14. Myles
Chapter 14
Myles
“ Y ou couldn’t have given me a heads up that a girl moved in next door?!”
Not just any girl, my fated mate . Holy shit, how is this real life?
I run a hand through my tangled hair, pacing anxiously. She’s so far out of my league, it’s insane. The Fates have to be playing a cruel joke. She’s going to reject me for sure, and I can’t say I blame her. Ever deserves so much better than to be stuck with an embarrassment like me.
Ledger leans against the front of the house with a smirk, getting a kick out of watching me lose my shit. “I would have if you’d ever come up for air this week, but you’ve been holed up in your workshop.”
“You could have texted and you know it,” I grumble.
I’d have set my work aside for Ever. Or at least, brought it home so I was nearby if she needed help getting settled in. Or just someone to talk to. Hell, she could bring her game console over and we could work on our projects together.
Don’t be stupid, someone as amazing as her would never want to hang out with the awkward nerd next door, mate or not. She’s got to be used to much nicer dates than hanging out in a basement and working. Not that it’d be a date or anything.
“What kind of myst is she?”
Ledger’s amusement instantly drops from his face as he rubs the back of his neck, avoiding my gaze. “Actually… she didn’t even know that we existed until yesterday. I fumbled the bag with that one.”
I miss a step, damn near face planting in the grass. “Wait, like, at all? What about her own abilities?”
“Whatever they are, she doesn’t realize they aren’t the norm. Maybe sensing demons in the shadow realm is the extent of her powers, but she just thinks her house is haunted, not that she’s special.”
All the blood drains from my face. A shadow demon’s hunting her?
I’ll need to double check the barrier to make sure there aren’t any weak points around the city. My magic’s stronger now, I could probably reinforce it better than when I first created it. Or set another around her house specifically warded against demons. All mysts might be better, there are plenty of desperate men living here.
“Stalking is probably more appropriate.” Ledger scrubs a hand over his scruffy jaw, looking irritated. “The rogue’s her mate too, but backed himself into a corner, and Ever doesn’t realize she's got herself a demon roommate. But that’s not important right now, Arson’s more likely to slaughter anyone that so much as breathes in her direction than hurt a hair on her head.”
Wait… too? I shoot Ledger a wary look. I haven’t told him about my fated mate mark yet, and my watch covers most of it at a glance. I’d needed time to wrap my head around the situation before bringing my best friend in the loop and seeing the pity in his eyes when he realized what I did; no way was a center going to welcome me with open arms. And now that I’m sporting Ever’s mark on my skin, no other myst will ever consider me for their bond group either. Once she rejects me, I’m condemned to either finding a human wife, or dying a virgin.
But now that I’ve had a glimpse of my fated mate, how could anyone else hold a candle to her? Sure, Ever’s beautiful, but she’s also smart and kind. She spoke to me like she was actually interested in my tech, and didn’t laugh at me when I made a bumbling idiot of myself in front of her. She was just… cool. Everything I could want in a mate ten times over. How could I even dream of anyone else now that I’ve met her?
Ledger breaks into a shit-eating grin, flashing his wrist. “I’ve been dying to tell you, but something like this deserved more than a text message. Can you believe it?”
My heart sinks. If she has a shadow demon rogue and Ledger? I don’t stand a snowball’s chance in hell.
Still, I offer my best friend a strained smile. “Congratulations, man. I’m happy for you.” And I am. I’m just also sad for me.
He dips his head in thanks, blowing out a heavy breath and pinning me with a stern look. “Ever will be here any minute so I can prove I’m not screwing with her about this whole thing, and to ask some questions. She’s going to be overwhelmed enough realizing everything she knows about the world is a lie. Giving her an identity crisis on top of that by interrogating her about what she could be isn’t a good idea right now.”
I may be inexperienced, but even I know keeping secrets from women is a terrible idea if you want them to date you.
“Imma tell her.”
Arms dropping, his lips part in surprise. “Don’t you fucking dare.”
“Lies by omission are still lies, Ledger. You don’t think she’s going to feel betrayed when she eventually finds out and realizes you knew this entire time, but didn’t tell her?”
“Tell me what?” a familiar voice asks at the worst possible moment, and I whirl around as she approaches our house.
Fuck, she’s even prettier than I remember.
I was too blindsided earlier to fully appreciate the vision in front of me. Her long teal hair is pulled back into a ponytail, revealing a peek at the neon green sections hidden beneath. The silver barbell through the top of her ear glints in the fading sunlight, and the purple hue in her blue eyes is more prominent than before.
She’s achingly beautiful, and I can’t fathom how she could see herself as anything other than magical.
When she raises an eyebrow, awaiting an answer, I shove all those thoughts aside to torture myself with later in the shower, awkwardly clearing my throat. “How about we answer that in the Q and A portion of our evening?”
She rolls her eyes, but nods. “Fair enough. If Ledger has been messing with me, none of my questions will matter anyway. I’ll be too busy packing.”
My heart skips a beat. “You’d leave?”
She can’t leave. She’s a female mystic that doesn’t understand the danger she’s in and has no way to protect herself. Mercy Ridge may be a safe haven for people like us, but there are plenty of places where the most powerful assholes take whatever they want until someone stronger comes along to knock them down a peg, or take their place. I don’t even want to think about the horrors Ever might endure if the wrong person got their hands on her.
“Of course I’d leave, I have too much self respect to stay,” she says, dead serious. “If someone doesn’t respect me, they don’t deserve my time or energy.”
Suddenly, she scowls, yanking her phone from her back pocket and swiping her finger across the screen and snapping, “For the love of god, stop. Fucking. Calling me! If I didn’t want to talk to you fifty missed calls ago, why the hell would you think blowing up my phone would make me change my mind about firing you?”
I share a curious glance with Ledger and mouth, fire who?
Red creeps up Ever’s neck, her jaw clenching and eyes flashing with violence. “Adam, I’m going to say this one last time, so get it through your thick skull. We. Are. Done. The minute you started sleeping with someone else, our relationship was over. You are no longer my lawyer, because how the fuck could I ever trust you to represent my best interests when you’ve already screwed me over once? No amount of pathetic excuses will convince me to sign that contract, and if you try to forge my signature, I will sue your ass until you’re living in a cardboard box. You fucked up. Accept it and move the hell on already; I certainly have.”
Ledger’s senses are ten times better than mine, and he clearly not only hears the guy’s response, but it seriously pisses him off. Storming forward, he steals Ever’s phone and growls, “Listen here, asshole. If you ever speak to her that way again, I’ll be making a visit to teach you some fucking manners. Crawl back to your sidepiece and lose this number. I don’t give a shit if you’re a lawyer. Ever’s mine now, understand? Back off, or you’ll be lucky to breathe through a tube by the time I’m done with you.”
Mashing his thumb on the end call button, he reluctantly hands the phone back to Ever. “We’ll get you a new number so he can’t contact you anymore.”
I hold out my hand. “May I?”
Ever hands it over, and as I tap through to block the number, I infuse her phone with a hint of my magic, blocking all numbers not saved in her contacts. “Here, he shouldn’t be able to bother you anymore. I’d avoid any social media for a while, though.”
She takes it back with a furrowed brow. “Thanks, but I’m not holding my breath.” As she pockets it, she exhales heavily. “You’d think if he was counting on the payday that bad, he’d wait to fuck around until after I signed on the dotted line. But that’s a narcissist for you, I suppose; always thinking they’re too smart to get caught.”
“Someone seriously cheated on you ? What the heck is wrong with this idiot?”
A small smile washes away her irritation. “Don’t worry, I’m not cut up about it or anything. Best thing that could have happened to me, honestly.”
Still fuming, Ledger growls, “Good. You shouldn’t waste another thought on that pathetic excuse of a man. Who the fuck does he think he is, calling you names? He’s the selfish bitch.”
She snorts. “Agreed. Adam’s just pissy he missed out on a payday, not about losing me. It’d be different if I made a scene about leaving and damaged his image in front of his work buddies, but me ghosting him was more of a favor than he deserved. He’s not a complete idiot, though, he knows there’s no way I’d sign with his company now. He’ll nurse his bruised ego for a while, but move on soon enough.”
“He better,” Ledger growls. Closing the distance between them, he tilts her chin up with his knuckle to meet his gaze. “Anyone speaks to you that way again, they’ll be wearing their intestines as a scarf.”
“You make a lot of promises,” she murmurs. “But promises don’t mean much from what I’ve seen.”
“Then just watch me. I’ll show you that I’m someone you can trust.”
Reaching behind his head, Ledger tugs off his shirt and tosses it aside, taking a few steps back to appear less threatening. His jeans are the next to go, and finally, he strips off his boxers, proudly standing naked on the front lawn in full view of the neighbors without a care for anyone other than Ever.
He may be my best friend, but I kind of hate him right now. Ever has his full attention, leisurely taking in every inch of muscle Ledger’s happily showing off. Like that wasn’t enough, he’s got the whole alpha-daddy thing going for him that girls go crazy for. When there are men like him around, what sort of chance would someone like me ever stand with a woman as impressive as Ever?
But… nothing happens. After a solid minute of standing there like a pervert, Ledger’s brow furrows, closing his eyes to concentrate. And when he opens them, wide-eyed and hands clenching into fists, he whips his panicked gaze to me. “You didn’t bring any new projects home, did you?”
I lift my hands in surrender. “No, of course not.”
“Then why the fuck can’t I shift!?” he shouts, running a shaky hand through his dark hair and slamming his eyes shut once more, jaw clenched so hard I’m amazed he doesn’t crack a tooth.
Ever scoffs. “Not sure what you were hoping to get out of this charade, but I’m out.” Pivoting on her heel, she stalks off in a huff, not looking back as she calls, “In all seriousness, though, you should really see a doctor about your dick. I’m amazed you can still piss with a tumor that size.”
On instinct, I glance at Ledger’s dick in concern, but bite my lip to hold back my laughter when I realize she was talking about his knot. One look at Ledger’s panicked face as he makes a sound of distress though, genuine fear swirling in his eyes, kicks my butt into gear.
She can’t leave.
Nearly tripping over my feet, I jog after her. “Ever, wait!”
“Forget it, Myles,” she says with a disappointed shake of her head. “I’m not going to stick around somewhere where people think it’s funny to screw with me. Been there, barely survived it the first time around. Hard pass.”
I catch up with her by the time she’s pushing open her front door. “Give me five minutes,” I pant, stopping behind her. “I don’t know what’s going on with Ledger, but I can prove that he isn’t lying. Just,” I push past the nerves swirling in my stomach, “give me a chance. Please.”
After a lengthy pause, she replies, “You have two.” She doesn’t slam the door in my face, so I take that as permission to follow her inside. Ever marches up to her room with me hot on her heels, mind whirling with the best way to show her the truth as she tosses an empty backpack on the bed. “Clock’s ticking.”
Her words spark an idea. “My abilities manifest through engineering, blending science with magic. See?” I tap one of the emergency buttons on my watch, activating an immersive illusion meant to disorient an attacker long enough to buy a head start. It goes beyond still images, projecting the scents and sounds of a busy crowd of people walking between us, car horns honking and people chattering on phones meant to be a chaotic sensory overload.
It took nearly a month to perfect, getting it past the transparent hologram stage to look like solid people with a myriad of scent notes instead of a noxious cloud of body odor and car exhaust. I’m pretty proud of this one.
Unfortunately, when I deactivate it, Ever is stuffing clothes into her backpack. “Don’t get me wrong, that’s cool as hell, but there are plenty of high-tech things out there these days. That doesn’t prove magic is real.”
Ledger stalks into the room, wearing jeans again and tense as hell, but tries to hide his panic in an attempt to regain control of the situation. “Ever, I understand this looks bad, but you can’t run off half-cocked. You have no idea what sort of danger you’re in. Just,” he palms the back of his neck, taking a deep inhale, “give me a day to figure out why I can’t connect to my wolf.”
“Maybe you put so much pressure on him winning Ever over, you psyched yourself out. Like performance anxiety,” I helpfully suggest.
Red creeps up his neck. “I do not have performance anxiety.”
“It’s nothing to be ashamed of. Happens to the best of us.”
Ever rolls her eyes. “Enough’s enough, Ledger.” Retreating to the bathroom for a moment, she returns with an armload of stuff and crams it all in her backpack. The sound of her zipping her bag shut rings in my ears like the final nail in a coffin, and some part of me knows in the depths of my soul that once that final tine is zipped closed? We’ll never see her again.
Lunging for her wrist, I stop her an inch before it’s too late, pleading with my eyes to slow down and listen. To give me a chance to fix everything.
“You promised me two minutes. And no matter what you say, I know your word is important to you, otherwise you wouldn’t be so upset when people break their promises. All I’m asking is your undivided attention for that; two minutes.”
She holds my gaze, watching me warily, but finally dips her head in agreement. “Alright, Myles. Show me what you’ve got.”
Ledger isn’t the only one suffering from performance anxiety now. Fuck, everything’s riding on this. I can’t screw it up.
Discreetly wiping my sweaty palms on my jeans, I scramble for a plan, the alarm clock beside her bed catching my eye. Suddenly, everything clicks into place, and my nerves slowly ebb away. This. This is what I’m good at. Taking something ordinary and turning it into something magical.
I turn it over in my hands. It’s about as basic of a model as you can get, not even a radio built in. Just the time on a digital display, a basic blaring alarm that makes you want to throw it out the window, and a snooze button.
“You know this isn’t high tech, right?”
Narrowing her eyes, she nods. “Obviously.”
I pull one of the small screwdrivers I always carry around from my pocket and pop the back. “Watch me so you know I’m not slipping anything in here, okay?” She hesitantly sidles up beside me, arm brushing mine, and I suppress a shiver. There’s no hiding the goosebumps on my skin though, my entire body hyperaware of how soft and warm her skin is against mine. Of how sweet she smells.
Fuck, focus.
With a heavy exhale, I get my head back in the game, making sure she has a perfect view as my magic skitters across my fingertips and into the wires, the golden sparks too reflective and shimmery to be explained away as an electric surge. Disconnecting a wire and changing the function of one button, I put it back together and pass it over to the woman holding my future in her hands. Because if Ever leaves?
Ledger and I will be right behind her whether she likes it or not. My friend’s already in too deep to let her go, and fuck, I’m not any better. She may never accept me as a mate, but that doesn’t mean I can’t watch over her and make sure she’s safe. After all, I’m the one that would have to live with myself if something happened to her.
I know better than anyone just how dangerous supernaturals can be, and how easily good people can get caught in the crossfire. Skylar’s death is already on my head; I wouldn’t survive if Ever’s name was added to my list of sins.
“Think of a song. Any song. Then press the snooze button.”
Brow furrowed, she does, startling so much she almost drops it. “What the hell?” she murmurs.
I look deep into her eyes. “Again.”
Everytime she presses that button, it plays whatever song she’s currently thinking of. Everything from heavy metal and Celtic lullabies, to mashups only found on streaming platforms they never play on the radio.
Delicately setting it on the bed, she looks at me with an awed expression and breathes, “How?”
“How else? Magic.”
Before she can wrap her head around it, the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end, the energy in the room charged like the calm right before a storm. Almost in slow motion, Ledger shifts into his wolf, and I breathe a sigh of relief as Ever drops to sit on the edge of her bed, stunned speechless.
I’ve seen him shift hundreds of times, but it’s never any less impressive to witness. Where Ledger once stood is now a wolf twice the size of any found in nature. Fur an obsidian so dark it carries a blue sheen in the right light, he’s a beast to behold. The same hazel eyes stare back at us, but the gold flecks shine brighter, practically glowing from the inside out with supernatural power.
Ever looks like she’s going to pass out, so I hand her the half-empty bottle of water from her bedside table. “Here, sip some water.” With a trembling hand, she twists off the cap and lifts it to her lips. “Wait no!” Instinctively, I smack it out of her hand, sending it flying right into Ledger’s face and splattering water all over her wood floor.
She blinks. Then blinks again, turning her owlish gaze my way. “What the hell was that about?”
“I know that look. Tomorrow, you’d convince yourself we drugged you and you hallucinated the whole thing.”
She stares at me for the longest time before snorting a laugh. “You’re not wrong.”
Ledger’s whine steals her focus as he drops down to appear less threatening, slowly shuffling over on his belly like an overgrown behemoth of a puppy begging for attention. When she doesn’t flinch or run away screaming, he grows bolder, resting his massive head on her thighs and staring at her with big, sad eyes until she starts scratching behind his ear. The second her fingers are in his fur he nuzzles against her, pushing for more and sucking her sweet scent down like an addict.
I shoot daggers at him while she’s distracted. Simply shameless, playing that card as an excuse to hang all over her. Ledger clearly has no qualms playing dirty to win her over by any means necessary.
Fucking cheater. Women love dogs.
Nodding slowly to herself as she absentmindedly pets my roommate, Ever says, “Okay. Okay this is fine. I don’t hate this.” Growing more confident as she speaks, she continues, “This is the sort of thing people dream about; to find out that their world is actually magical. For aliens with huge dicks that love eating women out, and sexy dragon shifters to whisk them away to their castles. This isn’t a bad thing.”
I frown. “Kai doesn’t live in a castle, he’s got a cottage down by the lake.”
She snorts. “Okay, so no castles. I’m already in the mythical land of affordable housing, I’m not picky.”
Wetting her lips, she meets my gaze head on. “So, Ledger’s a wolf. What are you?”
Sheepishly, I rub the back of my neck. “I’m a tech mage. In essence, I can sense the inner workings of machinery and infuse electric currents with magic to change the original function. Like the device you helped me with earlier today? It’ll sense the vibrations of footsteps and automatically create a temporary shield around the owner in case they don’t wake up to someone breaking in their house. It won’t hold up forever, but will give them time to call the police and protect them in the meantime.”
“Sort of like that barrier Ledger mentioned around the town? That keeps out people that come here looking to hurt someone?”
“Exactly. But I designed that one so only mystics that don’t have any intention of hurting someone living here can pass through, no humans. With this one, all the energy goes into keeping everyone out until deactivated or broken.”
She frowns, ignoring Ledger’s nose flipping her hand for attention, and I bite back a smile. “Is the town barrier glitching then? How did I get in?” I don’t have to say it, only hold her gaze as realization slowly dawns. “You’re screwing with me.”
“Never.” You’re mine. Ours. Stay here forever and let us take care of you. Biting my tongue before I make a fool of myself, instead, I say, “You’re one of us, Ever.”
All the color drains from her face. “But how is that possible? Pretty sure I’d have noticed changing into an animal or magic sparking out of my hands.”
Ledger nuzzles against her as her distress climbs, and I hate to admit it, but as soon as she starts running her fingers through his dark fur again, it helps ground her and keep her from spiraling. “You might only have enough mystic blood to allow you to pass through the barrier, but not strong enough to give you any abilities. There are plenty of mysts that only have a heightened sense of hearing or smell and nothing else. Genetics work the same way as humans; some traits are recessive, some skip a generation. Some combine, or a child might only take after one parent. Without knowing what your parents are, I wouldn’t even know where to begin guessing.”
“Hold up. So not only did my parents try to sell me off, I drew the genetic short straw and didn't get a cool power as a consolation prize?” she scowls. “What absolute bullshit.”
“Sell you off?” I demand, fury that hits too close to home stealing all reason. “What the actual fuck?”
She shoots a glance at Ledger before carefully saying, “I was dumped at a fire station as a baby after someone tried to burn off the tattoo on my wrist.” Ever turns her arm over so we can see it better, the skin pink with a faded burn scar behind the black ink of a swirling sun that marks her as a center. “Didn’t work though. Not sure if it was one of my parents that had a change of heart at the last minute, or one of the human traffickers they sold me off to that couldn’t stomach delivering a baby to their boss. Either way, foster care may have sucked, but I know it was a far better fate than how I could have grown up.”
Ledger storms away from her with his fur bristled, growling and pacing the length of the room in agitation, but I study Ever closely as she nervously watches Ledger, her gaze dropping down to his leg where his mate mark would be in human form.
“You think that mark… is a brand?”
She scrunches up her face in confusion. “Well, yeah, it said as much in my file. That it was the symbol associated with a known group of human traffickers and anyone that stepped forward to claim me had to be thoroughly vetted more than protocol usually dictates.”
Chest tight at the implications, as gently as I can, I point out, “I’m pretty sure that whatever myst left you there fed that story to the social worker that took your case to protect you. It would raise red flags if anyone saw your mark and took an interest in you because of it, and the social workers wouldn’t allow them to adopt or claim you out of suspicion they were associated with the group warned about in your file. It sounds like they played the system to their advantage to keep you away from mystic society.”
A look of hurt and confusion flashes through her violet eyes that makes me feel like a total piece of shit for saying anything. “Who the hell would tattoo a baby otherwise?”
“Some mysts are born with a mark; we call them centers, because they’re the heart bond groups are built around. When they choose a mate, during the ceremony they drink a potion that causes the other to gain the center’s mark like a public claim, but more permanent than wedding rings. Or if they,” I swallow, hard, and I’m pretty sure my face is on fire, “if they find their fated mates, that mark will appear the first time they touch.”
I watch nervously as she puts the pieces together, head whipping to Ledger and mouth parting in shock. “You’re seriously trying to tell me that Ledger’s my fated mate ? That we…” she trails off, starting to panic.
Might as well rip off the bandage…
With a shaky hand, I unstrap my watch, revealing the mark on my wrist. “And mine.”
Ledger shifts back and claps me on the back hard enough I stumble forward, grinning ear to ear. “Yes! Ellis wasn’t kidding when he said we belonged together. He couldn’t have given us a hint he meant bondmates instead of roommates? Sneaky fae bastard.”
The corner of my lip twitches. Leave it to Ledger to steamroll over all the problems and just assume he’ll make things work out somehow. “You’re getting ahead of yourself. I’m not sure if she’s going to throw up or run for the hills, but Ever doesn’t look like she’s claiming either of us any time soon.”
He glances over to where our mate is clutching the edge of the mattress, face pale and lost in her head as she processes everything we threw at her tonight. Crouching, Ledger palms her cheek. “I know it’s overwhelming, but don’t worry, sunshine. You’re not in this alone anymore, and nothing needs to be figured out tonight. We’ll take this one step at a time, okay? Bring you up to speed on supernatural society, figure out what type of myst you are, and deal with all the relationship stuff later. For now, just breathe. Everything else can wait.”
Slowly, she nods, shoulders relaxing a fraction with every deep, centering breath. When he’s convinced she isn’t going to have a panic attack, Ledger rises to his feet, and Ever murmurs, “Son of a bitch, it’s not a tumor, is it? You really do have a knot.” She continues muttering to herself as she pokes the base of my best friend’s dick. “No hiding you aren’t human, is there? That’s got to put a wrench in casual hookups.”
Ledger clears his throat as his cock twitches. “I haven’t had any complaints.”
A sudden chill in the air sends a shiver down my spine, snaking around my neck like an invisible noose. Warning bells go off in my head a split second before a hissed, “Get. Out ,” is whispered in my ear, the promise of bloodshed dripping from every word.
Ever’s eyes widen, whipping towards a naked Ledger tearing at his neck, a faint shadow the only hint to the binding around his throat, to a seemingly empty space between us in her bedroom. “Casper, cool your tits. It’s not what it looks like. They were just showing me-”
My yelp drowns out her protests as I’m yanked backward. For a brief moment, the world is painted in shades of grey, everything muffled like I’m underwater, before returning to normal as I’m dropped on my ass on the front sidewalk. Ledger grunts as he falls from a few feet above the ground, slamming into the concrete on his bare ass. From the shadows, a savage looking man emerges with a murderous gleam in his eye. Dark hair as wild as his eyes and a brutal X carved into the side of his face, the former assassin scrutinizes my face before turning his wrath to Ledger, snapping his teeth like a feral dog.
“Should get one of those baby wrap things and strap her to my back instead of leaving her with this horny bastard,” he mutters to himself, leaving the two of us in the dirt as he retreats into the shadows.
“Holy fuck, you weren’t kidding,” I breathe.
Ledger grunts, shoving to his feet and offering me a hand up, unabashed in his nudity as he struts back toward our house. “Yeah, Arson is… something. He’d sooner cut off his own cock than hurt Ever, though. At least it’ll be extra security until we can figure out what she is and help her hone any latent abilities she might have.” As soon as we cross the threshold, Ledger disappears to his room, but I don’t bother. There’s no way in hell I’ll be able to sleep after tonight, even if I spent an hour jacking off in the shower.
Ever’s demon stalker tossed me and Ledger out on our asses as easily as if he were taking out the trash. Arson might be on Ever’s side, but what about all of the enemies he’s collected throughout his career as an assassin? Anyone looking to settle a score will hit him where it hurts; Ever. And what about any other shadow demons that might come to Mercy Ridge?
When it comes to handling physical threats, Arson can’t be matched. And Ledger practically came out of the womb searching for a mate to cherish and take care of. But me? The fuck up that nearly exposed our world to humans with the death of my best friend and was shipped off here to avoid a death sentence?
All I can do is help her level the playing field.