million times it was that curse of yours that made him want to strangle you when you opened to door and stepped out." Cass turned toward me and rolled her eyes as though I knew what she was talking about.
"Please, help yourself. And whatever you do, don't open the kitchen door. My curse says I mustn't leave this house, or else I'm dead. Last time, Cass forgot that tiny detail. We wouldn't want another accident." Patricia shot Cass a meaningful glare before placing a plate with muffins in front of us, then went about pouring us huge mugs with a clear liquid that looked like water but smelled much sweeter. I took a tentative sip and let it roll over my tongue. It tasted sweet and flowery, and almost as good as the hot blueberry muffins.
"Elderberry," Thrain said. "I loved it as a kid."
I forced myself to swallow down the chunk in my mouth before replying. "It's great. Where did you learn to make this?"
Patricia took the seat opposite from me and shrugged. "I didn't. It's my curse. I'm stuck in this place forever—or until the guy I'm meant to be with turns up."
"Since you can't even find this place on Google Maps, she'll probably have to go with forever," Cass said.
Patricia nodded grimly.
I placed my second, half-eaten muffin aside, though not out of reach since I very much intended to finish it. My cheeks turned hot before I even uttered the thought that bothered me ever since meeting Cass's aunt. "Sorry if I sound rude but you look like you're the same age."
Patricia grinned, and for the first time I noticed the tiny dimples in her chubby cheeks. I had thought her pretty, but smiling she was downright gorgeous. She ran a hand through her red mane. "Well, it's a complicated story. See, she's Lucifer's daughter." She pointed at Cass, who nodded. I felt my eyes widen but didn't comment. Patricia continued, "Like Lucifer, I'm a fallen angel, which makes him my brother because we share the same creator." She raised her gaze to the sky. I followed her line of vision, almost expecting the ceiling to burst open so we would catch a glimpse at Heaven. Of course, nothing happened.
"Get on with it, Patty," Cass said, drumming her nails on the table.
"Don't rush me. When do I ever get to talk to people, who actually know what I'm talking about?" She beamed at me. I didn't want to point out that I had no idea what she was going on about. Instead, I let her continue. "Anyway, I wasn't part of the plan. I mean, Heaven and Hell have two Seers already. But some moron invented the legend of three Seers, so for thousands of years everyone who passed into Heaven kept asking to see the third Seer, which really started to piss off the creator to the point that He decided to make a third eighteen years ago. Cass was born a day later, which makes us the same age. You probably have a million questions now."
I raised my brows, my mind still churning the details. Yep, I had lots of questions, but they had nothing to do with her. What did God look like? What was He like? Did every deceased soul get to talk to Him?
"Any questions? Don't be shy," Patricia said.
I strained my mind to come up with something that involved her and was very proud of myself when it did. "How were you created exactly?"
Patricia tapped a finger against her chin, thinking. "Uh, can't really remember. Must have slipped my mind. Anything else you wanna know?"
"What's God like?" I blurted out.
"Can't tell you," Patricia said.
I frowned. "Why not?"
She waved her left hand about. "Because we have rules and I'm not breaking them."
"Fair enough." I nodded, slightly disappointed. I mean, what was the big deal? She could at least give me a hint or two.
"You'll meet Him soon enough," Patricia whispered.
My head shot up. "What?"
"She's an idiot," Cass said, patting my hand. I regarded Patricia intently, but she turned away, hiding the expression on her face. My heart started to hammer in my chest. A Seer's someone who can foretell the future. I wondered whether she had just made a general remark or whether she saw my imminent death. Now that wasn't a promising outlook.
"She's actually the second most useless Seer I've ever met," Cass said, pouring herself more elderberry juice.
"Who's the most useless?" Thrain asked, amused.
"My aunt Krista. That lot couldn't predict the