“Lazarus!”
I strain for his hand. “Thanatos.”
I don’t want to die. I don’t want—
My head cracks against something and everything goes dark.
Chapter 18
Austin, Texas
December, Year 26 of the Horsemen
I wake slowly, my eyelids peeling themselves apart. I stare up at the sky from inside a partially collapsed building. Half of the ceiling has caved in, and judging by the ache at my back, I’m lying on what remains of it.
I begin to move, then choke as blinding pain stabs through me.
I glance down at my torso. Just above my bellybutton, a thick metal bar juts upwards. I choke again, this time more from horror than anything else.
I’ve been impaled.
I move my arms—those seem to have mostly healed, though they’re covered in bruises—and try to push myself up— I scream as pain lacerates through me and flop back down.
I pant as I stare at the blue sky far above me.
Jesus.
I can’t die, and I’m stuck.
If there’s a hell, then this is it.
I cry out, I moan, but nobody hears me. The hours go by, day gives way to night, then night gives way to day. On and on it goes.
My stomach cramps from hunger, my lips crack from thirst, yet still I stay pinned to the ground. I sob on and off for some time, mostly because I realize I am so fucked.
So, so fucked.
I don’t know where Thanatos is, or what state he’s in. Maybe he hurt himself as well. Or maybe he didn’t; maybe he simply saw my skewered body and thought leaving me was better than capturing me.
I don’t know why that particular possibility hurts my heart as much as it does.
The next day ticks by. I can smell the dead on the wind, I can hear the baying of wild dogs and the screeches of circling birds. None of the scavengers have found me—yet.
Over and over again I try to drag myself up and off the pole, but blinding pain aside, it’s an impossible angle for me to overcome, one that no amount of survival instincts can change.
I don’t want to be in my own body right now.
The scavengers have found me.
It’s …
Unspeakable.
An eternity I’ve laid here, pinned in.
I’ve been in and out of consciousness so many times that I don’t know whether hours or days have passed since the carrion eaters found me—I think it’s been at least a day, though pain twists my memories. Perhaps I simply dreamed of the dark sky.
The scavengers do eventually move away. Once they do, I sob, my ruin of a chest heaving and my numerous injuries flaring up with the action.
The creatures will be back. It’s only a matter of time.
I search around for an adequate weapon, but the rubble that was small enough to grasp I’ve already picked up and chucked in my failed attempt to scare the animals away.
The best I can hope for at this point is that the next time the scavengers come, they’ll somehow manage to free me. The thought leaves me dry heaving.
I sob a few more times, but my head pounds and my body can’t summon up enough moisture for tears.
Fucking Death.
I curse him over and over.
So when I hear him calling my name, I think I must’ve conjured him with my anger alone.
Lazarus … Lazarus …
Lazarus …
It’s not really him, I tell myself. Dehydration, hunger, and pain have all made me delirious.
“Lazarus!” A man bellows.
My breath catches. Thanatos? Could it be?
The hope that fills my chest is painful, and I’m almost scared to give into it. But then, as I stare, bleary-eyed, up at the hole in the roof, I catch a glimpse of black wings and gleaming armor overhead.
It’s definitely him. No bird could look like that.
He’s looking for me, I realize.
Help. I try to form the word, but my voice is hoarse and weak. I clear my throat.
“Death,” I call out. It’s hardly more than a whisper.
I gather together all my energy and suck in a deep breath.
“Death!” I yell. My voice is still painfully weak and he’s already passed by, the walls of this partially caved-in building hiding him from sight.
Desperation and hope has me gathering together my strength.
I suck in a breath. “Death! Death! Help! Please! Thanatos!” I’m shouting as loud as I can, my pleas interrupted only by my cries as the effort jostles my wound.
I can’t see him, but I hear the thump of those thunderous wings, and I think … I think he’s coming closer.
“Lazarus!” he calls from somewhere overhead.
“Death!” I shout again.