Touch Of Death: Face Of Death Part 11

We both slumped down in the seats, hiding from view.

"He had to. You weren't you anymore. It was your body, but your soul didn't fully return. You were a zombie. I watched you rip apart a bunny."

His hands flew to his face, covering his eyes. "Please, tell me you're making this up. I've handled a lot since we came back. I've believed a bunch of crazy stuff, but this is too much."

"I'm sorry. Do you want me to stop?"

He lowered his hands. "No. Keep going. How did I end up in the cemetery with you?"

"It was months later. Hades had this plan to get me to wipe out the Ophi line, but I refused. He raised you-only this time, you weren't a zombie. You were you. Human. Alive. When you touched my tear you died again." I looked away, unable to face him after such a huge confession.

He didn't say anything for a long time. We rode along, watching the scenery go by. Part of me felt like an idiot for unloading all that on him. Maybe ignorance really was bliss. But didn't he have a right to know what had happened to him, no matter how bad it was?

The bus pulled up to a stop, and a bunch of people got out. Matt and I had at least another two stops before we'd be close enough to walk to the school. I wondered how long he'd keep up the silent treatment. Once the bus was back on the road, I turned to look at Matt.

"Do you hate me?"

He sighed and shifted in the seat so he was facing me. "I could never hate you."

"Then why the silent treatment? I figured you'd yell or ask more questions, but you didn't do or say anything."

He brushed a strand of blonde hair out of my face. "Have I mentioned how much I miss your hair?"

Me too. In the right lighting, my crazy waves almost looked Medusa-like. In a non-creepy-snake kind of way. Without my powers or my hair, I wasn't feeling connected to Medusa at all, and she was the one I had to talk to if I was going to save the Ophi.

"Did I lose you?"

"Sorry, just thinking."

"I figured that." He fidgeted with his hands, like he didn't know what to do with them. "Look, there's something I need to ask. I'm not trying to be the guy who steals someone else's girlfriend-"

"I know you're not like that." Was I saying this to convince him not to go there? Or did I really know this was true?

"I just need to know. If I hadn't touched your tears, if I hadn't died again that night in the cemetery, what would you have chosen?"

He meant who would I have chosen. Instinctively, I reached for his hand, but I stopped before our fingers grazed each other. I tucked my hands under my legs to keep from touching Matt. "You have to understand that there is no way for us to be together. My powers have killed you more than once. I won't put you in danger again."

"You aren't a danger to me now. Can't we stay like this?"

Stay like this? Forever? "I don't know if that's even possible. My soul is split. I didn't want to mention this, but my dream last night wasn't a dream, either. While I was sleeping, my focus slipped back to the underworld where my body and Ophi soul were delivering someone to Tartarus. I saw Alex. He said I've been kind of out of it, not responding to him when he calls to me."

I couldn't help noticing the way Matt's eyes lit up at that.

"Maybe you're becoming fully human again. Maybe your Ophi soul is fading away. Can it do that?"

"Honestly, I don't know, but I don't think so. I'm stronger as an Ophi. I have a lot of power. Here," I released my hands from under my legs and motioned to the bus, "I'm defenseless."

"And you don't want to give up the power you had."

I thought about how some Ophi had turned evil as a result of having too much power or even just craving too much power. It had happened to Victoria, Troy, Abby, and Chase, just to name a few. I didn't want it to happen to me, too.

"I don't, but to be honest, the power scares me a little, too."

"Is this life really so bad? Being human? Being with me?"

This time he took my hands in his. My heart ached, knowing what he was really asking. He wanted me to take Hades up on his offer that night in the cemetery. He wanted me to choose him.

"Hades could make it so we could be together. You'd be human. I bet he'd love that idea."

Maybe he would, but I'd have to give up Alex. I'd have to let Hades keep the souls of my friends forever. "Matt, you don't understand what that would mean. I'd be sacrificing every Ophi for my own happiness."

"So, you admit you'd be happy with me?" Hope filled his eyes.

"I was happy with you before all this happened, but a lot has changed. I love Alex."

"You said you thought you were falling in love with me. I already love you, Jodi. We'd be perfect together. I think you know that."

Maybe I did. Suddenly, this all felt like a huge test. A one-question multiple-choice test worth all the points in the world.

Who would I rather be?

A. Ophi and be with Alex or B. Human and be with Matt.

Chapter 14.

Matt stared at me while I struggled to make sense of what was happening. I was literally two different people right now, and they both wanted different things. I couldn't please both. Ultimately, I'd have to make a choice, one that would hurt more than just one half of my soul.

"Am I wrong?" Matt said, breaking me from my internal debate.

I slowly pulled my hands from his. "It's just not that simple. Believe me, I wish I could separate both halves of me and choose you and Alex. But this is about more than which guy I want to be with."

Matt nodded. "You're right. I'm sorry. I said I wouldn't push you, and here I am putting pressure on you. I shouldn't have said any of that."

"Do you ever wish you'd chosen Melodie instead?" The question came out of nowhere, but Melodie had been in love with Matt. I'd found that out right before I'd killed him.

"Melodie? She's one of my best friends. I don't think of her like that."

"I was one of your best friends, too."

He smiled and waved off my comment. "Nah, I was only pretending to be your friend because I wanted to date you."

"That's not you. You're too good a guy to do something so deceitful."

"Ouch, the nice guy speech. That hurts."

"I love that you're the nice guy. It's actually what attracted me to you in the first place."

"Really?" He wagged his eyebrows at me. "It wasn't my tall, dark, and handsome physique?"

I laughed.

"What? It's not that funny." He looked mildly hurt.

"No, it's not that. It's...well, do I need to show you a mirror? You're not tall or dark anymore, and as for handsome, Brian had nothing on you." c.r.a.p! I'd just flirted again.

"Good to know." He sat back in the seat, looking pleased with himself.

Just great. How was I going to survive this trip if I couldn't stop flirting with him? It wasn't fair to either one of us-or to Alex, for that matter.

After the next stop, Matt dozed off for a bit. I felt guilty for being happy about that, but I needed a break from everything. Mostly from the guilt of killing the guy who loved me and then bringing him back to life only to break his heart.

The brakes squeaked as we approached our stop. I nudged Matt. "We're here."

He looked around, kind of dazed before standing up and motioning for me to go first. "After you."

"Thanks." I tried my best not to come in too much contact with Matt as I squeezed between him and the seat on my way to the aisle. I walked to the front of the bus, being careful not to look closely at anyone. Not that anyone would recognize me, but I wouldn't exactly be able to keep the horrified look off my face if I did see anyone from my old life.

"Mel?" Matt said behind me.

No! No, no, no. I whipped my head up in time to see Matt gawking at Melodie boarding the bus. Where was her new car? Why on earth was she taking the bus?

I turned to Matt and grabbed his hand. "We better hurry or we'll be late." I pulled him past Melodie as if we'd never seen her before.

"Wait up." Matt was tugging my arm, but I kept going. After the bus doors closed, I let go of him. "What the h.e.l.l, Jodi?"

"Don't call me that. It's too risky."

"Why? We don't look like ourselves."

"It doesn't matter. A guy and a girl with the same names as two kids who used to live here? People will a.s.sume we're together because we're traveling together. There are too many connections to our old lives. Melodie is another one. You can't talk to people we knew. You might slip up and say something that will let them know who you really are."

Matt smiled. "No one is going to believe this. We could flat-out tell people the truth, and they'd laugh in our faces."

"Let's not test that theory, okay?" Why wasn't he getting how serious this was?

"So you're not the least bit curious about what your mom's up to? How she's doing?"

Mom. Of course I'd give anything to see her again. But I couldn't. Could I?

Matt took me by the shoulders and peered into my eyes. "Come on. What's the harm in checking in on our old lives? Making sure the people we left behind are okay?"

"What if they're not?" My eyes burned with the threat of tears. "I couldn't handle it if my mom wasn't okay. I wouldn't be able to leave."

"I get it." He sighed and let go of me. "But I want to see my parents and my sister. If I'm really getting another shot at life, then I need to know they're all okay."

I started to protest, but he gently pressed a finger to my lips. "If they're not, then I'll find a way to make it okay." I could see the wheels turning in his mind. "I could even be, like, an exchange student or something. I could live in my own home again and be part of the family."

"Matt." He was getting his hopes up. Things never worked out that nicely.

"I know it's a long shot, but what if it could happen? If there's any chance, I want to try."

How could I deny him this after everything I'd done to him? "Okay, we'll go check on them, but I can't stay long. I have to get to the school. The others are counting on me."

He smiled so wide I could see all the money Brian's parents must have spent on dental work. "Let's call a cab."

"And what? Show up on their doorstep?" That would never work.

He thought for a moment. "I could show up at Amber's art studio. She goes every day after school."

"We don't even know what day it is. Time moves differently in the underworld. We don't know how much time has pa.s.sed." It was April when Hades took me and the other Ophi, but the air was warm now. I was guessing it was late May or early June. Maybe even later, judging by how hot I was in this hoodie.

"We have to start somewhere." Matt walked to the traffic light and headed toward the grocery store. "Maybe they have a phone we can use." Of course, we didn't have any money left to call a cab or pay for one.

"Who are you going to call?"

"Amber's cell."

"What? Are you crazy? You can't even think about telling her who you really are."

"I won't. I'll tell her I'm new at school and one of her friends gave me her number."

"And what are you going to do when your own sister thinks you're hitting on her?"

Matt's face twisted in disgust. "Oh, gross."

"Yeah, well, that's what she's going to think. Trust me."

He kicked a rock on the ground, looking defeated. "So then, what do we do?"

"Come on." I tugged his arm, pulling him inside the grocery store. I grabbed a newspaper from the stand by the door. "Yes!" A few people turned and stared at me. "Sorry." I turned away from them, focusing on Matt. "It's Friday. Serpentarius is open to humans." I could go talk to Mason, and Matt could look for Amber or some other kids from school who might be able to tell him about his family.

"To humans?"

"It's an Ophi safe house, kind of like the school I need to get back to. Only the owners open the club to humans every Friday night. They even have humans on staff, so there aren't any slip-ups."

"Slip-ups?"

I widened my eyes, waiting for him to get the meaning behind my words.

"Oh." His forehead creased with worry lines. "Do you think my cousin knows about the Ophi?"