I Should Die

kiss again and his expression becomes serious. “I really don’t want you in the heart of the action, Kate. Even though you’re strong, you’re also new. And, yes, as a revenant you are hard to destroy. But don’t think for a second that Violette has given up on capturing you. You are her prize, and every numa out there will be trying to bring you back to their leader.”
    I nod. “I understand.”
    “Just because you’re the Champion doesn’t mean you have to act like one,” Vincent says with a ghost of a smile.
    “The prophecy says I will lead you to victory,” I tease.
    “If you lead us to each of Paris’s numa, I would say that more than qualifies,” Vincent allows. “But victory can be measured in lots of ways. Whether any of us will survive this war isn’t at all sure. I want to see my kindred safely through without loss of life. Especially yours.”
    Bran is waiting for me when we step down through the trapdoor. “Kate!” he exclaims, and reaches out as if he wants to hug me, before changing his mind and dropping his arms by his sides. I hug him instead, his skinny frame floppy in my arms.
    “I am sorry, my dear, but I can’t look you straight in the face. Your aura was already hard to look at when you were human. Now it blinds me.” He averts his eyes and looks at the floor behind me.
    “Bran, why didn’t you tell me before?”
    “What might have happened if I had? You could have put yourself in harm’s way just to discover if I was right. Or perhaps Jean-Baptiste would have. He is a good man, but was desperate to have the aid of the Champion.”
    Bran tries again, unsuccessfully, to look me in the face. “Now we know why. He needed someone to help him get out of this mess he had gotten into. To destroy the numa so he would no longer be bound to his shameful bargain.”
    I touch his arm thoughtfully. “Do you know what my powers are, Bran?” I ask.
    “I have no information besides what is contained in the prophecy. But you already performed one of your most important roles: You single-handedly reunited the flame-fingered with our bardia wards after centuries of being lost to each other. That role in itself saved your Vincent. Once I master the gifts of ease of bardia suffering and dispersion, our continued alliance in the future can only be beneficial.”
    With effort, he shifts his eyes to look straight into mine. His face takes on an unreadable expression: something between sadness and hope.
    “Be careful, Kate,” he says. And leaning forward, he gives me an awkward back-patting hug.
     
    Charlotte is waiting in my room when I arrive. She has brought my fighting gear up from the armory, and is already dressed in hers, ready to go. She sits beside a low table helping herself to a tray of food. I pop a cheese gougère into my mouth and savor its flakey goodness as I pull up a chair. “I’m ravenous!” I admit.
    “When’s the last time you ate?” she asks.
    “On the boat. Violette was feeding me so that I would get my strength back and fully animate. Looks like that worked a little too well for her!” I think back to the strange, sad numa boy, Louis, and something tugs inside me.
    Charlotte munches on an apple slice, looking pensive.
    “What are you thinking about?” I ask.
    “Ambrose,” she responds. “He’s been acting really weird lately.”
    “Weird good or weird bad?” I ask, popping a melon ball into my mouth.
    “Weird freaky,” she replies, looking troubled. “He keeps watching me. I wonder if he questions JB’s decision to name me as second. Maybe he’s waiting for me to slip up or something.”
    “Hmm,” I say, unable to keep my lips from crooking up at the corners.
    Mercifully, there is a knock on the door and Arthur sticks his head in. “Fifteen minutes,” he says. My heart skips a beat and I realize that I’m nervous. The other times I fought, the fight came to us. I’ve never had time to think about it in advance.
    “Man, he’s got it bad for your sister,” Charlotte says after he’s gone. “But she is really playing it cool.”
    “It could be because Papy and Mamie would completely freak if they thought that another of their granddaughters was falling for a revenant.”
    Charlotte shrugs. “Your grandparents are involved now, whether or not they want to be. You’re one of us—it’s not like they can just pack you up and take you home.”
    I think about Mamie and Papy and their response to seeing me: joy and relief mixed with