The mood had changed dramatically in a matter of minutes. I wouldn’t say the healing rites had been joyous-sounding, but compared to what I now experienced, it was a goddamn parade.

  People were downright mad.

  At me.

  At Rosa.

  In a place where peace reigned, the chaos of almost having Mukwooru’s throat slashed was probably jarring. I stood alone just outside my tent, watching the revulsion on their faces. Finally, a friendly native approached.

  “Thanks,” I told Ahusaka as he handed me a clay cup filled with water and a bowl of stew.

  “I was on the hunt that killed that elk,” he said proudly with appropriate sobriety. He bowed his head, then departed, passing Mukwooru without making eye contact.

  I waited until she was close enough that I didn’t have to shout. “Sorry about all that trouble.”

  She smiled and shook her head. “Not trouble. You had told me she was exceptional. I did not realize how much so.”

  It was nice to see that the one person who had truly been affected by Rosa’s actions didn’t share the same hostility as others.

  “Me neither.”

  She moved even closer, her voice dropping to a whisper, “Taibo, her very breath blew us back. Her rage bowed the grass. There are some here who believe she is cursed or even possessed.”

  My eyes snapped to hers. “She ain’t.”

  My disposition at that statement must have concerned her, for she shrank back a step. I’d never seen the woman show even the slightest bit of timidity. “Might I then ask what exactly she is?”

  As to not seem rude, and to give myself a moment to consider my response, I took a bite of the stew. Like my sense of smell, my taste was stifled, but I could tell it was better than decent. I didn’t have to eat, but I could. My body had no use for the nutrients, and likely just turned it to ash in my belly.

  “You can ask,” I finally said. “You just won’t find the answer with me. All I know is that both Heaven and Hell want to get their claws in her, and neither appear to have the best intentions.”

  “I can tell you I sense great power in her.”

  I nodded slow. “You and Judas both.”

  That name seemed to mean nothing to her. A rare thing. “Perhaps it was once as dormant as what lies beneath our feet,” she said, and that made me wonder if all this beauty sat atop a volcano waiting to rain down destruction. “Whatever happened to her awakened it. All I say is, be careful, taibo.”

  I pictured the scene by the Life Tree, where Rosa’s raw power emerged like a shockwave. More memories came to me. Times in Crescent City and before, when her very will appeared to turn away dangers, like the werewolf, Rougarou. At the time, it could all have been written off as coincidence. Nothing seemed that way anymore.

  “She won’t hurt me,” I said with a tone of finality.

  Mukwooru turned to show the shallow cut in her neck Rosa had made with the stick. “To hold such power with no control is to invite chaos.”

  I ground my teeth. After all we’d done to bring her back, I expected a party, not a warning. And there was no missing the skinwalkers posted around, keeping an eye on my tent this time around. Little glinting dog eyes glared at me from the shadows, and they were vigilant.

  “Don’t worry,” I said, a harsh edge creeping in. “You did what I asked of you. I’ll get her sorted, and then we’ll be out of your hair. I’m thinking I’ll take her further west. Gold country. Someplace safe, quiet. As far as the ocean if need be. Then, who knows, maybe across it to the Orient.”

  “It is not my intention to rush you.” Her eyes, unable to connect with mine, betrayed her words.

  I knew how it went, even in a peaceful place like this. Being a leader meant taking to heart the feelings of all those who trusted you to lead. I was a white man—a taibo. Rosa had done what she did. We’d overstayed our welcome.

  “I know.” I sighed. “I get it. And seriously, thank you, Mukwooru. For everything. If I had anything to give, it’d be yours and Mutt’s to have.”

  She smiled and nodded, though there was no mistaking the solemn notes in it. “Chaska has found in you a good friend.”

  “And thanks for watching over Ahusaka,” I added. “He’s had a difficult life.”

  “Ahusaka’s life is not yet spent, taibo,” she replied. “We do not sell the pelt before the bear is killed.”

  “That’s wisdom,” I said seriously.

  “And do not believe it was for your benefit that he has been given sanctuary here. His powers are a great help, both to me and our hunters.”

  I snickered. “I would never assume. Just… tell him that from time to time. From one man who grew rotten to another.”

  We parted company there, and I won’t say our exchange didn’t further spoil my mood. Until then, I hadn’t given serious thought to what came after we roused Rosa. I’d been too busy fretting over the might-bes. We certainly couldn’t hide here forever; wasn’t even sure we could hide forever. But the world is a bigger place than I’d seen, and I’d take her to every corner of the map if it meant keeping her safe.

  Opening the flap, I entered my tent. It was small but not unpleasant. A calfskin mattress and some colorful blankets on one side, and a small, vented fire pit on the other. Embers glowed beneath an empty stewpot. Just enough to keep things cozy for the one human inside who could feel.

  Rosa had one of those blankets pulled over her shoulders as she sat, staring at the dancing cinders.

  “Believe it or not,” I said, “they’ve got no absinthe. Wanted to make you a Sazerac, but you’ll have to settle for the freshest water in the world.”

  She accepted the cup. I could tell she tried to smile but couldn’t coax her lips to action. She drained it in a single gulp, gasping for breath at the end.

  “Whoa, drink like that and you’ll drown.”

  “I’m starving.” She snatched the stew right out of my hands and guzzled it down too, chunks dribbling down her chin. I’d never seen such an unladylike performance from her. I guess we weren’t holding back our true selves any longer.

  I pulled the bowl away so she didn’t choke herself. “Breathe, woman.”

  She tried to fight me before realizing how spent she was.

  “There you go,” I said. “Small bites. Steady breathing. Coming back from the dead ain’t easy. I should know.”

  Her eyes went wide. “I was dead?”

  “Close to it as a person can get.”

  She scooped the last chunk of meat out between finger and thumb, then set the bowl down. Took her a few more seconds to fully catch her breath again.

  “How long was I out?” she asked.

  The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

  “Weeks. What’s the last thing you remember?”

  Her gaze passed through me as her mind began to wander. I watched the gears turning in her head before she shivered and pulled her blanket tighter. “I was cold… so cold… And my late husband… Willy…” She focused back on me. “Is he alive?”

  I shook my head. “An illusion created by a trickster demon named Chekoketh in an attempt to lure you into his service.”

  She swallowed hard. “Demon.” It didn’t come as a question. Of course, she’d been around and, in my presence, had seen things most humans never would. Still, it throws the mind the first time you find out there really are demons and angels, with us as playthings betwixt them. Even knowing they exist ain’t the same as witnessing it like she had.

  “Look, there’s a lot I need to fill you in on, Rosa. Much of it won’t make sense, and it’ll all get your mind spinning. The truth usually does. But first, you should get some rest.”

  “I’ve been resting for long enough, James,” she said. “Tell me.”

  “Rosa.”

  “No soy una bebe. I can take it.”

  To be honest, I was the one simply exhausted in the mind. I wanted a break, to just enjoy the silence in her presence, knowing she was back. But that’s the thing about being an outlaw. There’s no rest for the wicked.

  And so, I caught her up on everything. On how, in her reckless attempt to commune with her late husband, she’d opened a hellmouth where Chekoketh tried to claim her. About Judas and how he’d helped me get her out, only to see a power in her that even in his thousands of years of living shocked him. About Shargrafein, and our fears that she wasn’t everything she appeared to be and might be working against her own kind. I told her more about what I was, how I’d known about Willy’s death through use of Divining.

  And lastly, about Ace Ryker. That he was no longer dead, roused by the White Throne to hunt me down for keeping Rosa out of their grasp after what she’d done.

  Enough to drive a mind into a spiral of confusion. Rosa didn’t say a word as she listened to my tale of angels and demons and those in between. Of Judas Iscariot being a vampire, and the necklace he gave me shrouding us from Heaven’s gaze. The stuff of fables and legends, all real.

  “So…” It took her a bit to gather words. “How old are you?”

  I stared at her, incredulous. Everything I’d divulged and that was her first question? I supposed I should be honored she thought to ask about me over anything. And I could tell by her face she didn’t mean anything untoward by it. In the face of all the craziness, she clung to something understandable.

  “When you told me about being a Black Badge, I never got to ask,” she said.

  My gaze fell to the floor. “Too old, Rosa. Too damn old.” I meant it in more ways than one.

  She surprised me, using a single finger to lift my chin. “You look exactly the way you did in all the dreams after I thought you died saving mi mamá and me… Did die. Now I know why.”

  I found it difficult to keep eye contact then. She was so close, her features so bright with concern and admiration. Who was I to deserve that?

  “I wouldn’t change a thing, darling,” I said with regret.

  We sat in silence, me listening to the soft but steady beating of her heart. While I was grateful she was back to health, that sound was a gentle reminder that she would always have something I did not.

  “Did it hurt?” Her words came out like a whisper, weaving with the sound of the wind brushing softly against the fabric of the tent.

  “What?”

  “Dying.”

  I shook my head. “Like a cat nap.”

  Her expression soured. “I wanted Ace to hurt. Now, he’s back. And by Heaven’s hand? How could angels bring a monster like him back? Is there any sin he hasn’t known? I just don’t understand.”

  I hugged one knee and shook my head. “I wish I knew. I’m not sure who’s good anymore, or if anyone ever was. It seems that’s the line they’re willing to cross. Their way to use me to get to you so that Hell can’t.”

  She sank back. Her face warned of countless feelings, and I wasn’t sure what to do except wait. I tried to remember my first day back to life, Shar in my ear, feeding me loads of bullshit. That surreal experience, waking up in a place I hadn’t seen before, totally different from where I’d died. I tried to recall what went through me then, but it was too long ago now.

  “What am I, James?” Rosa asked softly. This time, she didn’t look at me.

  “Do you want the truth or a lie?”

  She cracked a grim smile. “I’ll take the lie.”

  “There’re countless things on this here Earth with powers beyond mortal understanding. You’re just another one of ’em. Nothing special.”

  The smile went as quickly as it had come. Tears welled in those emerald orbs. Her bottom lip started to quiver.

  “And the truth?” She asked the question, though I still wasn’t sure she was ready to hear the answer.

  I scratched my beard. The truth is always a tough line to toe. I settled for, “You’re something special enough that those above and below are clamoring for you.”

  She stared at her hands. A tear rolled down her cheek. She wiped it away then smeared it on her dress. “I know what I did back at the tree, James. I don’t know how I did it, or why. It was like I was bending the world. I don’t… understand. I can feel it even now. Like I’m a dam made of splinters holding back a tidal wave. I’m afraid…”

  Her composure broke. Sobs shook her shoulders. Unable to handle it anymore, I caught her in a strong embrace and cradled her head.

  “I’ve got you, Rosa.” If I wasn’t a dried up old carcass, seeing her unravel like this might have drawn a few drops from my eyes too.

  “I’m afraid to sleep,” she went on, voice cracking as she spoke into my shoulder. “That if I stop focusing… I don’t know what will happen… Who I’ll hurt.”

  “You ain’t gonna hurt nobody that don’t already deserve it.”

  She peeled away and looked up at me, frightened. I understood. Even with me here, she was alone. Gone was the comfort of knowing who and what she was, replaced by the great unknown. Even in my arms, she was lost at sea in a ship without a sail.

  “You can’t know that,” she whispered.

  “I know you.” I ran my hand back over her dark hair and held her there. Frozen. A younger me might have known what to do then, but time had only served to confuse and confound me. Feelings whirled around in my noggin, unknown to me. I guess she and I were kin in that sense.

  The tent flap suddenly peeled open. By reflex, I pulled my hands back and broke eye contact with her. What did it matter now? Shar wasn’t around to scold me. Things were certainly more complicated. I simply wasn’t human anymore and neither, apparently, was Rosa. Though I reckoned she remained amongst the living, I certainly did not. I couldn’t muddy the waters.

  Protect her.

  Help her learn what she was.

  That was my new objective.

  My crusade.

  Mutt peered in, a mop of brown hair barely hiding his terror-stuck eyes.

  “You could frighten a ghost with those soft steps, boy,” I snapped, cranky no doubt thanks to my raging inner desires.

  “I am sorry, but we have captured a man by our borders.”

  “And?”

  “A taibo.” Rosa’s brow furrowed and he clarified. “A white man. Claims he knows you.”

  I racked my mind thinking of options as to who this might be. There was the mundane, and then there was—

  “What’s he look like?”

  “A devil with bright blue eyes.”

  Rosa’s face went pale. “You don’t think—”

  I cut her off, “What else he say?”

  “That if we do not bring you, he will invite an army to destroy our land.” The horror in Mutt’s eyes had now taken up real estate in his other features.

  I stood. Then I lied. “A bluff.”

  “He knew where to find us. You must come.”

  Rosa tugged on my arm. “What if it’s him?”

  “Either way, I guess we’ve lingered here too long,” I said to her, then turned to Mutt. “Tell him we ain’t here, Mutt. Tell him no white man has ever made footprints in this sacred place.”

  Mutt stepped into the room and stood firm. Gone was the pleasant boy with a poor sense of humor and a keenness for helping. There stood a man, with all the weight of responsibility upon his brooding shoulders.

  “You will come,” he demanded.

  “That ain’t smart.”

  “Not all are happy you are present here. One taibo is tolerated. Two? Not good. You must come, James Crowley, or I face judgment for bringing these troubles.”

  I glanced back at Rosa. I’d filled her in on everything that happened while she was out. Told her about it all, start to finish. She knew what her old nightmare had become now after death, and it was written all over her face.

  “He is unarmed,” Mutt said. “Asked only for words.”

  “Did he have a harmonica on him?” I asked. “This is important, Mutt. Did any of your people hear him play?”

  Mutt shook his head. “He has only the clothes on his back.”

  I closed my eyes. I could still see Ace like it was yesterday, him standing over me, ready to put the bullet through my chest that cast me into this unlife. So many memories had faded, but never that. Never him.

  “I’ll go,” I said with a nod.

  “James, you can’t,” Rosa protested.

  “I won’t let our feud bring any harm to these people.”

  “Then they should kill him!”

  I sighed. “If only it were that simple.”

  Sure, I’d explained everything to her, but there’s knowing, and then there’s knowing. If this was Ace, there was no death that would work. Cut his head off and bury it miles away from his body, and he’d still know I was here. Still be aided by an angel, Shar or otherwise.

  “I can handle him, Rosa,” I said.

  “Maybe. But you’re a good man. He isn’t.”

  I think that wounded my pride, but I caught her meaning. Out here in the lawless West, it was often the meanest men who took charge. Until I died, Ace had always been the biggest toad in the puddle. And now, with us on an equal playing field again, I never could rival his heartless nature.

  “I ain’t what you think,” I told her.

  She stared up at me, concern deep in her eyes.

  “I rode with him for years,” I said, unsure who I was arguing with—her or myself. “I know every trick in his wicked little book.” I turned again to Mutt and took him by the shoulder. “Mutt, if I do this, I need one last favor.”

  “Ask,” he cut me off.

  “Stay with her,” I said. “If things go sour, you take her and get her the hell out of here until she’s strong enough to fight back.”

  “It is done.”

  “James, I’m coming—” Rosa began, and I stopped her with a glare.

  “I ain’t asking. Ace may have been sent for both of us, but the only man he’s loyal to is himself. He’s here for me. If you’re gone, then there’s nothing he can do to hurt me.”

  I snatched my Winchester from where it leaned up against the tent and tossed it to her, giving her no choice except to catch it. I knew she could handle herself.

  “James…”

  The way she said my name, it was like those times I’d seen merely her words influence the will of others. It almost took me then, but I resisted. And I didn’t wait around long enough for her to bewitch me.

  “Shoot first,” I said, then pushed by Mutt to get outside.