[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
.She had no idea what a challenge that little bit was going to give her,and he didn t want Kody to disembowel her in the hallway and make her another stain on the wall.Nick looked down at the heavy ring in his hand that glinted in the dim light of the room.The brightstone in the center was as red as blood and surrounded by small diamonds that winked at him.Unlikethe other items that he could write off his conscience, this one was definitely theft, and guilt tore athim.He felt like his dad, and he hated the coach most of all for giving him that sensation.I won t be that man.But right now.In this one moment &He was.Wincing, Nick held it out.So much for Devus not wanting him to hand stuff to him during schoolhours.Devus grinned as he palmed it. Good boy.You ve bought yourself a reprieve.Now, get out thereand finish the list, or I will finish you. He took too much pleasure in causing pain.Like my father.The comparison really ate at him.Unfortunately, there was nothing he could do.In fifteen minutes, school would be out and he d have tohustle to make it over to the St.Louis cemetery for his next lesson with Grim.Nick turned to leave, but the coach stopped him. Tell you what, Gautier.Why don t you skippractice today and make sure that I have four more items in the morning? Or what? The coach s tone had implied there was definitely an ultimatum in there. You re a smart kid.I think you know the answer. I go to jail and die. Can I ask a question? What? Why did you pick me for this? You re a pathetic waste with nothing to lose.If you died tomorrow, no one would even know youwere gone. Nick ground his teeth.That wasn t true.His mother s life would be shattered.She d never be thesame.While the rest of the world would go on, she wouldn t.He knew that.And in that moment, hefully realized something.How many lives one life touched.Not always with a major impact, but in little ways.If he died, Liza would have to unload her deliveries alone.Yes, she could do it without him, butshe always claimed to enjoy spending a few minutes chatting with him while he did it.She lookedforward to his visits.Mennie wouldn t have anyone to take out her trash or clean the yard.Kyrianwouldn t have someone who busted his chops, and Acheron wouldn t have a human friend who knewall about his weirdness.Not big things.It was the little things in life that really mattered.He leaned forward over the desk. There you re wrong, Coach. The coach looked up with a smug sneer. How so? Nick returned that sneer with a pompous smile he was sure set the coach s ire on fire. I assure youif your garbage men stopped picking up your trash, you d miss them real fast and want them back.Nolife, no matter what you think, is insignificant.Everyone has a purpose.Even you. Devus sputtered while Nick turned around and left him to it.For the first time in his life, Nick feltlike he was experiencing the real world for what it was.Like blinders had been ripped off his faceand he saw the sunshine in all its natural glory. Beautiful.Breathtaking.And even though he wasn t certain about his future, for this one moment in time, he was thrilled tobe alive.As soon as the bell sounded, Nick grabbed his backpack and headed for the cemetery to meet Grim.Kody and Caleb had pretty much avoided him after their morning encounter with the Fringe Guard.Kody seemed sad about it.Caleb s anger was so potent, it scared him.There was something more going on with the demon than he was letting on.And since Nickcouldn t fight him without dying, he decided to leave the demon be until he came to terms withwhatever was eating at him.It didn t take long to walk the handful of blocks up to the cemetery, which rested on the northwestside of the Quarter, one block outside of it between Conti Street and St.Louis on Basin.The whiteplaster walls that surrounded it spanned an entire block and shielded the massive city of the dead,where more than a hundred thousand former New Orleanians had been laid to rest.Some of the mostnotable people of the city were interred here.Because New Orleans was so far below sea level that buried bodies had a nasty way of returningto the land of the living, the city had been forced to find another way to deal with the departed.Aboveground tombs and mausoleums had been erected, which was what led to these areas being referred toas the cities of the dead.The grossest thing was that most of the tombs were shared spaces, usuallywith a single family, but sometimes with groups such as the massive Italian monument in the center.Once someone died, their remains were put on top of someone else who d decomposed.It was whythe city had a law that no tomb could be opened for a full year and a day giving the bodies enoughtime to fully decay before the next one was added.He didn t know what they did with someone if theyneeded a tomb before that time elapsed, and he didn t want to know.Some questions really didn t need answering, and that was definitely one of them.Shoving that thought away, he headed through the black iron gate that was opened so that touristsand tour groups as well as loved ones could access the cemetery during the daylight hours.Honestly, the cemetery was beautiful in a creepy kind of way.The elaborate tombs and statueswent off in every direction, some dwarfing him.While most were white, others were brightlycolored, and all manner of images and wrought iron decorations had been used to add flavor andbeauty to the crypts. Boo. Nick cursed as Grim appeared behind him and startled the crap out of him. Don t do that! Jumpy, are we? We are in a cemetery, you know. Grim laughed. Of course I know.It s one of my favorite places. Yeah, well, not mine.I don t make it a habit of spending a lot of time here.I figure since one dayI ll be a permanent resident, there s no need to rush and visit it while I m not. I love the way you look at things, kid.Now follow me. Nick did until he noticed that Grim didn t have a single shadow.He had three. What the ? Grim paused to look at him over his shoulder. What? Nick pointed to the shadows. What s up with you? You know my friends.Pain and Suffering were on my nerves, so I relegated them to shadow status for the day. He continued forward.Nick wasn t sure he liked that, but he knew better than to argue.Picking up the pace, he closed thedistance between them.Grim didn t stop again until he reached the far back end, where one of thesarcophagi reminded Nick of a table.Images of death and angels were carved all over the intricatestonework. I think this will do for our next lesson. Grim skimmed his hand over the surface without touchingit.A cloth appeared, shielding the blackened surface. Much better. He held his hand out to Nick. Have you been practicing? For all the good it hasn t done me.Yeah. He handed the pendulum and book to Grim. Have you made friends with the pendulum? Kind of one-sided if you ask me, but yeah.I think so. Grim sighed irritably. Fine.Today I wanted to show you how you can locate someone with yourpendulum. Wouldn t calling them be easier? He passed a droll stare at him. What if the phone doesn t work, Nick? Or you don t have theirnumber.Better yet, what if you don t really know who you re hunting, but you still need to find them. Why would I waste time hunting for someone I don t know? Grim clenched his teeth [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]