“If he’s tracking us, why didn’t he come to help the others?”

  Zachariah snorted. “Because the Sins don’t play nice together. They aren’t like the horsemen who aid each other. It’s each Sin for themselves.”

  I leaned against the wall and watched as his feet carried him across the floor, back and forth in front of me. “How can you get rid of the blood?”

  “We cut open the lines and let it bleed out. It’ll be painful, but it needs to be done before we go to Hell. There are rumors that say he can control someone with his blood. Puppets are much easier to use in a fight than actually fighting yourself, so I wouldn’t doubt it being true.”

  Since Sloth took the route easiest for him, the puppet theory made sense. “I got a taste of Wrath’s ability to control people, so let’s make sure it doesn’t happen to me.”

  “Downstairs then. I want a couple of angels to hold you down. No offense, but I don’t trust you to not flail around while I’m trying to do delicate knife work.”

  I marched to the back of the house and down the stairs. The number of angels had been cut in half since the last time I had been there. Their gaze followed me as I made my way to the far side of the room. Some of them stepped back a few feet if I came too close to them. I caught one mouth moving into a sneer.

  “A friendly bunch, aren’t you?”

  No one responded. Zachariah came down the stairs and his gaze swept around the room. Everyone looked down at their shoes. “I need two volunteers to help me drain Sloth’s blood from Sammy’s infection.”

  No one stepped forward. Zachariah raised a brow. “Okay, the two people who step forward won’t have to go into Hell.”

  Two people automatically stepped up, one of them being Mary. Good to know that a few angels were terrified of Hell.

  “You’re divine beings, what are you afraid of?” I removed my shirt and folded it.

  “Temptation can drive you mad and make you Fallen. None of us want to risk that.” One stepped up and offered to take my shirt.

  I handed it over and looked to Zachariah. “Temptation is a powerful thing. It preys on your thoughts and actions, making you doubt everything.” He motioned to the floor. “It’s stronger in Hell than it is here on Earth. Which is why everyone is worried. We’re breaking agreements made between Lucile and Michael, to rescue a horseman that never should have been locked away.”

  A tiny bit of guilt hit me as I lay down on the cold floor. Mary and the other angel wrapped one hand around my forearm over my head and put another hand on my shoulder, effectively pinning me to the ground.

  I took a deep breath as Zachariah came up to my side. He summoned a thin knife. “I need two more for her legs, same deal.”

  Two other angels came up and pinned my legs to the ground. My heart pounded and sweat covered my body at the idea that I was trapped. I closed my eyes, trying to remind myself how to breathe as my throat seemed to close up.

  Pain burned through the red lines as Zachariah pierced my skin with the dagger.

  My back arched, but the angels kept me pinned, their grips tightening on my limbs with each movement I tried to make.

  The slicing traced the lines that had worked their way over my stomach. I cried out as the tip hit the tender flesh. I tried to turn away from the pain, but all I found was resistance in the form of strong fingers and palms.

  “It’s okay, Sammy, you’re doing fine.” A cold hand pressed against my forehead and a calm cold went through me.

  I took a deep breath and forced my back onto the ground. I looked up into Zachariah’s eyes. “Are we done?”

  “With the front, but it curled over your back too.”

  Dread filled me, but with help I rolled over and allowed him to slice open the lines on my back.

  Zachariah helped me sit up and the blood dripped down my side, back and stomach. I looked down at the red liquid mixed with black lines and cringed. “Note to self, make sure I avoid all of his daggers.”

  Mary handed me a cloth and I started to wipe up the blood. “Don’t put pressure on it until it’s running only red. We don’t want to accidentally seal any of his blood back in there.” Zachariah touched my hand gently. “You did well.”

  “That’s good to know since I felt like I was writhing in agony the whole time.” I folded the cloth and started to wipe more blood off. With each wipe less and less blood came back black. Once nothing but red oozed out Zachariah took the rag from me.

  I looked at him in question and he wrapped one massive hand around my side, pressing on the wound. I jerked but he tightened his palm and I took it as a sign to stay still. Warm light flooded from under his hand, snaking its way over the cuts and washing away the pain in waves. I closed my eyes and felt the peace coming from him. It pushed away all my fear and anxiety about the task at hand.

  Cool air brushed across my skin when he moved his hand. I looked down to see nothing but a few white scars crossing my skin like the threads of spider webs. “You can heal. Why the hell didn’t you say something earlier?”

  He stood and held a hand out to me. “Because in the human city they would have questioned your sudden lack of wounds, and at the church they would have wanted to be healed. I cannot interfere with their death but I would not have been able to deny the little girl if she had asked.”

  I remembered May’s sweet eyes and the way she held so much hope and no fear for those around her. “It would have been useful. Do all angels have that ability?”

  “No.” He put his palm on my shoulder and once again warmth spread from his hand and over the wound. I closed my eyes as the skin closed up under the bandage.

  “Thank you.” I pulled the bandages off my shoulder and looked at the shiny round scar. “So I’m in top shape to fight in Hell. When do we leave?”

  “So eager to die?” Mary shook her head and crossed her arms. “Going in there is a death wish and you’ll be robbing us of one of our best archangels.”

  I curled my hands into fists. “He won’t die. We won’t be in there long enough for anyone to kill us.” So I hoped. “I’ll bring him back.”

  “You better, or I’ll make sure that you meet your death.” She got right in my face and I met her gaze.

  “I’d like to see you try.” I clenched my jaw. “I have dealt with demons and the Devil, I have fought Sins and seen the souls of those who should have died. I have lost my mother to Camille and watched Lucile lock my father away. I am fighting to make everything right and I’ll be damned if some angel with a bitchy attitude is the one who ends my life.”

  Her eyes grew a little bit and she dropped her arms. “Just make sure he comes back.” She spun around and marched up the stairs.

  There was no point in telling her that I’d probably be stuck in Hell if Zachariah died. It depended on if we managed to free my father first or not. The sacrifice rule came back the moment Death was freed; if Zachariah didn’t survive, we’d need one to get out.

  Doubt started to crawl through me, draining my confidence from my voice and my body language. My shoulders slumped a little and I closed my eyes.

  “Don’t mind Mary, we’ve lost several in this war and one of the people was her brother.”

  That didn’t take any of my doubt away, if anything it made it worse. “I’m sorry for her loss.” I opened my eyes and turned to face him. “Let’s do this.”

  Zachariah put his hand on my shoulder and instead of the world melting away, the stone halls of Hell climbed over the walls of the house. I looked over my shoulder and at my back were five angels and Zachariah. I glanced in front of me, my eyes sweeping the shadows for anything. No gatekeeper came to greet us, no demons’ cries came out, and no footsteps in the eerily quiet hall.

  Zachariah said that he would expect a welcoming party, but maybe they hadn’t gotten Sloth’s memo yet. Maybe he was as slow as his name implied. I took a step forward, but I hesitated placing my foot on the ground. I didn’t want to disrupt the silence and announce our arrival. There was no choice. I put my foot down and the smallest sound echoed down the hall.

  The tension of the group could be felt in my back. A bead of sweat ran down my neck and over the tight muscles and I swore the pounding of my heart could be heard. I could hear the angels breathing behind me, in and out, not in a rhythm together, but at their own separate paces.

  The clinking of a coin bouncing down the hall seemed to take over all other noises. A gold coin landed at my feet and I frowned.

  “Greed.” Zachariah whispered. “Take us to the seal and we’ll deal with the demon then.”

  I kept my gaze on the dark end of the hall. I reached back and placed my hand on his arm and then closed my eyes. I imagined the stone walls that had surrounded me when I had been tortured. The creaking sounds and the damp air. The way the humidity clung to my skin and in my lungs. I could see the black and red swirling seal.

  When I opened my eyes I stood in front of my father’s seal. I let go of Zachariah and put my hand against the seal. “I’m here, we’re getting you out.” I didn’t know if he could hear me, but it felt right to speak to him.

  “And what can you do, Daughter of Death?” Lucile’s voice crawled up my body like a ton of spiders.

  I shivered and turned around. The angels were all gone and I wondered where on Earth they had gone. Not even Zachariah was there with me. I summoned my scythe and didn’t answer her question.

  She started to walk around me, her boots clicking against the floor. “My demons call you the Little Death. You murdered my favorite demon and now two of my Sins are gone.”

  My heart hammered against my chest as I followed her circle, keeping her in my sights. “They shouldn’t have attacked me.” I twirled my scythe. I couldn’t take her and I knew that. Right now, she was just playing with me. Keeping me on edge.

  A battle cry echoed from somewhere outside the room. It sounded like Zachariah, but I couldn’t be sure. Lucile stopped and looked towards where it came from. I shifted my stance, thinking about attacking her, but she turned around before I could go through with my urge.

  “I’ll be back.” She snarled and disappeared, but in her place a huge black demon appeared. Spikes ran down its back and to the tip of its tail. It opened its mouth in a large snarl and several rows of teeth glinted in the light. The roar it let out rattled my bones and the stones around. Ringing in my ears continued as he stomped towards me. I dodged as he rammed into the wall.

  Its tail whipped to the side, taking me in the stomach. My back hit the stone wall and I grunted. I’d been lucky that the spikes weren’t at the right angle, or I’d be sporting a stomach wound that would kill me. I made a note to stay clear of the tail. It came back my way and I jumped over it, landing in a crouch. The room was too small for him to do too much moving, but it was very aware of its tail and what it could do with it.

  It came at me again, cracking like a whip. I flipped over it and brought my scythe blade down and cut the tail off. The beast roared and the ringing started in my ears again. It stomped in a circle until I was in its sights again.

  One clawed hand swiped down at me. I lunged to the side and the claws shattered the stone near my feet. The floor shook enough that I almost lost my balance. I recovered and twirled my scythe. One foot after another pounded into the ground. I took a deep breath and ran towards one of the walls. I used my momentum to carry me halfway up the wall and shoved myself off. I brought the scythe across the demon’s head.

  The head rolled off and the body disappeared. Black blood dripped off my blade and made the slightest sound as it hit the floor. A shiver ran down my back and I spun around expecting to find another demon, but Zachariah stood there. Blood ran over half his face and he held one arm.

  “What happened to you?” I went to him.

  “Greed. Come on, let’s get rid of this.” He pulled a bloody hand away and wiped it over the seal. The seal shivered and the symbols cracked, but it didn’t break. Panic settled in my stomach. Why didn’t it work? I looked at the seal and saw an old blood smear, the memory came crashing back to me. It was my blood on the wall. I reached up and drew my hand across the tip of my scythe and laid my bloodied hand on the seal.

  The cracking of the seal echoed like thunder, the symbols and swirling colors fell to the ground and hissed into oblivion. Death stood there in all his glory. His black hair was tucked behind his ears and the skulls in his gaze seemed to glow. “Sammy.” He threw his arms around me.

  “Squeezing me, too hard, got hit by a demon.” I wrapped my arms around him anyways. “Zachariah, let’s go home.”

  The clinking of coins could be heard and my heart skipped a beat. A demon appeared in front of us. Her gold hair fell past her waist and seemed to move in a wind no one else could hear. Her dress fell off her shoulders, barely covering her breasts, the sheer fabric embroidered with gold. A silver chain slithered over her shoulders and down her arm. “Leaving so soon, Zachariah? I thought we were having fun. You aren’t mad that I slaughtered all your angels, are you?”

  “I killed all your cretins, you can’t take us on.” Zachariah summoned his bow. “Death is free.”

  My father summoned his scythe with a flick of his wrist. “You know that I can end your life, be smart about this, Greed.”

  She thumbed her nose. “You’re only buying time, Death. I’ll be after you and I will wring your precious little girl’s neck as you watch the light from her eyes fade.” She disappeared with a swirl of darkness. Zachariah put his hands on our shoulders and the walls crumbed around us.

  It took a little bit longer than normal for the world to reappear around us, but when it did my heart started beating again and I remembered how to breathe. I stood straight and met my dad’s gaze. “Welcome back.”

  “Where are we?” Dad walked around the house, running his hands over the walls and various items still left.

  “An abandoned house. The apocalypse has happened, the humans have built walls around cities and gathered those who were to die into prisons. They’ve been using them against the living humans. Food and water are rationed, the plague is out of control, war between cities have broken out, war between people.” I ran my hand through my hair. “But now that you’re back, things should start getting better.”

  Zachariah held his hand up. “My job here is done. The other three horsemen are your job. Not mine.”

  “What about the Sins?” I turned to him. “Greed will make good on her promise and there’s still Envy, Gluttony, and Sloth out there.”

  Zachariah wiped the blood off his face with his arm. “Your dad is back, he can seal them away.” He spat blood onto the floor. The red liquid splattered against the floor at my feet. “I lost all my angels in there.”

  “You left me in a room with Lucile.” I crossed my arms. “Where were you guys?”

  He threw his hands up in the air and spun away from me. He clenched his fists as he stormed off to the basement. “Get out of here, Little Death.”

  “Little Death, eh?” Dad looked at me.

  I shrugged one shoulder. “Kill a few demons and people start getting testy.” I motioned to the door. “Come on, we need to find a place that has some canteens so we can boil water. We have about a half day walk to where Ruthie and Pete are.”

  He put a hand on my shoulder. “Hold on. There’s something I have to do first.”

  He closed his eyes and held his hand out. He took a shuddering breath and wind kicked up all around us. My clothes whipped around my body and howls rose up all around us. White balls of souls ran by me, brushing up against me as they went to my father. They swirled and gathered in his hands. The wind died down and the souls disappeared without a sound. He met my gaze. “They are at peace and where they should be.” He wrapped an arm around me. “Now, you’re with a Horseman of the Apocalypse. No more of this walking from place to place.”

  I raised a brow and in the blink of an eye we were standing in the church. Pete and Ruthie both looked up. They raced towards us and arms wrapped around me, pulling me into tight hugs that stole my breath. “Guys, guys.” I pushed at them. “I need to breathe and I’m claustrophobic, remember?”

  They pulled away and Ruthie smiled. “I felt you panic a little, but I didn’t think it was enough to come get you.”

  “Yeah, it wasn’t. I think I did okay. Zachariah lost all his angels to Greed.” I sighed. “I didn’t want them to risk their lives, but I don’t think it’s fair that we fight this on our own.”

  “But now, Death is back and that’s a big help. The cities are probably panicking, and we can bet that Kaleb and Aeron will be coming back soon. Now that they know one is free.”

  “So what’s the plan now?” Death sat on a pew and looked at us. “You’ve come this far and rescued me. I want to hear what you have planned before I step in to lead the children.”

  Ruthie sat on the floor. “They aren’t really children anymore.”

  “That’s very true. Sammy will turn nineteen soon and has been nicknamed by the demons. I’m pretty sure that classifies her as an adult now.”

  Pete nudged me. “Yep, our own Little Death.”

  “The plan is to regroup with the others and start releasing the other horsemen. Along with locking up the other Sins. We’ve already got Wrath and Lust sealed away.” I leaned against a pew. “That’s our plan. I know all the locations of the seals, so I’ll be the one going to Hell with you to release them.”

  He looked around at our faces. “Now that I’m back and Zachariah is no longer willing to work with us, going in and out of Hell will require a sacrifice.”

  “I know, but because of the amount of people with the plague who were walking around, we chose to release you.” Pete paced. “There were too many souls that needed to be claimed and it was causing problems, and humans...the city we went to were using infected humans to infect others.”

  I closed my eyes and tried not to think about it. “We all agreed bringing you back would be the best.”

  “Then we’ll figure out the sacrifices when it comes down to that time. The Sins, they don’t require sacrifices.” My father smiled. “You took down one of the strongest, that’s impressive.”