Zane reached for the car door, pausing and waiting for me to do the same. I smiled. He didn’t trust me anymore than I trusted him. Slowly, I got out of the car.
You can do this, Clara. I repeated the words over and over in my head, hoping that if I thought them enough, they’d become reality.
Zane led the way across the street, through the front doors and across the lobby. My heart raced faster with each step until it was all I could hear. Even when the elevator doors opened, I couldn’t hear the ding over the pounding in my ears. I needed to calm down and get my head on straight, but that was hard when every time I visited the hotel, Elizabeth had something earth shattering to tell me.
The elevator rose with excruciating speed. Suddenly, the doors were opening, and Elizabeth’s butler was ushering me inside.
“Good luck,” Zane whispered.
I glanced at him, but he was already in motion, leaving the elevator for the grand hall beyond it.
Fuck, fuck, fuck! This is all happening too fast.
I stepped out, wiping my sweaty palms on my jeans. “Hello,” I greeted half-heartedly.
“Good afternoon,” the butler said. He motioned for me to follow, and led the way.
With every step, my body grew weaker, my feet heavy like they knew I led them to their demise. I cursed myself silently. It was foolish to play with the lives of my loved ones like this, but I just couldn’t kill a person. They would understand, wouldn’t they?
“Clara-dear, you’ve finally arrived,” Elizabeth’s silky sweet voice drifted from the sitting room, an edge of venom to her words.
The butler stopped in the doorway and held out his hand, showing me in. I took a deep breath before stepping inside.
The room wasn’t exactly as I remembered it. Though it was still lavish with marble floors, ornate furniture and a gorgeous fireplace, today the furniture was pushed back, and the plush carpet was missing.
I gulped, a sense of foreboding filling me with unease.
Elizabeth stood in the center of the room, her long, flowing golden hair draped over her left shoulder, while the rest was pinned back. Though her voice was sweet, her smile was anything but. Danger lurked in the depths of her blue eyes, and the hand perched on her hip. A black, silk gown flowed over her every curve and pooled around her feet. Gone was the Elizabeth I’d once known, and in her place was a dark queen ready to smite me for my transgressions.
I’m so fucking dead.
“H-Hello,” I stammered when she stared at me coldly. She hadn’t liked when I didn’t speak last time.
Elizabeth sighed and shook her head. “You disappoint me, Clara. This was your first assignment and you didn’t deliver.”
My heartbeat skipped. “I-I’m sorry. I couldn’t do it,” I admitted. Might as well come right out with it.
The princess tilted her head, a predator eyeing her prey. “You couldn’t kill one measly little human? Not even to save your loved ones? How unfortunate.”
Tears burned the back of my eyes suddenly. She threatened them so callously, like they meant nothing. “I’m sorry,” I repeated. “I didn’t realize it was so hard to kill a person.”
Elizabeth scoffed. “You’re a Reaper. I created your species to kill when I demand it. How hard is it to obey my orders?”
I stiffened, my fists tightening. I couldn’t believe I was about to beg this monster for forgiveness. I’d never hated anyone quite like this, but Elizabeth made me believe that killing people was possible. Given the chance, I’d kill her right now. “I didn’t mean to disobey,” I began, steeling myself and the internal rebellion raging in my veins. “Maybe my human heritage has something to do with it. Maybe I’m not cut out for killing.”
She took a step closer, her skirt moving like ink across the floor. “Is that your apology? More excuses?”
I blanched. “N-No. I’m sorry. Truly. Please forgive me.”
Elizabeth smiled. “Better. Now how do you plan on making it up to me? Two souls, maybe? Or even three?” The princess chuckled as she twirled a strand of hair around her finger.
Cold dread settled in my stomach, chilling me from the inside out. “Well… about that. Maybe there’s something else I can do for you? I’m sure you have other needs.”
Her serpentine smile was gone in a flash, and suddenly the princess was in my face, her hand clutching my jaw. “You dare defy me?”
My jaw ached as her grip tightened. A pained gasp past my lips, and I grabbed her wrist without thinking, trying to pull her off of me. But her grip was like iron, unmoving beneath my mortal hands. “I-I’m sorry,” I spluttered, barely able to speak over the pain. “I wasn’t thinking.”
“You certainly weren’t,” Elizabeth agreed. Her grip tightened and I bit off a pained whine before she released me.
I stepped back, gasping as I held my jaw gingerly. A warm hand at my back startled me, and I glanced over my shoulder at Zane. His touch quickly vanished, and he held his wrists behind his back, ever the soldier as Elizabeth trained her eyes on him.
“I think I see the problem here,” Elizabeth said.
Sweat dripped down my spine as I looked between Elizabeth and Zane. Shit. Did Elizabeth think that Zane was going too easy on me? Would she change my teacher, or do something much worse?
The princess hummed thoughtfully as she took a step towards the Reaper. “Maybe you need a more visual representation of what I can do to those you love.”
“What?” I said. My eyebrows furrowed in confusion.
“Zane, kneel,” Elizabeth ordered.
Cold fury flashed through Zane’s eyes for a single second before his familiar expression of stony indifference fell into place. His entire body stiffened, almost like he physically fought against something.
Elizabeth narrowed her eyes. “Kneel.”
Zane fell to his knees with a grunt. He ground his teeth, his jaw working as he stared impassively up at the princess.
“Wait, what are you doing?” I asked. What was going on? Why was Zane listening to Elizabeth so implicitly, almost as if he had no choice?
Suddenly, I remembered the little things Zane had mentioned about Elizabeth. He’d acted like she had complete and utter control over the Reapers, and he was surprised she didn’t have that same control over me.
My eyes widened as I finally understood. Elizabeth was an evil bitch. When she ordered a Reaper to do something, they did it without question because they had no other choice. She had some sort of hold or spell on them that forced them to listen to her words. It was horrifying. Reapers might have wills of their own, but Elizabeth could override them like what they wanted didn’t matter at all.
“I’m going to show you what I’ll do to your little friends if you disobey me again,” Elizabeth cooed. She smiled wickedly, not taking her eyes off of Zane’s. The princess dipped into a half-crouch, slipping her fingers under the edge of Zane’s long shirtsleeve.
Heat burst through me, anger lighting my veins as she caressed the Reaper. Then, she withdrew, a dagger in hand.
“Wait!” I yelled, her intentions now clear.
Elizabeth’s hand darted forward, and Zane hardly flinched as his own blade slammed into his lower abdomen.
I gasped as Elizabeth withdrew the knife, only to stab him again. “Stop!”
Elizabeth laughed, her voice echoing off the vaulted ceiling. “This could be your mother, Clara.” Again, she cut into the Reaper. “This could be your friends’.” She sliced a clean line slowly down Zane’s cheekbone. Blood swelled in the groove she left before spilling drop by drop down his cheek.
My breathing quickened as I raised my hand to stop her. But I froze, horror spreading ice through my veins. She would do this to Mom. She’d do this to Jamie and Gloria. If she’d do it to her own disciple, she’d certainly do it to those I cared for.
“Please, stop!” I begged. “I get it. I do!”
Elizabeth cackled as she withdrew her knife, only to slam it down into his shoulder. Though Zane had stayed stil
l before now, his arm suddenly went limp, dangling uselessly at his side. He didn’t lose his steely resolve, but I could see the strain he was under in the tightening of the skin around his eyes, and the lines of his mouth, strained into a deeper scowl than usual.
“Elizabeth, please!” I tried again, reaching out uselessly, not daring to touch her or Zane. One wrong move and that knife would be embedded in my skin—I was sure of it.
Finally, the princess straightened, dropping the blood-covered blade at her feet. She smiled and winked at the Reaper before turning to face me. “This is only the beginning of what I might do to those you love,” Elizabeth said, tilting her head, taunting me. “For them, it’ll be much longer, and much more painful. I won’t let them die, even if they beg me for it.” Her smile dropped, and for the first time Elizabeth truly looked like a demon. There was no caring in her dull eyes, no remorse for what she’d just done to one of her own.
She’d do exactly what she said to my family, and she’d make me watch.
“O-Okay,” I said at last, holding my hands up in a placating gesture. “I’ll do what you say. I promise.”
Her smile returned in a flash. “Good girl. I’ll expect a soul in two days, or we’ll have a fun little repeat with mommy next.”
My skin prickled with terror and my whole body trembled. “I’ll do what you say.”
Elizabeth chuckled darkly and spun on her heel. “Good. See you soon, Clara-dear.”
The princess sauntered out of the room, her heels clicking all the way down the hall.
As soon as she was gone, whatever had been keeping me aloft crumbled. I fell to my knees beside Zane, tears burning my eyes and panic sending my heart racing. Blood dripped from dozens of wounds across Zane’s whole body. Now that the princess was gone, his face was contorted in pain and he clutched his wounded shoulder with his one working hand.
“I’m so sorry,” I burst out. Tears spilled down my cheeks. I couldn’t take it anymore. This was all my fault. Elizabeth had hurt Zane because I hadn’t obeyed. He’d done everything he could to make me listen, but I hadn’t. My morals put not only my loved ones in danger, but him as well. He might be a prickly asshole, but he didn’t deserve this. “I-I’m so sorry, Zane.”
I held my hands over my mouth, desperately trying to rein myself in and get a hold of my emotions. But now that the dam was open, every bit of sadness and fear I’d felt in the last few weeks poured down my face and across my fingers.
Zane shook his head, avoiding my gaze. “It’s fine,” he ground out.
I hiccupped a sob. “No, it isn’t. None of this is your fault. I’m sorry.”
Zane looked up, his eyebrows furrowed as he inspected my face.
I had no idea what he was looking for, but his stare made me self-conscious as hell. I quickly scrubbed my face with trembling hands.
“We should go,” he said.
I nodded quickly. “Yes. Right. We need to get you to the hospital.” I stumbled to my feet, barely able to keep my legs beneath me. “Let me help you.” I offered him my hand.
Zane looked between my face and my outstretched hand, that same question on his face. But he didn’t voice it. Instead, he took my hand and together, we heaved him to his feet. Once he was standing, I slid his uninjured arm around my shoulders and my hand around his back. Though Elizabeth hadn’t done much damage to his legs, he’d be weak from blood loss soon and I didn’t want him to fall and injure himself further.
“No hospital,” Zane said between clenched teeth. He breathed heavily, and held onto my shoulder as much as I held onto him. “Just get me to the car.”
“No hospital?” I spluttered, taking a tentative step towards the exit. When Zane followed, I continued slowly to the main hall. “You’ll bleed to death.”
Zane scoffed. “I keep forgetting you haven’t been a demon long. We heal fast.”
I blinked in surprise as we slowly shuffled out of Elizabeth’s penthouse and into the waiting elevator. I didn’t spy her butler, but I assumed he’d been the one to call it. “How fast?”
“Fast.”
I sighed. “I’m still closing these up when we get home,” I said stubbornly. “Blood loss will make you weak, and I don’t want you to hurt yourself.”
Zane shook his head and didn’t say anything more as we rode the elevator back to the lobby.
It said a lot about the hotels staff that no one immediately leapt to our aid. Even as we strode across the lobby, no one offered to call an ambulance, or asked what had happened. They watched us go with bland expressions and cold eyes. I had to wonder if they saw this kind of thing all the time, and they were trained not to say anything, or if magic was at work here.
I shook my head as I shouldered open the front door. The doorman didn’t even glance at us. It was almost as if we were invisible.
Definitely magic.
“Clara!” a familiar voice called.
My heart skipped as Ryker raced across the street, barely stopping in time to avoid being struck by a taxi before he finished the trek to the sidewalk.
“Ryker!” Relief flooded my entire body. Thank God!
Ryker took one look between Zane and I, and his body went rigid. “Did Elizabeth do this?” he guessed. His voice was low, almost threatening. It gave me pause. Sometimes I forgot that Ryker was a dangerous vampire.
“Yeah,” I said. We stopped in front of Ryker, and he quickly took Zane’s other arm.
Zane winced as Ryker manipulated his injured shoulder. “Careful,” he hissed.
Ryker grumbled an apology, and together we got Zane across the street and into Ryker’s waiting car. An orange cat leapt onto the armrest between the driver and passenger seats, his eyes large and his pupils wide. Ky looked between Zane and I, twitching his whiskers as Zane dragged himself in to lie across the back seat.
“Ky?” I blinked in surprise. How the hell did he get here?
“He called me,” Ryker said. “He was worried and borrowed someone’s phone.”
I sighed. “I’m glad he did.”
Ryker closed the door, sealing us off from the two men inside before taking my elbows in hand, steadying me. “I’m so sorry I wasn’t there, Clara.”
I smiled softly, butterflies dancing in the pit of my stomach. Though I was still worried and curious over what kept him away so long, I was ridiculously relieved to have him back. “It’s okay. You had things to do. You can’t always look out for me.”
His jaw hardened, and his grip on my arms tightened. He didn’t say a word, but his haunted gaze spoke volumes. He really did feel guilty for leaving me. Before I could dig into his expression any more, he yanked me into his embrace, his arms squeezing me tight to his body.
Shock speared me, and I stayed still for a few moments before my wits returned. I wrapped my arms around his waist and buried my face against his hard chest. Whatever was developing between us—be it friendship, mentorship, or something more, I couldn’t deny how right it felt to press myself against him.
“Everything will be all right, Clara,” Ryker whispered against my hair.
I gripped his suit jacket harder, and nodded against him. I wished I could believe him. I wished with all of my heart that his words would be true and somehow everything would turn out okay. But I knew better.
It had been naïve to think that Elizabeth would allow me to do something else for her. I’d really thought I could convince her to spare me, and let me do something other than killing. My stupidity had hurt Zane, and put my loved ones at risk.
I couldn’t let that happen again.
Chapter 11
Zane
What a strange little creature Clara O’Connor was.
She’d defied one of the world’s most powerful women, refused to kill easy prey, embraced vampires, and housed delinquent cat shifters—and yet, she wept over me.
When Elizabeth decided it was time to teach Clara a lesson, I knew my fate. I had always known I’d die by her hand—she had a history of killing uncooper
ative subordinates. Princess Elizabeth had reveled in the pain of others for the thousands of years I’d been in her service, but she still gave Clara a second chance.
Intriguing.
Clara hadn’t saved me, Elizabeth’s strange form of mercy had, yet part of me felt… indebted to the little Reaper. She’d shed tears for a man she barely knew—real tears, not a manipulation. She was like no demon I’d ever met. Was that because of her human half, or was it just a product of Clara as a person?
My thoughts raced the entire drive to Clara’s apartment. I tuned out Clara’s explanation of what had gone on, ignored Ryker’s hard glares, and Ky’s insidious meowing. It was all background noise to the war inside my head.
Maybe Clara would finally understand her place as a Reaper and make my job easier. Maybe she’d obey Elizabeth and become like the rest of us—a coldblooded killer. Or maybe, just maybe, she’d become something more.
Ever since we’d met, I knew there was something different about her. Elizabeth couldn’t control her, not like she controlled the rest of us. As soon as the princess gave me a direct command, my entire body would immediately strain against my own will in order to obey hers. But not Clara. Clara couldn’t be forced to do anything, and it wasn’t simply because of her infuriatingly stubborn personality.
“We’re here,” Clara called from the front.
I glanced up, sighing internally as I braced myself to move. The pain had lessened since we left the hotel, but moving would jar every inch of my body and shred me with pain all over again.
Might as well get it over with.
Slowly, I sat up. Pain tore through my abdomen, my shoulder, and my chest. It was like being stabbed a second time.
“Hey, wait a second!” Clara snapped. The car door flew open, before slamming closed again. I sighed as I listened to Clara frantically race around the car before opening the door at my feet. “Be careful. We haven’t stopped the bleeding yet.”
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