Lost Reaper (The Reaper Series Book 1)

by Shelley Russell Nolan

  I came to a halt, remembering Grimm’s threat to go after the people I cared about. The skin on my face tightened and I struggled to keep the fear at bay, my brain conjuring up images of a Wraith gate-crashing the council party. Done with sitting around waiting for something to happen I went on a hunt for my shoes and bag, calculating how much wine I had drunk. My lack of food might count against me. But I had to find Chris.

  I found my shoes under the couch, but before I could drag them out my necklace went cold.

  ‘Oh, no. Chris.’ I clutched the necklace, separating my astral-self from my body.

  The pull took me across town, taking me closer to the old Customs House which had been converted into a functions centre. If Chris was dead, his soul back in the Underworld, Grimm would no longer need me alive and he’d be swift in taking retribution for my disobedience.

  Grimm would make sure my family and friends paid the price for my actions and I could do nothing to stop him.

  Chapter 26

  My path took me over top of the Customs House and then veered to the left. As I sped past I caught a glimpse of the festivities as party-goers milled around in the courtyard at the back. They displayed no signs of panic or alarm so whatever had happened to Chris must have occurred away from the venue. Unless Chris wasn’t the person I’d been called for. But if he was okay why hadn’t he called me back?

  I left the city centre behind and dropped down to flit between two large sheds. A wide space opened up behind them and here I found the reaction I‘d expected to see at the council party.

  An ambulance, lights flashing and flanked by two police cars, took up one corner of the square. Uniformed officers bustled around, securing the scene. As I floated over the ambulance, I slowed down and approached a still form lying on the ground. Two paramedics were crouched over their patient, leaving no room for me to slip between them to reap the soul of whoever lay dying. I didn’t want to go through them, so I’d have to hover over the top.

  I prepared to manoeuvre into position but stopped when I heard shouting and glanced around to find the source of the commotion.

  ‘Chris,’ I breathed into the night air, relief filling me at the sight of him alive and unharmed. My relief evaporated. His fists were raised, body tense, as he struggled to get past Sam, who stood between him and another man.

  Connor.

  I turned back to deal with my client, dread sitting in the pit of my stomach when one of the paramedics stood up and signalled to the nearest police officer with a shake of his head that their efforts had been in vain. My vision blurred and my astral body sank to the ground. I wanted to sink even further, to run away, to fade into nothing and wake up back in my own body. The presence of Chris and Connor at a fresh murder scene scared me, seeing as they had both been suspects in recent homicides. But it was the one person I didn’t see that made me reluctant to face my client. The draw of the dying soul called me and I had to respond. I rose back into the air and took my first look at the body.

  I plummeted the short distance to the ground, taking the paramedic’s place as his partner started removing the equipment they had attempted to save Sarah’s life with. My tears sparkled like diamonds and floated in the air around me. I rocked backwards and forwards. Her white dress was coated in blood, the features of her face barely recognisable while deep bruising created a chain around her bare neck. The tribal necklace lay on the ground beside her and as I watched, dazed, a gloved police officer came to photograph it before putting it in an evidence bag.

  Unable to face Sarah’s ravaged body any longer, my eyes sought out Chris. He and Connor had stopped arguing. They both stood silent as Sam talked to the paramedics. As if he felt my gaze, Chris looked over at me but he was too far away for me to read his expression. He took a step forward. Sam put a hand on his chest and held him back. I pulled my eyes away and placed a hand over Sarah’s chest, keeping my eyes averted from her ruined face, ready to reap her soul. But it did not respond to my call. I gripped my necklace tight and concentrated as hard as I could on the pull. Nothing happened. I closed my eyes to help me concentrate on what blocked my attempts to reap her soul.

  I gasped and my eyes shot open. A void gaped at her centre. I stared down at her body, struggling free of the fog of grief enveloping my brain. Sarah’s soul was gone.

  A dark shadow rushed past me. It spun around and knocked me away from Sarah’s body. I rose up into the air, head swivelling as I searched for whatever had attacked me.

  ‘Too slow, two slow,’ said the shadow, its voice like the hissing of a snake. It writhed and shuddered before forming into the shape of a man, the features indistinct and wavering. ‘Got to be faster than that if you want to fill your quota.’ It held up a ball of light. Sarah’s soul. Then it vanished from sight.

  With no soul to anchor me, my physical body pulled me back and when I regained corporeal form I dragged myself to my feet. Numb, unable to think beyond my last sight of Sarah, her pretty face beaten and bloodied, I staggered to the couch and collapsed. I hadn’t even been able to bring peace to her soul, the malevolent shadow beating me to it.

  Where was her soul now? The creature could have been a reaper, one of the souls who traded a chance at rebirth for working for Grimm, but I couldn’t be sure. I didn’t know enough about how the Underworld worked or what sorts of monsters inhabited it. I needed to talk to Chris.

  With an action decided, I could finally move and the paralysis gripping my emotions vanished. My entire body shuddered as I bawled, making it hard for me to see my phone to dial Chris’s number. When it went to voicemail I pegged the phone across the room, grunting in satisfaction at the crunch when it hit the wall.

  My legs collapsed and I fell to the floor, crying for the loss of my best friend.

  Minutes, hours, I have no idea how long I spent lost in grief before I uncurled myself from the foetal position and got to my knees. I used the couch as a brace to pull myself to my feet and staggered down the hall and into the bathroom. I switched on the light and faced the mirror, wanting Grimm to be there, determined not to let him hide the truth from me. Sarah’s soul might be lost or worse be corrupted in some way by the dark reaper. I would find out who had taken Sarah from me and make them pay.

  When I checked the mirror my reflection glared back at me. I pounded on the glass and called Grimm’s name. He didn’t answer, leaving me to stare at haunted eyes in a pale face I found difficult to recognise. Dark shadows surrounded my eyes, a stark contrast to the rest of my face. I thought back to Monique and how she had appeared in the mirrored wall at The Wine House. I’d avoided the bathroom while Sarah had been putting her makeup on and I couldn’t recall seeing her reflection during the day.

  I’d left for work straight after she got up, and there were no mirrors anywhere other than the cramped ladies toilet at work. I’d only seen Sarah face to face during the day. What if the sign of her impending death had been there but I had never had the opportunity to see it? If I had, Sarah might still be alive.

  Why should I get to live and not Sarah? She deserved a second chance more than I did. I took hold of my necklace and prayed for something or someone to make it right, prayed for Sarah to walk in the front door and say it was all a mistake.

  Heat burst out of my necklace, fiery agony engulfing my hands. I let the necklace go and it cooled instantly. I inspected my fingers for scorch marks but they were blemish free, as if they’d never been set on fire. Had I just been punished or was this a manifestation of the power Chris said my necklace contained?

  A loud thud came from the lounge and I didn’t stop to think, I just raced out of the bathroom, new hope bringing a smile to my face. The necklace had brought me back from the dead. Maybe it had done the same for Sarah.

  Chapter 27

  I skidded to a halt at the end of the hall and screamed when I saw the monstrous figure lurching around the lounge. I clapped a hand over my mouth when it turned around.

  ‘Did you miss me?’ rasped Sarah, her disl
ocated jaw slipping around as she talked. Congealed blood covered her face but I caught glimpses of mottling hidden by the dark streaks. The bruising on her neck appeared more prominent, and she used a hand to massage her throat before she spoke again.

  ‘Grimm gave me a message for you. “Tick tock”. He said you’d know what it meant.’

  ‘Sarah, what has he done to you?’

  ‘He set me free, gave me a chance to settle the score. Even gave me a new name.’

  ‘Dusty,’ I said with a sob.

  You killed her, and I’ve got her name so I can make you pay for the both of us.’

  ‘Sarah, no, Grimm’s lying. I would never hurt you. And Dusty attacked me. I had no choice.’

  ‘You always have a choice, but you made the wrong one when you tried to take Chris away from me.’

  ‘What?’

  ‘Don’t act like you don’t know what I’m talking about. Chris didn’t realise I was behind him when he played your message, but I heard every word. Some best friend you are.’ Sarah lurched closer, her face eerily expressionless despite the rage in her voice. ‘I had a chance to be happy and you ruined it as payback for what I did with Logan.’

  ‘That wasn’t why I called Chris. I needed to talk to him about … the police investigation. Please, Sarah, I wasn’t trying to steal him from you.’

  ‘Then why am I dead? The man who did this to me,’ she indicated her ravaged body, ‘he said your name, right before he choked the life out of me.’ Sarah’s mouth curled into a grotesque imitation of a smile. ‘But you’re not going to win. The Grim Reaper isn’t a fan of yours either. All I have to do is kill you and I get brought back to life, while you get to rot in the Underworld for the rest of eternity.’

  Sarah launched herself at me. Her hands latched onto my neck and she squeezed hard. I fell backwards, taking her with me, the fall dislodging her grip. I gasped in a lung-full of air and kicked out with my legs, knocking Sarah to the side. I scrambled to my feet and raced for the open front door.

  I could hear Sarah cursing as she regained her footing and came after me. I didn’t take the time to look back, wanting to get as far away from the nightmare threatening to engulf me as I could.

  In the middle of the road, halfway down the street, it hit me. I could reap her soul, like I had the previous Wraith to bear the name Dusty, but I didn’t stop running. This wasn’t an anonymous Wraith, this was Sarah. If I reaped her soul she would never be reborn.

  I could only hope for her body to run out before she caught up with me. Chris said a Wraith would return to the Underworld once it had used up the residual psychic energy contained in the body of whoever they possessed. I had no idea how long that would take, sure my time would run out long before Sarah and I finished playing Grimm’s macabre game of cat and mouse.

  The houses I ran past were dark, the road deserted, street lights casting dim pools of light on parked cars and front lawns. My bare feet ached from pounding the bitumen so I changed direction and climbed the kerb to run on the grassy sidewalk. Bad idea. I had to dodge shrubs and tree branches and my pace slowed even further as I adjusted to the quick changes between driveways and grass.

  I scanned my surroundings, searching for a safe haven, and spotted the park on the other side of the road. Sarah had walked here the day before, when she had encountered Chris for the first time. I started across the road.

  Oh my god, I hadn’t asked Sarah who killed her.

  I stopped and Sarah slammed into my back, knocking me to the ground. I rolled to the side, pushing aside the burning pain from where my palms and knees had scraped across the bitumen. I got to my feet and spun around.

  Sarah had fared worse than me. Unprepared for my sudden stop she had careened into me and then bounced off. She struggled to get up, frenzied movements hampered by her dress. Fresh scrapes covered her face, bits of dirt and gravel imbedded in the wounds.

  My thoughts no longer clouded by fear and horror I moved forward to help her up, swatting her hand aside when she threw a weak punch at my head. ‘Stop it. Do you want me to help you or not?’

  She snarled at me, but let me untangle her legs and help her to her feet. Then we stood facing each other. My chest heaved and I was light headed from my panic-induced marathon. Sarah recovered faster, no longer hampered by the need to breathe. She got into a crouch, ready to launch herself at me again.

  ‘Who killed you?’ I asked, bracing myself for impact but determined to stand my ground. ‘Who was he?’

  Sarah’s head tilted to one side. ‘You know who he is. You made him do it.’

  ‘That’s not true. I would never hurt you, Sarah. You’re my best friend.’

  She gave a snort. ‘Don’t lie. You stopped caring about me the second you caught me having sex with Logan.’

  ‘I was angry, yes, and hurt, but I never stopped caring. I couldn’t and, believe me, I tried. I was having a hard time forgiving you for what you did, but it would have happened. I love you, Sarah. I hate it that we let this come between us and I wish there’d been time to fix things before-’

  ‘Why should I believe you? You were jealous of me and Chris, you were doing everything you could to sabotage our relationship.’

  ‘You don’t have a relationship. Tonight was your first date.’ Even as I said it I realised I should have kept my mouth shut. I’d destroyed any chance I had of convincing Sarah I was on her side. But still, even as she stalked towards me with her hands outstretched, I had to try.

  ‘Please, tell me who hurt you so I can make sure they can’t hurt anyone else.’ I backed away, one hand on my necklace.

  She launched herself forward and I twisted my body to the left, my head wrenching back when she attempted to grab me by the hair but only caught the ends. I turned around to face her again, the deteriorating condition of her body allowing me to stay out of her clutches.

  I could hear sirens in the distance but I couldn’t risk taking my eyes off Sarah to see how far away help was. I weaved constantly, desperate to keep her at a distance. Our shifting dance brought us into the circle of light cast by a street light.

  Sarah’s face was grey, almost completely covered in mottling. When she made another lunge at me I could see her movements were slowing down, accelerated decomposition taking its toll on her beleaguered body. The psychic energy that enabled her to move running low, it became easier to avoid her grasping arms. I started to cry as her body failed her.

  ‘Please, Sarah,’ I said, ‘please tell me who hurt you. I need to know the truth.’

  Sarah stopped moving, her lips struggling to form words. I stepped towards her as her body crumpled to the ground, and knelt down and cradled her head in my lap. I stroked matted hair back from her face, sticky blood coating my fingers.

  ‘You’ll never know until it’s too late,’ she said.

  Her soul detached from her body, shadows obscuring its light, and I put my hand over her chest to catch it.

  She screamed. Her body arched up and her eyes rolled back.

  I gasped as forbidden ecstasy enveloped my body and fought against its pull, welcoming the agony that soon eclipsed it. Wave after wave of pain coursed through me and I whimpered, desperate to contain the screams threatening to burst out of my lungs. I fell to the ground beside Sarah’s body. I deserved this, and more, for what I had done.

  As fast as it had appeared, the pain vanished and I dragged myself into a sitting position before placing Sarah’s soul into my necklace. Then I sat with the body of the person who’d mattered most to me.

  As horrible as the decision to take Sarah’s soul had been, I couldn’t have done it differently. I now had another one thousand souls to reap but at least she could no longer be used by Grimm. She deserved so much better than to become a pawn in a game not of her making and I knew he would not hesitate to send her after me again and again, until he discarded her just like the previous Dusty.

  A screech of brakes sounded nearby and I dully lifted my head as Sam’s unmarked police c
ar came to a halt a few feet away. He launched himself out of the car and then stopped, eyes narrowed as he swept his gaze over the scene. Not once did his eyes meet mine and when he made no move to comfort me I wiped my dripping nose on my sleeve.

  A police car pulled up behind Sam’s, the lights flashing but the siren off, and he went to speak to the two officers who climbed out of it. I could hear the low murmur of their voices as they talked but couldn’t bring myself to care about what they were saying. Sarah had always been so pretty and full of life. Now an obscene image, the kind nightmares were made of, wiped away the happy memories.

  I slowly got to my feet. I ached all over and knew it would only get worse as I stiffened up even more. My knees and palms were stinging. I wanted to go home to soak in a bath to remove all the tiny bits of gravel stuck in my wounds. But first I had to take care of Sarah.

  ‘Detective Lockwood,’ I said, surprising myself by the firmness of my tone. I’d thought for sure the nerves singing throughout my body would show up in my voice.

  Sam said something else to the officers before he responded to my call. With only a street light for illumination I couldn’t gauge his reaction to the gruesome situation he had found me in. I also didn’t know how to explain what had happened in a way he would understand and, more importantly, believe.

  When Sam reached my side, his expression suspiciously mild, tension in his body let me know he was not as calm as he made out.

  Neither was I.

  Sam crouched down beside Sarah’s body. He held a small torch in one hand and used it to light up her face, the mottling on her skin highly visible. He briefly shone the torch on her eyes before changing position so the torch pointed at me. I squinted against the glare, one hand going up to shade my eyes as Sam stretched to his full height.