But the room was empty. I swallowed and looked back to my mirror.

  The thing was still there.

  There was a goddamn demon stuck in my room.

  Its skin was oily black and pebbled. It looked like a mix between a gargoyle, a giant dog, and a human. It had long claws and teeth the length of my forearm. It drooled, watching me with completely white eyes. My skin crawled and I felt way too vulnerable in my bedroom.

  In the mirror, it looked like it consumed my entire bed with its grotesque and muscular body. It made me want to wash my sheets. Twice.

  I looked at my bed again to double-check that I was alone, and slowly got up to put my robe on as its white eyes followed my movements. If I was going to die by a demon attack I certainly didn’t want to be stark naked.

  “How are you in the mirror?” I whispered. It tilted its head like it could understand what I was saying. I shuddered. What a horrible-looking creature.

  The fear I felt was fading since it seemed like the creature wasn’t interested in leaving the mirror, and anxiety started settling in. I studied the monster intently, then the image changed. It swirled like smoke and the demon dog was gone. The smoke turned black. A bloody hand pressed against the glass with smears of red, and I stepped back again fighting the urge to scream. My eyes widened as the hand started to move through the sticky dark red liquid.

  Regina.

  The letters dripped down the glass as it shuddered, then the whole thing filled with smoke and leaked back into the image of my room once again. Slowly, I moved and placed one fingertip on the mirror, afraid that it would suck me in, but it was simply a mirror once again.

  I swallowed hard, not sure what to make of what just happened. I pressed my whole palm against the cool glass and exhaled loudly as I laid my forehead against it. I let the coolness of the mirror ground me as I took a few shuddering breaths. Apparently, I needed to be prepared and trained on how to deal with a demon, like, yesterday. Because I had a feeling that this wouldn’t be the last time, and I didn’t want to know what would’ve happened if it had been able to escape.

  So what did it mean? Who was Regina? Whose hand was that, and whose blood?

  “Should I be scared?” I whispered to no one, because I was. I was absolutely terrified of what all this might mean.

  “Yes, you should be,” a voice whispered behind me. The cool slap of power from my so-called guardian angel slammed into my back, and I face-planted into my mirror.

  “Son of a bitch,” I snarled, whirling around. Nothing was there.

  I shivered as the power and the cold seemed to dissipate around me. The audacity of this man to show up in my room after a close-call demon attack was absolutely ludicrous. He had to be the worst guardian angel ever or a complete and total liar. I believed both options wholeheartedly.

  “I thought you were supposed to help me, you annoying bastard,” I said, baring my teeth.

  “I am, princess.” Again, the words sounded like he was right behind me.

  I whirled again. “Show yourself!” I snarled, clutching my robe tighter against my skin. What is it with otherworldly beings showing up when I only have a robe on?

  A snap filled the room and there he was, sitting on my bed. Blonde hair and shining tanned skin, his dark, bottomless eyes stared into mine. He wore dark slacks and a white button up today; the top few buttons had been left undone to show off his smooth chest.

  “You’re a bit overdressed,” I murmured, taking a step back and swallowing. Suddenly, the bravado I showed earlier seeped out of me.

  “Would you prefer me like this?” He tilted his head, flashing his teeth. A small pop erupted and suddenly, he was completely naked except for a pair of black boxer briefs.

  I blinked in response, trying not to look anywhere except his eyes. But it was hard. The bits I could see were very muscled and nicely cut. But I absolutely did not want him in my room like this, ever.

  “No,” I said flatly, pursing my lips.

  I alternated between wanting to punch him in his dumb face and wanting to run screaming because I just knew he was bad news, but I didn’t have any proof. Just a gut feeling.

  He laughed darkly and his clothes popped back on. Thank Jesus Christ.

  “This is so much more fun now that we can interact!” He purred, reclining belly down on my bed so he rested on his elbows. The iciness he gave off was fading into a warmth that threatened to pull me in. I imagined my feet were cemented to the floor, and crossed my arms over my chest.

  “Why are you here?” I snapped. I wanted him and whatever demon thing that had made an appearance earlier to leave and never come back.

  “Just checking up on you. Seems you had a bit of a visitor.” He gestured to the mirror.

  “Do you have a name?” I asked, tilting my head and squinting at him like he was an annoying bug.

  “You can call me Elijiah.” He smiled brightly as if I would melt into a puddle in front of him. He seemed truly delighted with his own name.

  “Alright Elijiah, why are you protecting me? Who sent you, exactly? And why are you suddenly popping in and out of fucking nowhere?” I tried to make my voice drip with fake sugary sweetness as I batted my eyes and glared daggers at him.

  “It’s my duty by the order of the queen herself. And I am always close by. Even when you’re doing unmentionable things in the night with your little gatekeeper. Don’t worry, I don’t mind. I quite enjoyed it, actually.” He winked.

  “You’re disgusting, you know that?” I spat. He smiled and winked, like it was some joke instead of a huge invasion of privacy.

  “The queen sent you? What’s going on in the afterlife? What just happened in that mirror? Why couldn’t I know who you are sooner? Is the queen okay? Where are the rest of the deathwalkers?” The questions spilled from my mouth in rapid succession before I could stop them. Someone would give me answers, damn it, and eventually, I would rid myself of Elijiah. But right now he was, unfortunately, my best bet at getting more information.

  “Are you quite finished?” Elijiah asked, not seeming the least bit interested in anything I was asking.

  “Yes, answer one of my damn questions before I kick you out for being a goddamn voyeur!” I said, huffing loudly.

  “Linc? Who are you talking to?” Mara called from behind my closed door.

  “Shit,” I mumbled. “Just myself,” I called back.

  Elijiah widened his eyes and sat up straighter. I would not let Mara get tangled up in this Elijiah mess. He’s a disgusting, perverted, immortal angel-thing that screamed bad news. He obviously has no moral compass or integrity, and I will not let him near my best friend.

  “I’ll be out in a minute.” I walked over to my door to press my ear against it and heard her mumble, “Okay, whatever,” before her footsteps retreated down the hall. I would fill her in later. She deserved to know the truth and I wanted to tell her.

  “Careful, Lincoln. You've started to invite trouble. You might want to keep your friend at arm’s length,” Elijiah whispered, his chilled energy raked down my spine as I felt his body behind me.

  “What the hell is up with this two-faced act? Are you threatening me now?” I asked, whirling around to see his tall frame standing mere inches from mine.

  A devilish smile touched his lips.

  “Merely letting you know you should be careful. You are proving to be quite the interesting creature. Goodbye, Lincoln.” He leaned forward, and I backed up to the door as his lips brushed my cheek. I watched in awe as I tried to shove him away, but my hands moved through smoke before he vanished completely.

  I slid down my door and let out a strangled cry. Tears fell down my cheeks. I felt victimized and I had no idea how to get rid of him.

  I didn’t think, for one second, this guy was my guardian angel. And if he was, he was seriously one misogynistic prick. But he mentioned the queen and he did know something. He seemed to have unlimited access to me, which was extremely concerning. I buried my forehead in my hands and took slow steady breaths.

  I needed to talk to Priya and Emir about this. They would know what to do. They could help protect me. Keep me safe. I shot off a text and asked if I could meet her and Emir in an hour, saying that it was urgent.

  She replied and said to meet her at the bar.

  I clutched my phone in my hand and tried to shake the image of the demon, the bloody hand, and Elijiah out of my head.

  My room no longer felt safe.

  I stood up and wrenched open my door. I would get to the bottom of this, one way or another, because I had to.

  15

  I was fifteen minutes early to my meeting with Priya and Emir which, apparently, was the perfect time to meet my first ghost.

  She was young, maybe twelve or thirteen, and she had on a hoodie, leggings, and sneakers. Her hair was piled into a bun on top of her head and she was chewing on her bottom lip. She glowed white and seemed to move through space a few inches off the ground. She was just walking down the street like a normal kid. I wondered what had happened to her.

  “Hey,” I said, not really knowing what I was supposed to do. She jumped, as if surprised I could see her. Maybe ghosts didn’t know that anyone would help them? I still didn’t know much about the actual process of crossing over. I barely knew anything actually, despite doing an immense amount of reading and researching.

  “Hi,” she said, twisting her fingers in her hands.

  “Do you need some help?” I asked softly, walking towards her and smiling. I didn’t want to frighten her. I felt purposeful doing this, less like the scared, disempowered mess I’d been earlier.

  “Yeah, I just…I’m not sure how to get back,” she whispered, gnawing on her bottom lip again.

  I didn’t know what to do to help, but I figured I could wait with her until Priya and Emir got here so they could do it.

  “I’m not sure either, but I have some friends who know how. They will be here soon. Do you want to wait with me?” I plopped down on the curve right in front of the bar.

  “Okay.” She sat next to me, pulling her knees up to her chest. “Most people can’t see me, but I can see that you’re different. You have, like, a dark-colored energy around you.” She looked at me intently, squinting her eyes.

  I would love to see what other people see. Is it, like, a black cloud? Sparkling dark glitter? Tendrils of smoke? I want to know what’s different, now that I have my sight.

  “People say I’m a deathwalker. I’m still learning what that means,” I said, not sure what, exactly, I was supposed to talk about with a ghost, but this felt like a safe topic. Something reassuring to let her know I am, in fact, not a demon or fucked up guardian angel. Deathwalkers are nice and friendly, right?

  I was sadly mistaken.

  Her eyes went wide and she fell back, pushing herself up and backing away.

  “I’m sorry, I didn’t know. Please don’t hurt me. I only want to rest. I was only trying to do what they told me!” She started sobbing, and I was frozen in place. What was she saying, exactly?

  “I won’t hurt you. I don’t know what you mean. Please stay. My friends can help you, and you can explain what happened to you.” I opened my hands wide as if to show my own surrender.

  She looked at me one last time and ran, in her ghostly form, down the street and around the corner. I was stuck to the curb, unsure and scared about what to do. I didn’t understand her reaction.

  Had she been in the afterlife and got spit out? Taeler had said that could happen, but why would she react to the word deathwalker like that? What, exactly, was happening in the afterlife? I thought we were helpful and good.

  I stared at my gloved hands and watched as my breath came out in small puffs. Tears started to fall then. I didn’t know what to do. Nothing made sense today. My head and my heart felt heavy. I had woken up so blissfully unaware of how horrible today would be.

  Suddenly, I was sobbing. Tears swelled up, releasing a dam inside of me that I didn’t even know had been built, and I wept on the sidewalk. I shoved my face into my knees and wrapped my arms around my shins. I wanted to curl into a ball and take a do-over for today.

  “Lincoln? What’s wrong, love?” Priya’s voice pulled my snotty face away from my knees and I looked up to see her crouching down in front of me so our eyes were level. Her features were wrinkled in concern.

  “Everything has pretty much sucked since you left my bed this morning,” I sniffled.

  She cracked a small smile and looked behind me. “Let’s get inside, okay? Then you can tell us all about it.” She placed a small kiss on my forehead and pulled me to my feet. I wiped the snot and tears with the back of my hand and saw Emir and Grey behind me.

  “Don’t worry, honey. Whatever it is, we can figure it out together, okay?” Grey said, squeezing my hand and offering an empathetic smile.

  Emir looked very concerned as he nodded. I just closed my eyes

  “Okay, let’s go inside,” I said. I let her tug me in and sit me down at a table.

  Emir and Grey sat on one side and I sat across from them while Priya went to get drinks.

  Grey reached over and clutched my hand. “It’s okay to not be okay, Lincoln. We are here for you. You don’t have to do this alone, alright?” His eyes sparkled, and Emir nodded next to him.

  “Okay, Linc.” Priya snuggled in next to me while she poured me a cup of coffee. “Why don’t you tell us what happened? Start at the beginning.”

  “Okay,” I took a breath and went right in from the start. I explained the first time I met Elijiah, the mirror, the bloody writing and handprint, my second Elijiah visit, and finally, the ghost girl just now. No one said a word as I went through all the details. Tears fell from my cheeks but I ignored them. The need to release the emotional buildup was just too much.

  At some point, my coffee had been abandoned and Priya had intertwined her fingers with my own. I clutched her hand tightly, and when I went to loosen my grip, she tightened hers.

  “So now we’re here,” I said quietly, studying the table before closing my eyes briefly.

  Emir had a grave look on his face and he nodded slightly.

  “I’m sorry that this all happened in rapid succession, Lincoln. I’ve never heard of a “guardian angel” before. There are, however, angels of death. The original deathwalkers were said to be these angels. Powerful beings from the afterlife that served as the queen’s personal guard. The original deathwalkers were created from their blood. But the queen wanted them to stay with her in the afterlife to protect the realm there. She announced that the angels would rule by her side, while the deathwalkers were sent to Earth to act as liaisons between the realms.” He rubbed his hand across his chin.

  “We don’t have much information on them because there aren't any records of them in the last few centuries. They were there at the beginning of time for the inception of the GK society, but not much is documented after that. There were accounts of deathwalkers seeing them or contacting them while in the afterworld, but I’ve never heard of them being on Earth or watching over someone.

  “So I don't know who this Elijiah is, but he absolutely cannot be trusted, from what you’ve shared. We can equip you with protective charms and weapons, but I fear that it wouldn’t deter him from contacting you, seeing as his magic is unpredictable. I fear that his magic is ancient. Your concerns and feelings are valid in this regard. He is dangerous, indeed.”

  I frowned at that. I’d had the same thought but I thought the gatekeepers might have another solution. Elijiah had unlimited access to my life, and I had no idea what his angle was. How could I protect myself from someone who said they were supposed to be helping me if I have no proof otherwise?

  “In regards to the mirror…we typically use mirrors as portals to the afterlife when we help souls, ghosts, and wraiths across. It’s the easiest and most abundant resource we have to link them. Deathwalkers describe the sensation as detaching from their physical body in order to slip into a mirror that acts as a portal to the afterworld.

  Typically, when a demon has crossed into our world they will use a mirror as their mode of transportation as well. We should have spelled the mirrors in your home as soon as you got your sight. We will plan to do that immediately,” Emir said seriously, furrowing his brow.

  “Lincoln, I think the thing you saw was, indeed, a demon, but I am not sure why it was just idly making an appearance in your mirror. Usually, it would want to pull through to the mortal realm. And as for the bloody handprint and smoke…I’ve never heard of another deathwalker experiencing anything like that before. Regina means Queen in Latin, so it could mean the queen is calling to you,” Emir continued.

  “Doesn't that mean I should take a trip to the afterlife?” I asked seriously.

  “Linc, that sounds very dangerous. After everything you just told us, it doesn’t seem like the best idea to send you headfirst into the unknown. None of us would be able to come with you. You would be vulnerable and alone. Not to mention, we have no idea what’s waiting on the other side. No one has been there in ten years, and the last people never came back,” Grey said darkly.

  “You could get stuck there,” Priya whispered, her golden eyes watery.

  “Okay, so maybe this exact moment in time isn’t best for me to go. But eventually, I will need to, right? Isn’t that the whole point of what I am? There’s a reason you haven’t had a deathwalker in ten years. My job is to be a liaison. And I want to. I….” My words caught in my throat briefly. “I did some snooping. I know it isn’t my place and you don’t have to say anything. I also know it was a nosy-bitch-thing to do and a violation of privacy.” I tumbled through my words while everyone stared at me strangely.

  “I know what happened to your parents and what happened to you six months ago.” I sneaked a glance over to where Priya’s mouth had set in a hard line. She took a quick inhale. Her hand went limp in my own, but I held on. “I don’t want that to happen to anyone else or to happen to you again. It seems like a cycle. A pattern. And I don’t want to lose you when we just got started,” I pleaded.