He frowned. "What deadline?"
I briefly explained what my father had done, and he swore softly. "Shit, we can't seem to catch a break, can we? Not from fucking anything."
"It would certainly appear that way."
He hesitated, then said, "You can't do this on your own, Ris. You need help – of the reaper kind."
"I know." I'd known it since I'd woken up earlier this morning. It had just taken me a whole lot of angst and arguing with myself to come to the conclusion everyone else had already reached. "I'm just not sure what to say, given the way we parted."
"It's simple. You need to explain why you were so angry, and he needs to explain why he did what he did. And then you both need to apologize and move on." He half smiled. "There's a world of people who are relying on you both, even if they don't know it."
I sighed. "I know. Trust me, I know."
He placed his hand over mine and squeezed lightly. "You feel hungry? The lamb I was preparing is more than a little overcooked as a result of the fire, but I can wander down the street after I ring Ilianna, and pick up some burgers and coffee."
"That would be lovely. In the meantime, I might just bite the bullet and contact Azriel."
"Then I shall take my time getting back. Just in case there's fireworks."
"I'm not intending to argue —"
"I wasn't talking about arguing," he replied, a cheeky smile touching his lips. He bent and kissed my cheek. "Good luck."
"Thanks." I was no doubt going to need it.
Tao left, closing the door behind him. I turned and retreated to my bedroom. I really didn't want to confront Azriel in the ruins of our living room, just in case, one way or another, things did get heated.
My bedroom had a definite smoky smell, and plenty of water had crept under the door, soaking a good portion of the carpet near the door, but otherwise, everything was as I'd left it. Which meant it was messy – tidy I am not. I grabbed a bunch of towels from my en suite and dropped them over the soaked carpet in the vague hope they would sop up some of the water. Then I walked to the center of the room, my stomach twisting into knots – as much from fear that he wouldn't respond as from anything else.