Early to Death, Early to Rise
Contents
Prologue
Seventeen, dead, and in charge of heaven’s dark angels—all itching…
One
The car was hot from the sun, and I pulled…
Two
Fort Banks Mall was a wave of air-conditioned coolness. I…
Three
“Ace!” I shouted, the hard pavement under my feet sending…
Four
Nakita stood beside me in her designer jeans and trendy…
Five
The spaghetti sauce smelled spicy, just the way I liked…
Six
My sneakers slid on the damp grit of the roof,…
Seven
I was glad my body wasn’t real as I crouched…
Eight
Where the devil am I? I thought, watching my fingers…
Nine
Barnabas’s arms were tight around me as he flew over…
Ten
Shoe parked two houses down from his on the other…
Eleven
Shoe put Ace’s truck into park, but he didn’t make…
Twelve
The double doors shut with a hush of sound when…
Thirteen
Sweet and tangy, the ketchup dripped from my French fries…
Epilogue
“Madison!”
About the Author
Others Books by Kim Harrison
Credits
Copyright
About the Publisher
Prologue
Seventeen, dead, and in charge of heaven’s dark angels—all itching to kill someone. Yup, that’s me, Madison, the new dark timekeeper without a clue. It wasn’t exactly how I envisioned my “higher education” going the night I blew off my junior prom and died at the bottom of a ravine. I’d survived my death by stealing my murderer’s amulet.
Now it’s my responsibility to send a dark reaper to end a person’s earthly existence. The idea is to save their soul at the cost of their life. Fate, the seraphs would say. But I don’t believe in fate; I believe in choice, which means I’m in charge of the very people I once fought against.
The seraphs are confused about the changes I’m trying to make to a system I don’t believe in, but they’re willing to give me a chance. At least, that’s the theory. The reality is a bit more…complicated.
One
The car was hot from the sun, and I pulled my fingertips from it as I slunk past. Excitement layered itself over my skin like a second aura. Hunched and furtive, I followed Josh in his first-day-of-school jeans and tucked-in shirt as he wove through the parking lot toward his truck. Yes, it was the first day of school, and yes, we were ditching, but it wasn’t like anyone ever did anything the first day. Besides, I thought the seraphs would forgive me; it was one of their marked souls I was going to try to save.