Chapter 1 #2
A larger sailor staggered up to her. His sloppy, stringy hair hung from the top of his head down past his shoulders and was covered by a rag he’d wrapped around his head.
His teeth were marred with black stains that matched his filthy clothing.
He leaned back, giving her a once over, then shoved himself forward, caging her in.
With a meaty hand he cupped her backside and grinned down at her.
She glanced down at his hand, and her crew began to rise to their feet behind him.
With a single shake of her head, they slowly dropped back down, never taking their eyes off her.
Anastasia gave him a sweet smile I knew all too well, then it turned sour as she grabbed his thumb and wrenched his hand off her body.
She wrapped her arm around his and jerked it down at a quick, hard angle.
Bone snapped and his arm fell limply to his side.
The pirate collapsed in front of her, and she leaned back and kicked out.
Her boot connected squarely with his chest, sending him flying back.
He wailed as he landed on the table where her crew sat.
She tipped her hat at them. “And now I take my leave, gentlemen.”
They pounced on the man, beating him mercilessly.
But Anastasia didn’t stop to watch. She turned away from the scene and headed for the stairs at the back of the tavern.
I followed behind her as she passed the wenches with their provocative offers and headed for a solid wooden door at the end of the hallway.
She pushed through the doors and looked at two lovers occupying the bed. “Out. Now.”
They scrambled to their feet and ran for the door, collecting their clothing on their way. She stood waiting. I followed her into the room and moved to the opposite end. The second they reached the door, she turned around and slammed it shut. “Show yourself, spirit.”
I waved my hand over my body, letting my blue and black sparks turn me from invisible to solid form. She strolled around me, looking me up and down. “Why are you haunting me, spirit?”
“I am no spirit.” I held still, letting her look me over.
She stopped beside the lone desk in the room and placed her hat on top of it. “And who are you then? Why are you haunting me?”
“I am Death.”
She chuckled. “Death has come for the deathless . . . How intriguing.”
“I haven’t come for you.” I glanced up at the golden lifeline above her head.
“Then why have I felt you around me?” She dropped down into a chair and kicked her legs out before her.
I took a small step closer to her. We hadn’t spoken in years and I missed the sound of her voice. “What if I told you we knew each other very well.”
“I’m well acquainted with death. I’ve looked it in the eye many times before.” She leaned back and smiled up at me.
“And lived to tell the tale. Why do you suppose that is?” It wounded me that she had no memory of the years we’d spent together trapped in my home in the Underworld. But she couldn’t linger there forever, not free to move or dream or have an eternity all her own.
She shrugged. “Perhaps Death has a tender spot in the cockles of his heart for me.”
“I do indeed.” I moved to the desk and leaned up against it. “That’s why I’ve kept you alive all this time.”
“And more are the better for it. I’ve made many men rich.”
I chuckled. “And given your own personal fortune away to those less fortunate.”
“We do not speak of this,” she snapped. “It’s my fortune to do with as I like.”
From a distance I’d watched her steal from those who would hurt or steal from others.
No one was beyond her punishment. If she heard of any misdeeds, they would become her next target.
She was an expert in punishing the overly privileged, taking what they valued most, and giving it away to anyone she deemed in need.
The ends, however, did not justify the means.
“You should always do what you like.” That was what I wanted for Anastasia . . . always.
Her eyes flashed with excitement. “So, ghost—”
“Thanatos.” I pressed my hand to my chest. “I am Thanatos.”
“Thanatos,” she amended, and I loved hearing my name on her lips once again. “God of Death. Why are you haunting me?”
“You need to live a good life, and I’m here to see that you do.”
A burst of laughter came from her chest, and she motioned around her. “I already live a good life. I’m thoroughly enjoying it.”
“There is more to life than just a few pleasures to be had. There is eternity to think about.”
She lurched to her feet and walked around the room toward a window.
She stopped before it, and I was reminded of the first time we met.
The candlelight danced over her skin, giving it a hint of warmth.
Her hair was wilder in this life, with more streaks from the sun.
Her body was stronger, as was her personality.
In her last life she’d been delicate and eternally sweet.
In this one she had a vivaciousness to her that I was beginning to also admire.
“I’ll think about eternity when I’m dead.”
“Perhaps it is death you should think about to ensure your eternity,” I countered as I reached for her hand and laid my own on top of hers. A jolt shot through me. I wanted to stay like this for as long as I could.
She glanced down to where my pale fingers lay over hers, then slid her hand free. “And why such interest in my death?”
“What if I told you we were friends once?”
“I think,” she turned toward me, “I think you’re telling the truth. I have a sense about you. It’s as if we’ve known each other.”
“We knew each other well.” I hesitated. “I would go so far as to say no one in the world knew each other better.”
That smile returned to her lips. “I don’t remember it, but somehow I feel it.”
I had little hope that she would remember after being reborn, but knowing that she felt it too gave me comfort. Perhaps I wasn’t the only one who missed . . . us. “Then that is all I need, Anastasia.”
“Ana,” she corrected.
“Ana then.” I turned to walk away and get back to where Ned was waiting for me. “I will be seeing you, my friend.”
She called out after me, “Until we meet again, Death!”
“I look forward to it.” This time I would right a wrong. My gentle, lovely Anastasia came back . . . different. But like a moth to flame, I would forever be drawn to her, and like a moth to a flame, there was a chance I would get burned by Ana the Deathless.