed by that terrifying glare she’d never get used to. “You did it wrong.”
    Shimma shook her head, tears in the corners of her eyes. She was hurt by the past too; hurt by the one girl who did everything wrong and still got Krishani’s love. She looked at the card: The Star, a symbol of hope, change, and one of the only cards in the Tarot that meant wonder, enchantment, and innocence. “I did it twice, I’m not wrong … Krishani … Kaliel is alive.” The words passed her lips and she could barely believe they were true. She hadn’t said the girl’s name out loud in so long it sent pain to her chest.
    Krishani’s brow furrowed, arms across his chest, squeezing tight. “I don’t care,” he spat. Smoothing over his expression with blankness, he punched the curtain, moving into the living room. Shimma stayed put. The corset constricted her chest and she couldn’t breathe. Idly she turned over the next card: the Nine of Swords. Painted on the card was a blindfolded girl crossing her arms, swords stabbing her clean through from different angles.
    Krishani returned, seeming composed until he glanced at the Nine of Swords. It happened all at once, one minute he was fine, the next he was convulsing, coughs shattering his frame. Sweat trailed down his face as he buckled under the pressure and sunk to his knees.
    Shimma twisted the beads on her necklace with her thumb and index finger, a river of emotions inside her, all threatening to dominate. “She’s not safe.”
    Krishani writhed as he fell on his side, spasms raking over his flesh. Shimma stood, bracing herself as she moved to Krishani’s side. She didn’t crouch, but Krishani looked at her, something grim and indescribable in his expression.
    “She’ll never be safe … not until she’s dead.” He wretched and the sound of bones breaking pulled Shimma out of her stupor.
    “Shit, Krishani, you have minutes,” she shrieked. He seized, tight jolts rocking his frame. She never saw this part. He always found her and left before he died. She only told him how long. This wasn’t something she was good at. She bent, her knees finding the floor, her hands on his shoulder as his teeth chattered like he had hypothermia. She tried to touch his cheek but when her hand brushed his skin she was whiplashed by cold. The Vulture exploded out of the body and she fell on her back, dazed. The Vulture caromed through the house until it found its way through the door. Shimma followed, standing on the porch as whatever Krishani had become escaped into the night.
    She didn’t know what to think or how to feel but as she turned back to the shack she couldn’t fight her curiosity. She neared the table and flipped over another card: The Tower. She sunk to her knees beside the body, reaching out and closing its eyes, her fingers trembling.
    “We’re all going to die.”
    ***

Chapter 4
Somewhere Safe
    Tor couldn’t leave.
    He got as far as the sidewalk when he turned back to the hospital, a sigh in the back of his throat. Running wasn’t an option; he had to make sure she’d be okay. Presently, he