I did as requested but couldn’t manage to get my feet onto the first branch. “I can’t,” I said, shaking. “We have to fight.”
The look in his eyes was haunted. Panic like I’d never seen was etched in his features. He glanced up at the tree, then turned his attention to the woods for a moment before focusing on me. “You know I love you, right?”
“What?” Everything stilled.
“I love you, Sammy, and when it comes down to you and me, I will always choose you.”
“You’re scaring me.” It was more the look in his eyes than the words he spoke. There was a grave finality, something he was purposely avoiding saying.
“I’ll hold them off. Run.” He grabbed my arm and tried to move me away from the tree.
I shoved him away. “What aren’t you telling me?” I demanded.
Another howl filtered through the woods and Jax cursed. With a growl, he wrapped his hands around my waist and hefted me up so I could reach the first branch. Once I made it several higher, he clawed his way to me.
“They better not be able to fucking climb.”
“Screw the carnivi,” I said. “Tell me what the hell is going on. You’re injured, I get it, but it’s more than that. You’re terrified.”
He opened his mouth—to tell me the truth or spew some other bullshit, I didn’t know—but the tree jerked sideways. I grabbed the branch, hands covered in sap, and held tight. On the ground, the two carnivi were running, head first, into the trunk of the tree.
“This is a particularly sticky situation.” We both jumped as Heckle, now sitting a branch below us, wiped a smear of sap across the knee of his worn blue jeans. He nodded to Jax. “Nice to see you’re still with us.”
“Do something,” Jax said with a snarl. I watched, waiting for his eyes to flicker, or at least rim with black like they did when he got angry and the demon grew agitated, but they didn’t. They stayed solid gray.
“I can’t,” Heckle replied. He didn’t look sorry about it, either. “Not without a trade.”
“A trade?” I repeated, stunned. We were literally up a tree with the hounds of hell nipping at our heels and he wanted to play let’s make a deal?
“My hands are tied, Sam.” That time he actually did look sorry. A little. “There are rules. I’m forbidden to interfere without the proper bal—”
“Don’t,” Jax said and smashed his fist against the tree. The surrounding branches shuddered, and I cringed. “Do not fucking say balance.”
The carnivi had stopped ramming the tree and were circling the bottom like vultures. Occasionally one would glance upward, snarling, and chomp at the air several times in anticipation. At this point, they’d simply have to outwait us. We’d pass out from hunger, exhaustion, or exposure, and drop right into their wide open mouths.
“The rules state I cannot interfere. I am unable to provide you with an edge unless you offer something to tip the scales back.”
“The rules,” I repeated. “But didn’t you make the rules? Break them for fuck’s sake!”
“Believe it or not, I didn’t make the rules. I only enforce them. If it were up to me…”
Jax looked down, then fixed his gaze on Heckle. “What do you want?”
“What do you have?” The bartender waggled his eyebrows, and I could tell Jax just about lost it.
“What we have,” Jax said, tone threatening, “is certain death, waiting at the bottom. Of. This. Fucking. Tree.”
“What is it you want?” I tried. I didn’t think Heckle would leave us stranded here because Jax threw attitude, but I didn’t want to take the chance.
“A soul,” came his unexpected reply.
“A soul?” I repeated, not understanding. “What does that even mean?”
“I want a soul,” Heckle repeated. “Well, to clarify, I want part of a soul.”
“You want part of a soul…?” I asked, confused. With a quick glance at the ground, I said a silent prayer that he made this fast. The tree wasn’t going to hold up to much more abuse.
“Even clearer,” Heckle said with a slight frown. “I want a part of your soul.”
My soul? What good would it do him now? Once a Pure died, their soul—and the energy inside it—was up for grabs, to be used for good or evil depending on who managed to get their grubby hands on it first. But that wouldn’t happen when I died. My soul had already been claimed.
“I know what you’re thinking.” He stole a glance at the carnivi below. “And no, I do not wish to steal your power. I have my own reasons—reasons that I can assure you contribute to balance.”
I looked at Jax.
His mouth fell open. “You cannot seriously be considering—”
“Fine,” I said before he could get the rest out. From the start, Heckle had claimed his motivations were to keep balance, but the more light we shone on them, the sketchier things got. But we didn’t have a choice. There was no other way out of this tree. “I agree. Get us the hell out of here!”
Chapter Twenty-One