I tapped Otaktay's leg just to make sure it was true. He was limp as a fish.

But he hadn't been alone. Rancid, foul breath escaped his lips, and then darkness enveloped me. The mark on my chest seared from within far worse than when Shar beckoned. Worse even than when a Nephilim was nearby. It was almost like I was being peeled open, layer by layer.

"You just had to go and ruin my fun, Black Badge.” Otaktay’s mouth moved but that clearly wasn’t him. An ethereal voice slithered around me.

I know that's not a way to describe a sound, but that's what it seemed like to me. It was that same voice I'd heard in the quarry only fuller now, more real, embodying the shadows.

I stood, I think, and backed away, I think.

"What are you?" I asked.

"More powerful than a Hand of God can ever be."

"Wanna test that theory?” I hastily reloaded, never taking my eyes off Otaktay’s talking corpse.

"Where is she? Where is the angel who tugs on your strings, puppet? Show yourself, Shargrafein. I know you're there."

"I could have guessed it was you, Chekoketh." Shar's disembodied voice arrived just on cue. I looked around for her but saw no one. Nor did I see any reflections bearing her likeness. "What do you want?"

When she spoke this time, I realized she was using my lips to do it.

It felt… violating.

But either way, there it was. The answer. This was indeed the work of the trickster demon, Chekoketh, who went by many names. I wasn't surprised at all, but where was the trick? Or was it simply chaos he was after?

"The Piasa would have made a fine recruit for Lucifer's army," Chekoketh said. I was so close."

"There will never be an army," Shar replied. "Your master lost and will always lose. The White Throne stands forever."

"For now." He yawned. Good God, it was unnerving enough watching that dead monster’s mouth move to speak, but to do something as human as yawn? "No bother. I was growing tired of this family affair anyway. So much drama and revenge. Only the weak let tragedy befall them."

As I tried to make sense of all the darkness around me, the shadow seemed to form a face in front of me. Or maybe eyes. All I knew is that they were like infinite chasms of dread, and I felt like I was gonna be sucked through.

"Goodbye, Mr. Crowley,” Chekoketh said. “See you very, very soon."

The shadow faded away, and I blinked. The Yeti was gone. In his place lay a dead native man wearing tattered rags stretched beyond repair. Otaktay, in his true form. Ahusaka sat beside him, cradling his knees. He wasn't crying, but his eyes were wet as he stared down at the man who'd helped rescue him and did what Dufaux falsely claimed to have done for the Piasa tribe—gave him a life. How many families could one person lose before breaking?

He looked up at me, heartbroken, and his next words shook me to my core.

"Kill me."

I swallowed the lump in my throat, then shook my head. "No." I sat down beside him. "I ain't gonna kill you, kid.”

"Please. I deserve it. I could hear everything you were saying while my mind drifted… and I still would not stop."

"You would’ve," I said.

"You don't know that."

"I do."

I didn't. Just like I hadn't known if Rosa was gonna pull that trigger or not. But sometimes, it's best not to leave things to chance when you can affect the outcome.

Ahusaka sniveled and muttered something in his language. "What do I even do now?"

I put my hand on his shoulder, causing him to flinch. But it felt right to do. I think Dale would've wanted me to show Ahusaka this kindness, offer him mercy for being led astray. And even if he didn't, it was what I wanted.

"First, you lay your family to rest," I said. “Then, you go anywhere but here."

He regarded the two bodies, then joined me in gazing out across the expanse. The storm was clearing, but energy still crackled along the route the Piasa had flown.

"You do not want to turn me in?" he asked, bewildered.

I knew by returning to Revelation Springs empty-handed, I’d forfeit any bounty still on the table—not that Dufaux was likely to pay it to me, anyhow. But he could keep his gold. Ahusaka had lost enough. He deserved a proper goodbye to his family. And the two dead before me deserved to be buried or whatever his tribe did to properly send off their dead.

"No," I told him. "I don't have that kind of authority. But you're alive. Do something with that, or don't. I’m tired of telling people what to do."

I stood, dusted off my coat, and retrieved all my belongings.

Maybe you should kill him, a voice whispered in the back of my head. Was it mine? Chekoketh’s? Maybe even Shar's? That tickle across my chest was there.

No matter who it was, it wasn't my place to end this boy's life. Not unless Shar outright demanded it, and to my relief, she hadn't.

I strolled away, content with my decision, my feet dragging over loose rock and hailstones. I only made it a few steps before I heard Ahusaka sobbing and whimpering. I glanced back. What I would've killed to have a family I cared for like that, who'd shake Heaven and Earth just to get revenge for me.

All things considered, Ahusaka didn't know how lucky he was.

"Head east of here," I told him. He glanced up, eyes fully glazed over now. "When you reach a boulder that looks like a big old chair, head due south directly. You'll find a valley along the Devil's River; follow it until you see a waterfall. It'll seem like nothing, but step through it. Ask for Mutt on the other side."

"Mutt?" he pronounced, holding the last letters like he was trying to feel them out.

"That's right. Tell him you're a friend of James Crowley.”

I knew they were different tribes with essentially nothing in common, but Mutt's people wielded powers that would get them killed by normal folk too. Since only the chiefs of the Piasa tribe could do what Ahusaka could, maybe he'd find kinship there. A new family. Or at least those willing to give him a chance and help him hone his abilities.

And of course, a part of me was being selfish like men always seem to be. Mukwooru had asked me to spare the Mind-drifter if I could. Keeping her in my good graces had already proved a boon, so I’d do so again. Perhaps that was why Shar seemed to have no problem letting him live.

Or maybe, just maybe, she wasn’t totally full of shit, and she believed, like I did, that Ahusaka deserved a chance to atone for his sins. He was a Child after all. Now he's got the chance to grow up right.

"Why do you help me?" Ahusaka asked, his brow furrowed. I understood why he'd be wary of a man like me.

“Let's just say I shouldn’t be casting stones,” I said.

“What does that mean?”

I smiled. “If I've learned one thing, it's never question when a man offers help. Go where I said or wherever you like. Just stay away from Revelation. Live free, kid. Free of vengeance and hate. The next steps are up to you."

I left him behind. An intangible weight seemed to lift off me, as it always did after a job well done. But always a tinge of sadness too. I'd walk away, be dispatched after a new target in this god-forsaken West, and eventually forget what happened here. Twenty more years down the road, even a hundred, I'd still be around, and all this would be… dust and vague memories.

Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.

Something stirred me from my usual ruminations. Ace wasn't where Otaktay had flung him. The bastard was gone.

I sighed and shook my head. "Slippery son of a bitch. You may as well be Chekoketh."

I should've been angry, but somehow, it was sort of nice knowing that somewhere in the world remained a man I truly despised. A man to remind me that I remain mostly human, with those base human emotions that cause so much turmoil.

Scaling down the mesa, I whistled for Timperina. She arrived shortly after. I checked her for injuries, but besides some scratches from hail and a wet coat, she was in fine shape.

She whinnied as I loaded up.

"I know, you would've helped more if you could've," I said, patting the side of her thick neck. "I was onto something earlier. We ought to get you wings."

She snorted.

"Right." I chuckled. "You hate heights."

We reached the flatlands and I heard a distant scream.

"You hear that?" She tapped her hoof. I spurred her, and we took off, snaking our way out to the badlands.

Another scream echoed before I saw anything, and this time I recognized it. I'd heard it before when she was a child, clinging tightly to her mama while Ace Ryker threatened their virtue and their lives. And I'd heard it again in Dead Acre, not long ago when a necromancer mistook her kindness for love.

Clearing a low hill, I spotted Rosa. Only, despite screaming, it was her who was still standing. Ace writhed on the dirt, holding his blood-drenched face.

"You bitch!" Ace shouted.

Rosa hit him again with what appeared to be a gnarled tree branch. It splintered and flaked from dryness, but I'm sure it still hurt like the dickens. Pretty sure it broke his nose too.

"That ain't a nice word to call a lady, Ace," I said, hopping off Timp's back. "You didn't make it far, I see."

Rosa spun and lowered her makeshift club. "James! I couldn't help it. I followed you here just in case, I… What was that… in the sky?"

"Strangest storm I ever saw. But we got the Trio. They're all gone. Won't be a threat to anyone again."

I didn't like lying to her about Ahusaka's fate, but he deserved a clean slate. I'd tell her the truth one day if it came up, when we weren't in the vicinity of hundreds who'd happily hang him.

Ace, on the other hand…

"Got a mean swing," I said.

"I saw him running, untied," Rosa replied. "Thought he'd escaped."

"He did." Just like that, I wasn't so worried about having a nemesis alive in the world. Oh, the things we convince ourselves just to feel all right. "I suppose I owe you thanks for following."

I strode slowly toward them, reloading a pistol. My reserves of silver were nearly empty, but I put the rest in my cylinder, making a show of it.

"You dirty, rotten, liar," Ace said through a mouthful of blood. I raised my firearm, training it on his black heart. "I came back for you, Crowley! I could've run, and you'd be dead! Whatever crazy redskin voodoo Otaktay did to get that big, he would’ve crushed you."

"I guess you think that makes us even or something?” I asked. “You did it for revenge, not for me. I was getting through to him."

"Like it matters? If they're dead, then you won. You gotta let me go."

"Do I?"

Ace glared up at Rosa, his eye already bruising, nose cracked off to the side. "I should've made everyone watch while I—"

She hit him again.

"Enough," I told her.

"You can't let him go," Rosa said.

I didn't have an answer. I really did want to keep my word. Ace wasn't lying. The Frozen Trio was defeated, and he had a hand in helping. Fair was fair…

"He's coming with us," said another voice.

From the darkness behind Ace emerged three men, each with a revolver in hand. The one in front—the speaker—I recognized. The bounty hunter, Anton.

Timperina snorted and I heard her hooves stomp closer. I raised a hand for her to stay back.

"I knew you were involved in this," I said to Anton.

"Took you long enough, you roughneck son of a bitch," Ace said.

"Sorry, boss," Anton said. "We were tracking, but we lost you both in that storm."

"Well, you're here now."

Ace started up that manic-sounding laugh I knew all too well. Couldn't forget it, no matter how many years had passed. Rosa went to strike him again, but Anton rushed forward and stayed her hand.

"Uh-uh-uh," he said. "Ain't nobody ever taught you your place, woman?"

Ace rose to his hands and knees, cackling uncontrollably. Strings of blood dripped from his lips, and he spit out a loose tooth.

Then, he slowly got to his feet. I think he wondered if I'd actually pull the trigger, but I didn't. Not yet. Not until I knew one of his goons wouldn't pop off and kill Rosa.

"Put it down, Crowley," Ace said. "It's over." He grabbed the stick in Rosa's hand and tried to pull it but she held tight. He yanked harder, scraping up her palm as it came free.

"Cabrón!" Rosa cursed before she spat in his face.

He lifted the club to strike her. I drew my second Peacemaker. He didn't have to know it was empty.

"Don't you fucking touch her, Ace," I warned.

He grinned that damn grin, wiping the gob of bloody saliva off his cheek.

“Been twenty years,'" Ace said, circling her. Not even caring that he put his back to me. He let his thumb trace the neckline on Rosa's once white but now brown and stained shirt. "Never waited that long for anything. You better be worth it."

He shoved his thumb into her mouth and she bit down. He yanked it back, then sucked it.

"Feisty," Ace said, laughing. "I like that."

"I swear to God, Ace,” I said. “Leave her and go, and you and I can kill each other some other day."

He circled her again. Ace's goons had their weapons wavering between me and Rosa. With her between us, it was all too dangerous.

"I told Crowley here that I found love down south, and he didn't believe me," Ace said. "But one thing is for certain. I could find it here with you, no problem. Your mother was a sight. You're a…" He chuckled before saying his own joke. "A revelation."

Rosa snapped and went to hit him. He caught her arm and started wrenching it back. His hand slithered along her side. Timperina started whining and tapping her hooves, like she always did when she got nervous.

“Would you shut that horse up!” Ace barked, then returned his attention to Rosa. “What’s this?”

He snatched Rosa's bag and started rifling through. Pulling the cursed harmonica out, he said, “What’s this?”

Rosa must have found it in the brush or something. I never should've let my own guilt get the best of me and let it out of my sights. Or at least, I should have buried the thing.

"Ace, I'm warning you for the last time!" I yelled.

Ace brought the instrument to his lips. Unlike myself, or anyone else who had handled it, he smirked. Then he played a few notes. I cringed, remembering what I’d done with it. I hoped hearing it again wouldn’t spring Rosa to remember.

“Nice quality,” Ace said as the sound echoed.

I couldn't help but wonder why Ace was showing no signs of overwhelming gloom. He just continued speaking like nothing was wrong. Was he so damn evil that not even Hellish magic could affect him? So numb to feeling remorse or grief or worry about anything?

“I can play you a tune on Crowley’s instrument while you…” He snickered at Rosa. “… Play mine.”

In that instant, Rosa’s hand moved to his stomach and slid down toward his privates. Her eyes twitched. She was resisting, but his desires were taking control as the cursed harmonica’s notes carried.

“Look who’s woke up!” Ace exclaimed. “Anton, quit messing around and kill Crowley so we can have fun.”

"I'd have thought you'd want that honor, Ace," I said.

"No, I wanna watch this time." Ace dragged Rosa off to the side and out of the way. "No hard feelings, Crowley. I just can't trust your word anymore."

"James!" Rosa called to me, snapping out of her trance. "James!"

"Do it," Ace said as he retreated.

Anton looked around at the others. Then they unloaded full cylinders into my chest and body. I didn't return fire. I just waited, trying not to let Timperina’s sad sounds get to me. Even after all these years, she doesn’t understand my nature. Likely never will.

When the dust and the gunpowder cleared, I stood tall. They all gawked at me. At least one of them swore. Another said something in Spanish. Anton, however, was stunned silent. Probably realized then how I'd managed to best him in five-finger fillet.

I didn't feel bad about cheating anymore. Nor did I have any second thoughts about giving Ace the fate he deserved. He couldn't walk away. Never could. And hurting Rosa crossed way too many lines.

Ace looked over my way, and horror passed over him.

I cracked my neck.

"My turn."

Quicker than they could think, each of Ace’s men had a hole in their foreheads. They stood momentarily as if their brains hadn't yet told their bodies they were dead. Then, one by one, they dropped like flies.

Ace's face went stark white. "What the fuck are you, Crowley?"

With him distracted, Rosa rose quick and kneed him in the man parts. He doubled over and she backed away. I walked toward him. Timp followed close behind me, poor girl trying to make sense of things.

"Some say a ghost. A specter." I kept stalking him while he simultaneously clenched his privates, shuffled away, and never removed his eyes from mine. "Others might think me a god. All you need to know…" I reached him now and grabbed him by the jaw to raise him up to a standing position. "… is I'm your worst mistake."

I pistol-whipped him across the face. He hit the ground and groaned.

“Oh, Crowley,” he cackled up blood as he tried to sit up. “Don’t you know, you can never beat me—"

From beside me, Timp’s hoof shot forward from his side and cracked him in the jaw, way harder than I could hit. Ace’s head hit the dirt and his hands fell inert to his side, the bone harmonica still clenched in one.

“Just a horse, huh?” I said.

Rosa ran to me and threw her arms around me.

"Gracias, James." She kissed my cheek. “Gracias."

Timp nuzzled both of us at the same time.

Rosa pulled back and looked me in the eyes. “I guess I owe you two again.”

"Nah. Let's call it even, Rosa Massey." I held her at arm's length and smiled. Threw Timp a wink over her shoulder for good measure too.

When we finally parted, Rosa patted my chest and all the bullet holes in my jacket, concerned.

“How did you—”

“I got metal vest under this,” I interrupted her, gently grabbing her hands and guiding them away from my person. “A bit medieval. Real expensive. Took a gamble that it’d work and… I guess it does.”

She punched me in the arm. “Idiota. You shouldn’t have gambled for me.”

“Always.”

Her gaze stuck with mine for a short while, then she cursed and gave Ace a swift kick in the ribs.

"Wow, that feels good!" she exclaimed, doing it once more.

"Better than you killing him, right?"

"I suppose." She looked down at her hand. It was bleeding.

I took it in mine for a careful and perhaps overlong examination.

"You should get that wrapped," I said in a low voice. Then I looked up into her eyes. Again, we stood there a while, locked in on each other. Just stood there.

Rosa cleared her throat. "I will." She pulled her hand away, but not unkindly. Her eyes lingered a moment longer, and she returned them to Ace. "So, what do we do with him now?"

"I won't take Dufaux's bounty, but someone somewhere will pay a hell of a lot for the infamous Ace Ryker to die. I can think of a few Vanderbilts already. The money might help those people fix up Revelation. Maybe could get you a ticket to wherever you want to go."

Rosa pursed her lips and spat on him for good measure. "Better to leave him out here to rot in Hell."

"Don't worry, Rosa,” I said. “There's a high authority than us to take care of that…"