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for Ash.
Because my contract with Michael was about to expire. Without me
knowing how to kill a demon. Which mean Michael wouldn’t have to
fulfill his promise about saving Ash.
    One day. I had one freaking day to
come through on my deal with the angel. And I had no idea how to do
it.
    “ I’m not sure I should
even be teaching you anything,” Kali suddenly said. “I don’t see
why Michael thinks you’re worth it. He doesn’t care about anything
but the higher cause, anyhow. What purpose could you possibly serve
to that ?”
    Instead of answering her question, I
went right for the kill.
    “ Let’s go again,” I said,
unable to stay here for a second longer. I needed to figure out how
to do this, and I was itching to get back out there, to try again.
I knew I needed to calm down first, but that was impossible when
the clock was running down so quickly.
    “ Why?” she asked, raising
an eyebrow.
    “ Because I can’t—” Let Ash die, I didn’t
add. “—Just sit here and be a failure. I need to figure this out.
Come on, you aren’t tired, are you? Losing your edge?”
    Kali smiled. It was a creepy smile,
but I knew it meant she was in.
    “ Okay, but I have a new
plan,” she said. She crossed her arms and looked at me like she was
planning to torture me.
    I almost thought that would be
okay.
    “ What plan is that?” I
asked.
    But she didn’t answer. Instead, she
grabbed my arm, and I felt her power pulse through me. The next
second, we were gone.
     
     
     
    WE APPEARED AGAIN on a street corner in a dingy, abandoned city. I
could see hills in the distance, and a forest in the other
direction. It was a very tiny town, I realized—more like a village
than an actual city. There weren’t any signs on the stores, and
there were no lights on. In fact, it didn’t look like anyone had
lived there for decades. Wood was rotting away, bricks crumbling.
In another decade, it all might just collapse in on itself—and I
was pretty sure there was nothing alive or dead hanging out there
in the meantime.
    And though it was just after five in
the morning where I lived, it was still dark here. Pitch black, in
fact.
    I looked at Kali, trying to figure out
what was going on, and saw that she was smiling wickedly. “Time for
some intensity training,” she said.
    I didn’t like the sound of that, and
opened my mouth to question her, but she cut me off.
    “ Maybe some pressure will
help you work. Come on, it’s a classic training
technique.”
    She took off down the street, and
though this sounded like a truly horrible idea, I had a little over
twelve hours left before my deadline. I was up for just about
anything at this point.
    So I ran after her. I can do it this time, I
told myself. I have to.
    Kali was quick, though, and had
already made it around the next corner, disappearing from sight.
Suddenly I was very aware that it was the dead of night in an
abandoned village in who-knew-where, and pushed myself to sprint as
fast as I could.
    Kali was there, I reminded myself as
the fear began to run through me. Nothing bad was going to happen
as long as she was around. She might be a pain, but she could also
kick some serious butt. I might not like her, but I was safe with
her. Nothing bad was going to happen to me. Well—nothing worse than
what already had.
    Then I rounded the corner, and
instantly regretted thinking anything nice about her.
    She was gone.
    I kept my eyes moving but saw nothing,
the only sound my own heavy breathing and my heartbeat in my ears.
There was no one here—and I wasn’t going to wait around all night
for whatever plan Kali claimed she had. Honestly, I was starting to
think she’d just ditched me here as a joke. Which I didn’t have
time for. Maybe she’d just wanted to go hunting without me as dead
weight.
    I knew immediately that I wasn’t going
to stick around. I could teleport home, but I wasn’t going
to.
    And my heart was racing at
the idea of what I was about to do.
    Kali claimed