“Okay, I’m in. How do I do such a thing?” For the first time I had a glimmer of hope that maybe this strange warlock had an answer to all my problems inside his big gold book.
“It will take some time, but first we must figure out how you’re going to survive the night. Then we can talk of future dealings.”
“I’m not going to survive the night?” I said. That wasn’t what I wanted to come out of that book.
“Not as I have it here.” He ran his finger over more words I couldn’t see. “That’s why it was imperative for me to find you now. You have angered someone very powerful, and as of right now, she cannot be convinced it can be fixed without your death. And she has a point. With your death, there is a resolution. Even though her sister disagrees and has been championing you for quite some time—it was she who took the plane down, and lucky for you she did because if she hadn’t, your path would’ve ended in disaster in that swamp. You must find a way to mend the rent in Fate that doesn’t include your dying, and according to what I see in here, there are very, very few options left to you—”
“Juanita took the plane down?” I interjected. It was the only thing I could focus on at the moment. “She could’ve killed us.”
“She had no other choice,” he said dismissively. “If not, the plane would have been redirected by her sister Enid, and you would not have survived. That would’ve been a more dire outcome. Juanita did what was necessary, as have I. But on your current path, as I’ve just stated, you will not live through the next two hours. Your outlook is dreary. If you do survive, however, the next task will be to figure out how to redirect your Fated path. This will not be simple either, but it will be a tad easier than being dead.”
I pressed my fingers to my temple. “Okay, we have to break this up. What are my choices for the next two hours? That seems like the most pressing, wouldn’t you agree?”
“Yes. For one, you need to stay out of all transportation devices. They are far too easy to manipulate. Enid cannot blow your body up, per se, but she is well versed in bringing down powerful supernaturals by other means, and you are not a goddess, so there’s no chance of regeneration.”
“How do I get home without transportation?” I asked stupidly. My brain was still processing the fact that I was supposed to die soon—really die. My wolf howled in anger.
“You must run, of course.” He cocked his head at me oddly. “You do have that capability, do you not?”
“I do,” I said sheepishly. “But that would take longer than I’d… intended.” That was about as lame as I could get. I had nothing specific to do once I got home, except find Juanita and then help Tally.
But I couldn’t do any of that if I was dead. So, duh, I could run.
“It’s the only option to you, long or not,” he replied with a curt nod. “You will take your… partner along and no one else. If you do not listen to this advice, you will put your entire party at risk. And I am beginning to understand, by your actions, that you don’t take harm to your family and friends lightly. That is a commendable trait, but not always advisable. Sometimes, for the greater good, sacrifices must be made.”
“I will never sacrifice my family.” Rage bubbled up inside me before I could tamp it down. I could almost handle the thought of dying, but thinking about being responsible for someone I loved dying was unacceptable. “So don’t ask me to, now or in the future, for any reason.”
“Well,” Jeb scoffed. “In our world, it’s impossible to assign the same value to all lives. The sooner you understand this, the better. Our world is much different than the human world.”
“I don’t agree,” I argued. “How can anyone choose which lives will bring more value, human or supe? It’s not possible.”
“I can and I do. For example, if you were to die, it would lead to catastrophic consequences for us all. Countless lives would be lost, both human and supernatural. How’s that for hierarchy of value? For many, if they died, it would trigger no change in Fate’s fabric. And I can’t speak for every living soul, but a great many, I believe, would willingly sacrifice themselves for the greater good. Keeping you alive is one of those greater goods, in my book.” He shook his golden book for emphasis.
My mouth closed with a rebuttal on my tongue.