Re-Animus can be killed by anyone with the right weapons?”
I closed my eyes, searching for an answer I’d never given a moment’s thought. “I don’t know. But I do know someone who is scary smart. I might ask her for help finding something else to do.” I opened my eyes, and she’d cracked a wry grin. “My purpose is to kill Ra-Ame.”
She put her hand in mine. “Are you scared?”
“Terrified. Not of dying. Amy’s right. Everyone dies at some point. I’m terrified of failing. Truth is, I don’t know what Dad would have done. We never talked about this.”
Grace squeezed my fingers. “There’s more to you than your dad. Last night, I called the Ministry of Death, Grave Services, anyone who would listen and explained everything. Mailed half a dozen copies of my files. And left a message thanking them for Amy’s help. We’d be dead without her. I asked them to send her a commendation.”
I imagined Amy giving a dour expression as she received her medal, or shrugging. “I’d pay to see that.” I must have dozed, because when I looked up, the sun hung straight over head.
A car engine rumbled in the distance, while Grace shook me. “She’s here.”
GRACE
Amy’s car came flying along the road, a white rental coupe with both windows down. She skidded to a halt beside our car and got out, dressed like a tourist. She wore bangle bracelets and a tank top that showed her curves without straining to hold them, and brown khaki shorts.
She jogged up the path to the rocks, kicking off her sandals to stand in the bare dirt. “Am I too late?”
Brynner nodded. “She came a few minutes ago. Just missed her.” He offered her a hand, and she stepped away, giving me a hug.
“You are a funny dead man, Brynner Carson.”
“That’s the Amy I know and love. We sort of gave Ra-Ame a homing beacon.” He pointed to the head on our car. “If it’s noon, she’ll be here any minute.”
Amy surveyed the desert, holding her hand over her eyes. “She may already be watching. You do not know the eldest of the old ones, or what she can do.”
I looked to Brynner, and he nodded in agreement. “We’re not going to hand over the heart.”
Amy looked up in alarm. “You stand no chance. Did you not see what happened in Seattle?”
“I saw.” I took her arm, guiding her to the shelter. “But I have a theory.” I explained what I thought about Ra-Ame’s army. About her abilities. And finally, about the heart. “So, I’m guessing the worst thing on earth would be for her to get it. I don’t know what she can do with it that she can’t without it, but I’m not going to find out.”
Amy took her chair and imitated Brynner, leaning back. “So many theories, Grace Roberts. And you know you will die if you are wrong?”
“I know I’m going to die either way. What I don’t know is when exactly she’s going to bless us with her appearance.”
Amy laughed, a deep laugh from the bottom of her belly. “If the legends are true, you will know.”
The clock ticked closer and closer to noon, and Brynner began to pace. Finally, he came over. “I have to—umm—use the little boys’ room, and I think I’m going to grab a bigger knife, just in case. Keep an eye out. Shout if you see anything.”
“Don’t sit on a cactus.” I sat up and looked out across the desert.
Amy waved her hat after he left. “That man stinks of sex. Did he satisfy you, or should I cut off his testicles?”
Which explained exactly why Amy was still single. “I’d like them left attached. And no comment, but I’d like to think the satisfaction was mutual.” I sat in the chair beside her, taking Brynner’s spot. “Why are you here?”
“They say Ra-Ame was beautiful. Perhaps I want to see for myself. But many things are said of her. Willing sacrifice. Who is willing to die? We will know the truth soon enough.”
I looked down the hill after Brynner but kept my mouth shut. Too willing. “You want a gun? I offered one to Brynner, for all the good it did. I figure Ra-Ame’s vulnerable, or she would have torn through the firing line in Seattle just to make a point.”
Amy patted her knives in response. “Why are you here?”
“Because of Brynner. And my daughter.”
Amy’s mouth fell open. “You have a child? I did not know.”