by Cara Wylde
“He’s not lucky at all.”
With a sigh, I stepped away from them and went to sit at my desk. When we were in the same room, the bed was too dangerous.
“Everyone wants to train with the greatest Grim Reaper alive,” laughed Paz.
“I can’t believe you admire him when he’s refused to retire twice,” I said.
The demon shrugged. “He’s dangerous, sure, but I bet I could learn a lot from him.”
“Learn what? How to be an asshole?”
Paz furrowed his brows, and GC burst out laughing.
“She’s got a stick up her ass about Morningstar,” GC said between snorts.
Paz rolled his eyes. “I can see that. But why?”
“Guys, seriously?! He’s awful!”
“I find him inspiring,” the demon countered.
GC jumped on the bed, rolled onto his belly, and looked up at me with puppy eyes.
“Yeah, that. Inspiring. I would’ve said badass, actually. What’s up with you? I thought you liked a little danger.”
“Oh, the danger Morningstar poses is not little, trust me.”
“And how do you know that?” Paz asked. “He didn’t find his match yet, but it will happen. Everyone is so terrified that he’s been reaping for almost six centuries… so what? He was just better than his generation, and then the next generation. Why hold it against him?”
“Because he’s gaining power…”
He shrugged. “He’s a Grim Reaper, Mila. What’s he gonna do with it? Reap at the speed of light?”
“Ugh!”
I jumped to my feet and started pacing the floor. They weren’t listening!
“Is there… something you want to tell us?” GC had turned serious, which was so unusual for him.
“Yes! You know what? I do want to tell you something. And then, maybe you’ll be more inclined to listen to me when I tell you that Grim Reaper is bad news.” I was breathing rapidly. My heart was hammering in my chest. I was going to do it, oh my God! I was going to tell them my secret. “He is my father! That’s why I didn’t come to practice. I found out that he is my father, and I asked Headmaster Colin to let me skip because I wasn’t ready to meet him. He abandoned me. He abandoned my mother and never looked back.”
Silence. One could cut it with a knife. It lasted only for a few seconds, but it felt like hours. My breathing wasn’t slowing down. It was as if I was waiting for a verdict. My guys were either going to shun me, or…
GC rolled onto his back and exchanged a glance with Pazuzu. My shoulders slumped. It was as if they were communicating telepathically, and I was not allowed to participate in the exchange. Eventually, GC pushed himself up, came to me, and took my hand into his. He gave me a sweet, innocent smile.
“Are you ready for prom?”
“Wh-what? I’ve just told you…”
“Do you have a dress? Come on, I’m buying you a dress.”
He dragged me out of the room, and I followed him speechless and a little bit lost. Paz ran after us.
“Dude, dinner first.”
GC laughed. “We’re eating out! And then, I’m buying my goddess a dress.”
Paz huffed and fell in step with us. “Fine. But I have to see the dress, so I can buy her the perfect necklace.”
Were they for real? I’d just revealed to them a secret that had been eating at me for months, and they were going to ignore it and drag me out to dinner and a shopping spree? A good sign, a bad sign… It could’ve been either. I wasn’t sure I understood their coping mechanism.
CHAPTER TWO
At dinner, they told me all about practice. As I’d suspected, they hadn’t reaped souls; they’d only followed their mentors all over the world and observed. They told me about tribe conflicts in Africa and wars in the Middle East. But the worst they had witnessed was a school shooting. Four Violent Reapers had been called to reap the souls of the victims, and even the hot-headed GC and the tough Pazuzu had preferred to stay away and not take notes, even though it was one of those sensitive cases when notes truly were in order.
“Francis was there, too,” Paz said after a moment of silence.
“That means…”
He placed his hand on mine and looked into my eyes.
“Mila, it’s okay.”
“But why aren’t you guys saying something?” I whispered, and I hated how insecure I sounded. “My father is Valentine Morningstar. I need to know what you think.”
GC huffed. “Why? Who your father is doesn’t change anything. It doesn’t change you.”
Paz nodded. “The professors see him as a villain, we all see him as a rock star. The VDC, especially. Now that we know you’re his daughter…” He exchanged another glance with GC, then looked back at me with a grin. “Well, you’re even more awesome! We’re dating Morningstar’s daughter, dammit! How crazy is that? But at the same time…”
“What?”
He sighed. “He abandoned you. That sucks. So, I’m glad I wasn’t in his group at practice.”
GC nodded. “Yeah. Same. He’s still kinda’ cool, but you’re cooler.”
I giggled. How could I ask them to turn on their hero when they were so sweet and honest? Besides, maybe I was getting ahead of myself and making horrible scenarios about a man I’d never met. Who knew? Maybe my father wasn’t that bad. Just busy reaping. Too busy to take care of a kid. A knot formed in my stomach. I was probably being naive, but it felt nice to think positively and not hold onto all that rage about having been abandoned by both my parents. The past was in the past. My naivety came with something precious: it pushed my negative feelings aside and made some space (albeit tiny) for a possibly better future.
“If you’re done, it’s time to try on prom dresses.”
I groaned. “It was a bad idea to stuff me with food. Now I won’t fit in anything!”
Paz paid, and we left the restaurant just as the sun was setting. I was tired, but content, and a little bit excited. My boyfriends were going to buy me something for the first time. I chuckled at my own silliness, but I couldn’t help thinking this whole business smelled of commitment. GC led the way down an obscure alley in the center of Salem, and I soon realized the few people walking, chatting, and looking at the shop windows were supernaturals.
“My mom owns this chain of stores,” GC said as he pulled me inside a huge, two-story shop filled with dresses, shoes, and tiny, elegant purses that could barely hold a phone and a set of keys. “Choose anything you like.” He grinned at me from ear to ear. “The price doesn’t matter, ‘cause we’re not paying. Feel me? Everything here is free for you, goddess.”
I bit the inside of my lip, not knowing what to say. On the one hand, this was every girl’s dream. But if GC was giving me something he hadn’t lifted a finger for, was it still a gift? Maybe from his mom… Anyway, I wasn’t stupid. So, I didn’t complain. I did need a dress for prom, and I didn’t have a dime.
“God, you’re cheap,” Paz growled exasperated.
“What?!” GC protested. “This is the best store in town! Not my fault it’s my mother’s.”
“Whatever.” He pulled me against his side and took my chin between his fingers. “Choose something that shows your beautiful neck and shoulders. I’ll go bring you a necklace worthy of a queen.”
I looked at him seductively, from behind my lashes. “Oh, Paz. But you know I’ll never be queen. Pandora will probably get the crown. You should have stayed with her…”
He squeezed me tighter, as if my words had angered him and turned him on at the same time. His green eyes were rimmed with red.
“Don’t ever say that. Who cares about a stupid crown?”
“I don’t. But maybe you do, King of Hell.”
He laughed out loud. “Hell is full of kings.” He kissed me hard on the lips, then left the store in search of the perfect necklace. His words, not mine.
“Finally! He’s exhausting!”
“GC
…”
He hugged me from behind. “I have you all to myself. Like in the old times.”
“The old times…” I laughed. “You make it sound like we’ve been together for ages.”
“Choose ten dresses at least, and let’s go into the fitting rooms.”
“You’re not coming in with me!”
“Yes, I am. Someone has to help you with all the corsets, and straps, and things.”
“The store assistant…”
“Shh…” He turned me around and pressed his finger to my lips. Slowly, he pushed the tip inside my mouth, and I barely held back a moan. “You don’t need a store assistant. You have me.”
I nodded. He let go, and I stole a glance around. The few people in the store looked just as embarrassed as I felt, but no one said anything. This was GC’s territory. I did as I was told. Sometimes, I didn’t mind following his orders, and this one was a particularly good one.
One hour later, I still hadn’t chosen a dress. GC was making it difficult. He was looking for perfection, and seeing how perfection didn’t exist…
“Too long. Would be a shame to cover those beautiful knees. Too short. You’re sexy, but those idiots don’t deserve this nice view.” He smacked my ass. “Corset, for sure. It needs to have a corset. No sleeves. Yeah, try this one.”
Lucky the fitting room was large enough to fit two people. He helped me into the long silver dress, and the fabric hugged my curves gently, the embedded corset lifting my breasts, and the two long side cuts revealing my legs every time I moved.
“This is the one.”
“You think?” I tilted my head to the side, studying myself critically in the mirror. GC knelt and slipped a pair of black heels onto my feet. I felt like Cinderella.
“Gorgeous.”
He looked at me as if he hadn’t just spent the last few hours helping me dress and undress. His eyes traveled down my body, lingering on my chest, hips, legs. I blushed. I had no idea how he did it, but he was good at making me feel like the most special woman alive. I stepped out of the fitting room, and he followed me. Pazuzu was waiting outside. When he saw me, his jaw dropped, but he quickly recovered and cleared his throat.
“You picked your vocation wrong,” he told GC. “Grim Reaper? You should have gone into fashion.”
The false god took my hand and displayed me like I was his work of art. “Got it from my mother’s side… an eye for beauty.”
“Beauty, indeed,” the demon said breathlessly.
If I could blush harder, I would’ve. I didn’t understand how they couldn’t see I had a big fat beetroot for a head. Pazuzu stepped forward and opened a fancy box, presenting me with the most exquisite necklace I’d ever seen.
“Sapphires to match your eyes. Diamonds because… well, no piece of jewelry is complete without diamonds. All mounted on white gold.”
“Paz, I can’t…” I’d never worn precious stones or metals in my life. I had two pairs of earrings, and they were both made of some cheap alloys.
“Turn around.”
When I didn’t move, GC laughed and maneuvered me like a broken doll. The three of us were facing a tall mirror, and Paz placed the necklace around my neck and secured it. It felt so cold against my skin that I gasped.
“Perfect.” The demon gathered my blue hair and held it up. “I made you a reservation at the beauty salon the day of the prom. One o’clock. Be there.”
“Are you kidding me?! Six hours for the makeup and hair?”
“Oh, haven’t I mentioned? Two hours of spa included. Thai massage. You’re gonna love it.”
They were spoiling me. I prayed to God it never ended.
CHAPTER THREE
We arrived fashionably late, which meant everyone was there to see us. After a whole week spent stressing over the dress, - Gotta eat less, or it won’t fit me. - the shoes, - What if I fall on my face? - and generally everything, prom night had finally come. Grim Reaper Academy had prom at the end of every year. It was special like that. Supernaturals sure liked parties. When all eyes fell on us, I was happy I had two boyfriends to hold me as my knees wobbled. I squeezed their arms for dear life and tried to keep my composure. I didn’t know whether it was better to smile or to stay serious. If I smiled, then I’d look smug. And Pandora, Kitty, Sheba, and Sammy were already scowling at me. I saw Sariel and Francis in a corner, glasses in hand, their conversation halted by my entrance. Lorna stepped closer to the archangel, as if to warn me that if I as much as looked at him, she was going to gut me. Well, hell! If Lorna is scared of me, then I must really look smashing in this dress. To her chagrin, Sariel was the one who couldn’t take his eyes off me. Francis was staring too, mesmerized, as if he knew the girl in the silver dress and impossibly high heels was me, but couldn’t quite believe his eyes. The sapphires around my neck caught the party lights that decorated the walls and the ceiling, and judging by the sourness in Pandora’s eyes, she didn’t want the crown anymore (which she, for sure, was going to get), and wanted my head instead. She knew I didn’t have the money to buy the incredible things I was wearing, so she knew that her ex-fiancé had dressed and bejeweled me. Her hatred had no bounds.
And that was when I noticed. As my demon and my false god led me to the center of the room, I’d involuntarily straightened my back and pushed my chest forward. Pandora’s hatred fed me. The way Sariel’s sky-blue eyes followed my every step, the mix of sadness and curiosity on his perfect features… fed me. Francis took a subtle step toward me, and the small gesture didn’t escape me. It fed me, too. The girls’ disdain and envy as GC leaned in to whisper something in my ear fed me. They wanted me dead, they wanted me gone. But I wasn’t going anywhere; I was thriving. The more they focused their energy on me, the more power they gave me. I’d survived year one. I was the only human at an Academy of supernaturals, and the only girl in a boy’s cabal. Paz kissed my temple and pushed a glass of something sparkly in my hand. I took a tentative sip. As the cold, delicious liquid touched my blood red lips, I had a revelation. I’d survived year one, and I was going to slay year two. I could do it. I wasn’t nobody anymore. I was Mila Morningstar. Even if they didn’t know it, I knew it, and that was enough.
“Let’s dance.” GC stole my glass, downed it, abandoned it on the nearest table, and pulled me into the crowd.
“N-no.”
“What?”
“I’m not very good at…” My insecurities were back. It had only taken one second. God, I’m hopeless.
“Just sway those beautiful hips.”
Paz came behind me, his warm hands on my waist. He guided me, and I followed. The song changed into something more upbeat, and we threw our hands in the air. I did, at least. My boyfriends’ hands were all over me, busy signaling to everyone that I was theirs. Look, but don’t touch. Don’t even dream about it. I laughed. It wasn’t that bad… being the center of attention. I could get used to this. I locked eyes with Sariel, who was grumpily dancing with Lorna. When he caught me looking at him, his hand traveled down Lorna’s ass, and he squeezed hard, making her giggle and moan. Did he do it to show me that he was fine - thank you very much - and he was having a blast with his own girlfriend? Something told me that wasn’t the case. For one, Sariel and Lorna weren’t together. She was like a pest he couldn’t get rid of. And secondly, he was staring at me too intently to even think about the girl pressed up against him. In his head, maybe it wasn’t Lorna at all. Maybe it was me.
“Mila?”
“Huh?”
“You spaced out.”
I threw GC an apologetic look. “I need some air. It’s too crowded in here.”
“Well, it is a party!”
“You two dance together for a while.”
I squeezed out from between their hot, sinful bodies, and left them there, baffled and very much disgusted at the idea of dancing with each other. From the corner of my eye, I saw GC punch Paz in the shoulder, and Paz leave the dance floor to get himself a dri
nk. I walked out into the inner courtyard, but the air here wasn’t as fresh as I’d hoped. There was a group of students smoking in a corner. Before they saw me, I disappeared behind a tree and leaned against its rough trunk. I wrapped my arms around myself and closed my eyes, tilting my head toward the starry sky. God, I was horny! My two boyfriends weren’t going easy on me. Rubbing and touching, groping, caressing… If I didn’t watch myself, I’d end up dragging them to the north tower, all the way into my cramped, shitty bedroom. I wasn’t sure I was ready to lose my virginity tonight. Oh, I wanted it. I wanted it badly, but this was prom night. All bad decisions were made on prom night, right? At least, that was what I’d learned from the movies. The last thing I wanted to be was a walking cliché.
“Too stuffy in there.”
I jumped at the sound of the voice coming from behind me, then relaxed. It was Francis. Since that night in the cavern, when his ancient god had tried to eat me, and he’d told me Morningstar was my father, we hadn’t talked much. I’d avoided him, and he’d avoided me. Apparently, that was over now. We were ready to speak to each other again.
“Yeah.”
He came closer and leaned against the tree, right next to me. Our shoulders touched.
“How are you?”
“Your mentor was Valentine Morningstar,” I said, cutting straight to the chase. “What’s he like?”
“If you wanted to know, you should have come to practice.”
“You know I couldn’t… Everything happened so fast. It was too soon to…”
“What? Face your demons?”
“I don’t have any demons,” I said through gritted teeth. Oh, I was lying. He knew it, and I knew it. And it wasn’t because I did, in fact, have a literal demon - Paz, - but because I had more of the metaphorical ones than I could count on my fingers.
“He’s exactly like everyone imagines him,” Francis said, undisturbed by my little outburst. “Wise, powerful, confident, knowledgeable… A professional. The best Grim Reaper the world has ever seen. And the most terrifying one.”