"Your name is Ethan Zhang, right? I'm Walter Wu. The dead should be respected. Why don't you put Rachel Lan's body back?"
Walter Wu stepped out from the crowd and stood before me. I held Rachel Lan's body tightly, glaring at him.
"Move aside. I have to find a way to save her."
"Life and death are determined by fate, Ethan Zhang. The laws of Heaven cannot be defied. Rachel Lan went against the will of Heaven, so..."
"What did she do wrong?" I asked.
Walter Wu shook his head.
"Kid, what are you trying to do? The dead must be buried so they can rest in peace. Put Rachel Lan down, now."
Suddenly, members of the Hades Circle started shouting and crowded around me.
"Ethan Zhang, this isn't something you can control."
"She only saved her friend. What's wrong with that?"
Walter Wu pointed upward. I looked.
"Life and death are set from birth. Rachel Lan broke the rules of the Hades Circle, so she's already been taken to the underworld. You should give up—she can't come back."
There must be a way, there must be a way—I kept repeating in my head. Rachel Lan's body was cold as ice. I had to get to Mrs. Blake and have the elders find a way to preserve her body.
Only John Chou, Yuna Ji, or Basil Bertram could help. The three of them must know something.
The Hades Circle members pressed in, reaching for me.
"Move!" I shouted again, trying to squeeze toward the door.
Suddenly, four or five people grabbed me, their hands pinning me down and prying at my fingers, trying to force me to let go.
Members of the Ghost Burial Squad watched coldly from the side. Detective Stone walked over.
"Ethan Zhang, stop it. I don't think Rachel would want this."
"There must be a way—why are you all just letting her die?"