She swapped the umbrella from one hand to the other and peered at the grave. Her head cocked to the side, her face expressionless, as she read the inscription as if she’d never seen it before.

Moments ticked by. Long seconds filled with only the sound of the tumult of air, whistling through the stone-filled landscape. And the crashing rain beating against stone and soil. The water, ricocheted this way and that, mesmerizing until—

“Well, well, well. William,” she shouted over the melee. “This is an intriguing surprise. I’d say nice to see you again, but that would be a lie.”

She gave him a sweet smile as if she’d just said the opposite.

“I could say the same, Orelia.”

He worked at maintaining his demeanor, thinking it was almost amusing that after everything the two of them were forced to shout at each other in such surroundings.

Don’t be nervous, he told himself. She’s the one who needs what I now hold. She doesn’t know what you have up your sleeve.

If she doesn’t listen, hear what he has to say, he’ll move to the next part of his immaculate and well-crafted plan—of course, this being sarcasm to maintain his bravado.

He hadn’t a clue what he was doing; just a hunch and a desperate desire to bring this to an end.

A sudden flash from above lit the smirk upon her face; then an almighty whip-crack an instant later followed. An angry rumble concluded the bone shaking nearby lightning strike. The gods weren’t just in a bad mood tonight. They sounded furious and wrathful. The storm had traveled at a gallop and was almost above them. Even through the rain the pungent zing of ozone assaulted his nose.

He wanted to wipe the water from his face but he didn’t dare move a muscle except for those on his face, too scared his legs would buckle and he’d end up on his knees before her.

He returned her sneer with as much confidence as he could find.

“I wondered if you’d come. You couldn’t say no though, could you?”

“I’m surprised you’re still here in the city,” she said, charming as a young Shirley Temple. “I mean you killed poor Morris? Pushed him in the river. The police have footage you know. Shouldn’t you have run away? Saved your own life instead of interfering in mine?”

Another jagged line of white-yellow split the sky behind her, adding dramatic punctuation to her words. The thunder, so close overhead, growled as though two forces argued above the two mortals.

“Oh, I’m not worried about them anymore. I bet they’ll discover Morris drowned all by himself. You know in those TV law shows where the innocent character says they have truth on their side? Well, I have a better partner than truth.”

“Really.” she said, tilting her head, as if patronizing a small child. “What does that mean?”

“The entry has gone.”

She continued to smile but slowly as if she had lost all muscle control, her face drooped. Her eyes squinted at him and he felt as though he now faced an awakening enemy who suddenly realized they might not hold all the cards.