CHAPTER 92

The voice was like a chill down her spine, and when she lowered the stereoscope, she found herself looking up at the grim visage of Death. His bare teeth were twisted into a queer grin, and he set down the picture he had been holding.

Kisa hissed and dropped the stereoscope, then backed into the shelves, knocking several books on the floor. The Grim Reaper frowned at her, his boy visage twisting macabrely, then picked up one of the books.

"You folded some of these pages," he told her, then tucked the book back in its place. "You should be more careful next time."

"You're...you're..."

"I am Death." He tilted his head to one side, then crouched down until he was eye level with her. "Have we met before?"

"Hell, no, we haven't!" She started to climb the shelves, panic overriding her senses. Part of her was embarrassed to be acting this way, but the flight or fight response had made its choice.

"Are you sure? Hmm." He picked up the stereoscope she had dropped and held it to his eye sockets. "Ah, the Sphinx! I could tell you an interesting story about what's inside if you're interested."

"Aren't...aren't you here to kill me?"

"Preposterous." Death lowered the stereoscope. "I am Mike Radley's guest, and am only here until I can reap the soul of the one called Amir."

"That's...you're..." Her hair stood on end, and she tried to flatten it. Her tail had poofed to three times its original size, and she grabbed it at the base and smoothed it out. "Nobody told me that the Grim Reaper lived here."

"Not everyone can see me, so they may have forgotten. Hmm." He inspected her for a few seconds. "That's odd. Your soul is both human and animal at the same time. That must be why you can see me."

"Wait, so...the others can't see you?"

"No. Yuki can see me because she summoned me. Mike Radley and I met once when he was younger, and he also has Fae magic in his blood, so he can see me. Oh, and the zombie can see me too, but I cannot see her. That is quite the mystery."

Kisa shivered, then straightened the hair on her tail again. "What were you saying about my soul?"

"It's a mixture. Human and cat. Animals can see me, especially the smarter ones." He flattened the front of his robes. "I prefer dogs. They will wag their tails, and don't stare at me quite like cats do. I find it unsettling."

"You...you're Death. Why would you find anything like that unsettling?"

Death's left eye socket twitched. "Because, young kitty, it is very rude to stare."

"I have a name, you know."

"And I have yet to hear it." Death held up the stereoscope again, then adjusted the picture in it.

"You can call me Kisa, I guess."

"You are uncertain of your name?"

She shook her head. "It isn't that. It's just weird to be talking to a skeleton."

"And yet I have no problem speaking with a cat." Death lowered the stereoscope from his face and then held it out. "Well, young Kisa, would you like a turn with it?"

"Um...I guess." She took the stereoscope back and looked at the Sphinx again. The picture seemed like it was taken at the turn of the century, and she lowered it from her face. Amnesia was a weird creature, sometimes. She clearly knew what the Sphinx was, but had no idea what month she was even born in.

"Here. You can change the picture if you want." He handed over another photograph, and she took it from him. It was easy to remove the Sphinx and slot another picture inside, and when she looked, it was an image of explorers in a burial tomb. The men were surrounded by native Egyptians, and all of them stood around a large sarcophagus on the floor.

"So where did these pictures come from?" she asked.

"I am unaware," Death replied. "There are photo albums, but I am not certain who owned them." He picked up one of the closest albums and handed it over. "I am currently unable to read, so you may have more luck than I do?"

"Death can't read?" She set down the stereoscope and took the book from him to examine it.

"It has never been necessary." Death picked up the stereoscope and held it to his sockets. "I like looking at these because I remember quite a bit about the Egyptians. Normally when someone dies, it is a short process. But something about their rituals enabled me to see a bit more, and stay a bit longer. I always appreciated the work they put into preparing themselves to be taken to the other side."

"And what's on the other side?" Kisa opened the book. It was more pictures of Egypt, but other than some inscriptions with dates and locations, there was nothing that identified who had made it. The pictures were often of people and locations, but rarely did she see the same person more than once.

"I could tell you," Death replied. "But then I would have to reap you."

She lowered the book. "Seriously?"

"No. I was making a joke." He looked over the top of the stereoscope at her. "Perhaps my humor is too dry?"

"Ugh." She set the book down and grabbed another photo album. When she opened it, something fell into her lap.

It was another stereoscope image, but this one felt different. There was golden ink along the edges, and someone had drawn odd symbols on the back. It was in color and looked more recent than the other pictures. The picture was of another expedition party, and they were all saluting the cameraman with small glasses of wine.