I’d survived, just.
I’d faced down the Grim Reaper and come out of the Underworld scared stiff but otherwise unscathed. When the shakes subsided I moved out of Sam’s arms.
‘We need to go back to Killian’s. The reaper had to have Tr’lirian heritage and be related to the body it took or the resurrection would never have worked. It must have happened during the battle, as the Grim Reaper was aware one of Grimm’s people escaped. That means the reaper is either in the body of one of Almorthanos’s men or Cade’s. As I hardly think they’d be attacking their own people, they have to be Davilian.’
Sam’s lips twisted at the thought of returning to the compound, but he didn’t argue.
It was dark when we started to make our way back there, and I struggled to keep my eyes open. I didn’t know if that was because of the emotional upheaval I’d been subjected to or because I’d been out of my body for over three hours. Whatever the cause, I didn’t have time to rest so I pushed my fatigue down and brainstormed different scenarios with Sam while he drove.
We were ushered through the gates without ceremony and Killian was waiting at the front door of the main building, Chris at his side, when we got out of the car.
‘Did you go to the Underworld? Did you find her? Did you find my daughter?’
‘I’m sorry, I don’t know where she is. But I’m sure she is still alive. When I asked the Grim Reaper about her he said he doesn’t concern himself with the actions of the living. He wouldn’t have said that if she was dead, I’m sure if it.’
‘If all you have is a feeling and false hope, why bother driving all the way out here to deliver your news?’ Killian stiffened, eyes narrowed.
‘We need to question the Davilians you captured after the battle. The dark reaper took over a dead body and brought it back to life, hiding them from the Grim Reaper’s sight. It has to be a Davilian, unless you think one of your own men would turn against you.’
Storms entered his dark blue eyes. ‘My men would never betray me or Clan Godden.’
‘Okay then. A Davilian it is.’
‘Impossible. I already told you, all those taken prisoner after the battle are under constant surveillance. If one of them was the dark reaper they would have been discovered long before now.’
‘We’d like to question them anyway, to see if they know who might be the dark reaper or if they know of any Davilians who disappeared after the battle,’ said Sam.
Killian drew himself up, glaring at me. ‘The Davilians are not your concern. You need to focus on finding my daughter before she becomes the next soul you are called to reap.’ He turned around and marched inside, beckoning imperiously for Chris to join him.
Chris ignored the command and moved to stand in front of me. ‘Don’t take it personally. He’s been in a bad mood ever since Rebecca took off, and mention of the Davilians makes him short-tempered at the best of times.’
I shook my head, angry with Killian for his abrupt dismissal. ‘We need to talk to them, Chris. They may be the only ones who can help us find the dark reaper, and maybe Rebecca too.’
‘I’ll talk to him. Tomorrow, when he’s calmed down. See if I can convince him to let you speak to some of them. But enough about him. How are you holding up? I’m guessing a trip to the Underworld was not the highlight of your day.’ He moved closer, sympathy in his vivid blue eyes.
I shrugged. ‘I survived, but the new and improved Grim Reaper made it clear my visit was a one-time deal. He considers a living reaper to be an abomination even worse than Grimm’s dark reapers.’
‘Let’s make sure you never have to go back there, then.’
‘Don’t worry, I have no intention of returning and giving him the chance to make good on his threat to destroy any and all abominations.’ I shuddered, remembering the terrifying nature of this aspect of the Grim Reaper. ‘But at least we can rule him out for being involved with the deaths of Killian’s men. He’d never deal with a dark reaper and seemed pretty pissed off when I mentioned the missing souls.’
‘If neither he nor Killian will help us, how are we supposed to find and stop this dark reaper killing more people?’ Sam said. ‘Four have been murdered in as many days, and I’m thinking this guy is just getting started.’
‘We go see Rhonda,’ I said. ‘She’s the only Davilian we know who isn’t being hidden away by Killian.’
9
‘Do you mind if I come with you?’ Chris asked.
‘Of course,’ I said, forcing a smile, not at all sure this was a good idea. I mean, seriously, what could be more awkward than to have a man who professed to love me six months earlier sitting in the backseat of my boyfriend’s car. Then again, the three of us were seeking to discover the identity of a dark reaper on a killing spree. Not to mention the whereabouts of Chris’s missing fiancée.
We were barely out of the main gate when I twisted around so I could see his face. ‘Are you really going to go through with it? The engagement, I mean?’
‘I knew what you meant.’ He sent a cool smile my way. ‘A deal is a deal. If we find Rebecca, and if she’s willing, I’ll hold up my end of the bargain.’
‘That’s crazy. You don’t even know her. How could you contemplate marrying a complete stranger?’
‘I gave my word.’
I shook my head, trying to shake off his words as much as the guilt from knowing why he’d given his promise. ‘Because of me.’
He leaned forward and stared intently at me. ‘No, Tyler, because of my selfishness in not wanting to lose you. That’s on my head, not yours.’
I wanted to protest, point out the flaws in his logic, but Sam reached over and took my hand in his, taking his eyes off the road long enough to give me a considering look. ‘You sacrificed yourself to save those you care about. You can’t turn around and blame Bradbury for doing the same thing.’
‘It’s not the same.’ I tugged my hand free.
‘Yeah, it is. Anyway, from everything I’ve heard so far, Killian’s daughter isn’t keen on the idea so he may not even have to make good on his promise.’
‘Lockwood’s right. She was pissed when she found out why he’d summonsed her to the compound. She tore into him, and me, said there was no way in hell she was marrying a guy handpicked by a father who’d been absent most of her life. Refused to even discuss it and demanded to be allowed to leave. Would not back down until he agreed to let her stay in town.’ A thread of admiration coloured his words.
I crossed my arms in front of my chest. ‘I don’t blame her for being pissed. Why would Killian think she would agree to an arranged marriage?’
Chris shrugged. ‘Guess he thought being told it was her duty to her family and her clan to go through with it would be enough. Might have been, if she’d been raised by him. But her parents had a falling out when she was a child, so she was raised by her human mother. It wasn’t until a year ago, when the mother died, that Rebecca reached out to find her father again.’
‘Bet she’s regretting that now,’ said Sam in a dry tone.
‘You think getting told your father wants to marry you off is bad. You should have seen the look on her face when he told her about her Tr’lirian heritage.’ Chris’s eyebrows lifted. ‘Poor girl, she didn’t know what to do, where to look. At one stage I thought she was going to cry. Then she lifted her chin, looked him square in the eyes and told him he was no longer her father.’ Admiration once again filled his voice.
I couldn’t help but feel the same. I vividly remembered how it felt to discover I’d been lied to my entire life, and to find out I wasn’t completely human. No wonder Rebecca had run off. I only hoped her lack of contact since then was her choice and not because of foul play.
We pulled up outside the flat where I used to live, which now bore little resemblance to what it looked like when I called it home. The building had been completely renovated, inside and out, turning the two flats into one house. The exterior had been rendered in a pale cream and the front lawns were n
ow a landscaper’s paradise of greenery and colour.
‘Rhonda told me what you did,’ I said to Chris as we got out of the car. ‘She was so happy the day the title deed was signed over to her she actually cried. Of course, she did the same thing when the quickie divorce your lawyer negotiated for her came through too. Thank you for everything you’ve done to help my family.’
He dipped his head, looking embarrassed. ‘It was nothing. What’s the point of being resurrected in the body of a rich and handsome playboy if you can’t help your friends out?’
His dismissal of my thanks made me regret not doing it sooner. Chris had been a huge part of my life during the battle to stop Grimm and Almorthanos. I should have made more of an effort to keep in touch after it was all over, but had been worried he’d be hurt by seeing how happy I was with Sam.
He wasn’t even friends with my step-mother, Rhonda, yet he had paid for an architect and a designer to work with her on the changes to the flat, and for all the renovations, furniture and furnishings. He’d also given Connor a brand-new Commodore to replace the one blown to bits by Almorthanos, courtesy of a grant from the Bradbury Corporation. His comment about being a playboy was also no longer true. According to the few articles I’d read about him, the only reason he’d been making news was because of his humanitarian activities, not which starlet he was dating.
The events of six months ago had produced changes in all of us, and it pleased me that something good had come out of so much death and destruction. Not least of which was the change in Connor. No longer a younger version of my chauvinistic father, he’d matured a lot. I now considered him one of my best friends, something I could never have imagined happening, not in a million years.
I smiled just thinking about how much we had both changed as I knocked on Rhonda’s front door.
Her welcoming smile faded when she opened the door and saw us. ‘If you three are together again, whatever you’re here to say can’t be good. Should I be packing my bags and getting out of Dodge?’ She moved back to allow us entry.
It always surprised me how young she looked now she was away from Dad. Gone were the immaculately groomed hair and impeccable outfits. Now she was more inclined to lounge around in jeans and a T-shirt, barefoot and with her long brown hair loose. I’d been to her house a number of times with Connor and while I wouldn’t say we had become friends, at least we no longer actively hated each other.
‘We have a problem,’ I said.
‘Obviously, or you wouldn’t all be here. Just tell me straight, is Connor in trouble?’ Her attractive features hardened as she prepared for bad news.
‘He’s fine. Connor’s fine. But a dark reaper has been targeting Killian’s men, and we need to know if you have been in touch with any of the Davilians who have been exiled to the physical plane in the last six months.’
‘Ha.’ Her laugh was bitter. ‘Any one of them would kill me the second they saw me. I betrayed them, betrayed my clan.’
‘So you have no idea where any of them might be.’
Her eyes widened. ‘You think one of them is controlling the dark reaper? I thought they were all pulled back to the Underworld, after you worked your magic on Grimm.’
‘One of them got away, and is in a new body.’
‘Talaom?’
I blanched, thinking of the man who had killed me so I could free Almorthanos from Demania. He’d then sacrificed his own life so his master could have a full Tr’lirian body as host. Time stood still in the plane known as Hell, but once Almorthanos stepped outside of it he’d started to age rapidly as the centuries of captivity caught up to him. After he’d sacrificed himself, Talaom had become a dark reaper and tried to reap my soul during the final battle.
‘If it was him, why would he wait six months to get his revenge?’
Sam’s question was valid, and eased some of the panic I felt at the possibility of facing Talaom in a stranger’s body.
‘With Killian and Cade rounding up every Davilian they could find he might have been lying low, waiting for the right time to strike back,’ said Chris.
‘If Talaom was going to go after anyone, it would be Tyler. She’s the one who ruined his life,’ Rhonda said as we moved into the spacious kitchen. She indicated for us to take a seat at the dining table as she switched on her coffee machine.
I screwed up my mouth. ‘I’m not the one who killed Almorthanos and Malia. That was Cade.’ Even as I said it, I knew that didn’t matter. None of it would have happened if I hadn’t been able to defy Almorthanos’s will and side with his enemy.
Rhonda’s next words echoed my thoughts and sent shivers skittering over my body.
‘If it is Talaom, I’d be watching your back.’ Rhonda frowned as she got down four coffee mugs and filled them with a rich smelling brew. She carried them over to the table, and set them down in front of us.
‘Perhaps it’s time I spent some of the money I got from your father in the divorce settlement, and Connor and I took a long overdue holiday. And if any of you tell my son why we’re leaving town I will save Talaom the trouble of killing you. I’ll never be able to convince Connor to leave if he thinks you are in danger,’ she said as she stirred two spoons of sugar into one of the mugs before handing it to me.
I took a fortifying sip, needing the caffeine and sugar to jolt my brain into gear.
‘Let’s not get ahead of ourselves,’ said Sam. ‘We don’t know for sure that it is Talaom we’re dealing with. Killian was adamant none of the Davilians on this plane could be involved because he has them all under surveillance. But what about the ones who are still in Angellin?’
It was my turn to frown. ‘I didn’t think there were any left up there. Cade’s terms of surrender were for them to give up their wings and submit to exile on the physical plane.’
‘I hope they are all down here,’ said Rhonda. ‘Even if that means they’ll eventually grow old and die. They’re better off down here than living as second-class citizens under Cade’s rule, especially now he’s won the war and no longer needs to keep up the pretence of being a fair and just leader.’
I put down my mug and stared across the table at her. ‘What do you mean?’
‘Before Cade and Almorthanos declared war, Angellin was a beautiful city, full of light. God, there is nothing on this plane that compares to what she once was. Formed by aether by the first of our kind, our home was a shining palace where all the different clans lived in harmony. Sure, there were tensions, disagreements between clans or people, but these were minor issues and didn’t affect the city’s energy.’
‘Then Malia organised her worshippers to attack Cade’s sister, Liren,’ I said, remembering what Chris had told me when I’d first discovered my Tr’lirian heritage. Malia’s actions had been the spark that started the war between Clan Davila and Clan Godden.
Rhonda gave a sigh. ‘After Almorthanos was defeated and trapped in Demania, Cade declared himself leader. He forced all those who supported my clan to move to the lower levels, where the light had begun to fade. So if Cade did force my people to leave, at least they will no longer have to live in virtual darkness.’
I thought about what it must have been like for the Davilians, to be banished from the light. ‘Is that why you agreed to marry Dad, to leave the darkness behind?’
‘I would never have willingly sacrificed my immortality, but I wasn’t given a choice. They tore the wings from my back, and once they were sufficiently healed I was brought to Easton to befriend your mother.’ Her face screwed up. ‘I hated her on sight, blaming her for what had happened to me. Then when she died, and I was forced to marry your father to keep an eye on you, well, we all know how well that turned out.’
I winced, not needing a reminder of the way she’d treated me. ‘That was in the past. What matters now is making sure we all get to enjoy the future. And to do that we need to find whoever is targeting Killian’s men and stop them, because we do not want to start another war.’
Mention of Ki
llian and war in the same sentence prompted another thought. ‘Unless that’s what Cade wants? An excuse to wipe out the Davilians for good?’
‘What do you mean?’ Sam asked.
‘You saw what was happening at the compound. Killian said it was just a precaution, but what if it’s more? He hasn’t exactly been forthcoming. He won’t tell us what his dealings were with the men who were killed. He won’t tell us where the Davilians are, and yet he is one hundred percent certain they are not behind the attacks. But if he is so sure the Davilians are not a threat, why take the precaution of turning the compound into a fortress? Who does he think might attack them?’
10
The thought that there might be an unknown force out there just waiting to take a shot at Killian and Cade’s men did not sit well with any of us.
I heaved a deep sigh and looked over at Chris. ‘I’m starting to wish you’d never involved Killian, when we were looking for a way to defeat Grimm. That way he would never have come to Easton and set up his compound here.’
Rhonda gave a bitter laugh. ‘Killian was involved long before Chris contacted him, and that compound of his isn’t recent. The location might change, but Cade has had an outpost in this area ever since Tr’lirians started coming to this plane.’
‘Why here?’ I frowned. Surely there were far more interesting places to set up an outpost. What was so important about Easton?
‘Geography. It is directly below Angellin.’
My first instinct was to look up, even knowing all I would see was the ceiling of Rhonda’s kitchen. Instead I asked, ‘How can that be? If this was some kind of gateway between Angellin and Earth, there would have been clues, artefacts, something to show Tr’lirians existed.’
‘We were careful to hide our tracks as much as possible, once mankind became more technologically aware, allowing the myth we were angels to spread. A small number of Tr’lirians have chosen to live here over the centuries, mainly due to injuries that stripped them of their wings and their immortality. But they have all pretended to be human, shunning our winged brethren whenever they visit the physical plane.’
Silver Reaper (Reaper Series Book 3) Page 5