Page 24 of Can you take it?

“I didn’t think about it,” she growled.

Walter shook his head, turning away from her. “I’ll grab your armor. I can’t do this anymore,” he said as he walked out of the doors.

“What? You’re leaving when someone needs you?

Shocking,” Eletha called before storming out after him.

“I must admit, the idea of killing a woman repulses me,” I told Anna.

“Oh, how chivalrous you are,” she quipped. She was really starting to annoy me. “Are you a man of your word?”

I patted Thistle as I watched her. She appeared to be right- handed, but I couldn’t be sure without watching her move more. “Of course I am a man of my word. I wouldn’t be playing this stupid game right now if I weren’t.”

All humor left her face. “Then promise me that if I go to key you—you do know what that is, don’t you?”

“When an opponent removes the red key from its box on their saddle and proceeds to stab the other man”—I nodded snidely—“or woman”—she glowered—“in the forehead, thus taking their memento and destroying their soul.”

She looked furious. “So kind of Walter to tutor you. Though, if he were a real friend, I doubt he’d let you ride that toy pony into the game. If you hope to elicit sympathy from anyone riding that thing, then you are mistaken. I’ll have them supply you with a worthy steed before game time.”

This puzzled me more than I would like to admit. Why was she offering to help get me a horse? She should want me at a disadvantage. “No, this is my friend. I believe in what she and I can do together.” I’m not going to lie, the words, though I meant them, were much harder to say after being dragged around by the little unicorn. I was having serious doubts, but I wasn’t going to give up on her.

“Suit yourself,” she said with a frustrated huff of air. “I would like your word that when I go to key you, you will hand over the pendant to me.”

“What? No way. Why would I do that? Just because I’m about to die?” I laughed at her.

“You’re already dead. You’re about to cease to exist in anyone’s mind forever. Your mother? She’ll never remember you. Calypso, Mendax? You won’t exist to them. You will not be remembered as the hero you so obviously and desperately need to be. Your good deeds will go unremembered and your grand morals will be nonexistent.”

I hated the chord her words struck with me, but even more, I hated that I was that easy for her to see through.

“But if you give me the pendant and restore my full powers, I can promise you that I will leave enough of your memento intact that those in the other realms will remember you just as they do now,” she offered.

I removed my shirt and shook the dirt off it. Some part of me swelled with pride when I saw her eyes cling to my bare chest before her cheeks turned rosy and she looked away. “No deal,” I stated, pulling my shirt back over my head.

“What?” Her eyes snapped to mine with shock.

“I don’t believe you and I don’t make deals with cretins who have no morals and steal from people. Besides, my mother is dead in the Elysian Fields and she never thought that much of me anyway.” I moved to collect Thistle’s reins.

“What do you know of my morals?” she laughed.

“I know that you are Artemi, yet I’ve already watched you kill several creatures in a tantrum. I know that you want to rule the Underworld and I know that my mother is the one who killed you, so there is no possible way you would pass up the opportunity to revenge kill me.”

She looked stunned for a moment. “Your mother was the woman who killed me?” Her face turned nearly as pink as her strands of hair. “That was your mother? I kissed you. You were probably in on the scheme with her.”

I scowled at her words and just how wrong she was, but then realization hit me. “You don’t know anything, do you? About what happened after your death?”

She looked uncomfortable and her steed must have sensed it, for it began shifting uncomfortably as well, eager to leave. “Apparently not, but I will. Once I get my powers, Calypso is first on my list to visit.”

I paled. I knew it—I couldn’t let her hurt Cal. As much as I wanted to believe I could win this game and defeat Anna, the odds weren’t in my favor. If she was willing to bargain, I needed to use it to my advantage. “You can’t hurt her. Give me your word that you will never hurt Calypso and I will give you the pendant if you are able to key me.”

She frowned and opened her mouth to say something but stalled, closing it again. “Fine. I won’t hurt precious Calypso if you give me the pendant.” She thrust her palm out.

“No, I’m not just giving it to you. That’s only if you key me. You forget that I’m going to kill you and then get out of here. Is there anything you’d like me to tell Cal?” I said with mock confidence.

Anna looked as though she might burst into tears at my words, whether it was from anger or sadness I would never know. I did know that I hated it…and I hated that I hated it. Fuck.

“You ought to count your blessings, Aurelius, because when I kill you and take over Tartarus, the first thing I’m going to do is make certain every person you’ve ever loved, dead or alive, remembers you just enough that when I send them to the first tier, they’ll rot in agony for eternity knowing you failed them and caused them that pain,” she said in a low tone that was only made more sinister by her gentle, almost-sweet-sounding voice. “Shake on the deal.”

I wanted to throw up. “Thank you,” I responded, taking her hand and giving it one good firm shake. I held it in my grip even after she tried to remove it. “Thank you for giving me all the motivation I need to make certain you never touch this pendant. You will die today, Anna. I wish more than anything that it hadn’t come to this, but it has.” I released her small hand and turned to walk Thistle out of the barn. “I’m sorry again,” I said as I left Cal’s sister.