Seizing Year Four: A Reverse Harem Bully Romance (Grim Reaper Academy Book 4)

by Cara Wylde

  “What happens when you graduate? I mean… your generation. You’ll reap for two hundred years.”

  “Yeah. Grim Reaper Academy will be closed. The professors will go back to their usual lives and return to teach the next generation.”

  “I won’t be around then…”

  There was so much sadness in her voice that it broke my heart.

  “Hey. I’m human, too. It’s not so bad. Sure, I’ll have immunity from Death for the next two hundred years, but when it’s done, it’s done.”

  She smiled bitterly. For a moment, our eyes met. She was shorter than me, but not by much. For her years, she was mature, and not just in behavior. One could tell she’d grow into a beautiful young woman. The signs were there.

  “I want to go,” she said.

  Her attitude had suddenly changed. I wondered what was wrong.

  “So soon?”

  “Let’s go to your room. I’ll show you something first.”

  My heart started beating faster. She found her! Oh my God, she found my mother! I wrapped an arm around her shoulders, focused as hard as I could, visualized where we were and where I wanted us to be, and teleported both of us with a strained grunt. It was hard. I was practicing my butt off, and sometimes I was still worried I wasn’t going to get it right.

  “Do you have the map?” Yolanda asked.

  I pulled a bunch of papers from under my mattress. It was the best hiding place I could think of. If I’d been as fancy as Morningstar, I would’ve built a secret hiding box in the floorboard. I wasn’t. Plus, if Morningstar were to drop by while I was gone and look for my secrets, that would be his first thought.

  Yoli spread them on the floor and spent a few minutes arranging them, as if they formed a puzzle. Finally, she pointed at one of the parallel universes she’d discovered in her dream travels.

  “Here. I’ve been to this one three times. The first two, I only saw myself, years older. The third time, last night, I saw you.”

  “Me?” I leaned over the map. “It’s in the future.”

  “Twenty years in the future, yes. You knew about me.”

  My shoulders dropped. “My mom is in a dimension that’s not that far in time from ours.”

  “I’m sorry. I haven’t found her yet.”

  With a sigh, I moved away from the map and leaned against the side of the bed, my interest significantly diminished.

  “You knew about me,” Yolanda continued, “so you were more than happy to talk to me.”

  “What did I tell you?”

  “Your father’s story.”

  I straightened my back, leaning slightly forward. Okay, we were getting somewhere…

  “Well? Why is he so crazy and vile?”

  “He had a rough childhood.”

  I huffed. “Cry me a river.”

  “His mother is an archangel, and his father was human. They had an affair, and Valentine was the result. But after she gave birth to him, she returned to Heaven and married an archangel. Her new husband didn’t approve of a hybrid in the family, so they ended up sending him to his father, on Earth. Valentine’s father, it appears, was a rich and powerful clan leader in Scotland. So, as a boy, Valentine had everything he could wish for. Except his mother’s approval. He used to visit her and her new family in Heaven, but he always returned home feeling bitter and depressed. No matter what he did, he just couldn’t be good enough for her and her family of pure-blood archangels. Anyway, his father died when his time came, and all his worldly possessions were passed on to Valentine. Since he was supernatural, with wings on his back and all, he couldn’t take over his father’s position, so he sold most of his land and castles, and kept one castle for himself to hide in. When he received the invitation to apply to Grim Reaper Academy, he’d been hiding from both the human world and the supernatural world for decades.”

  “Huh. So what? Because his mother didn’t like him, now he wants to ruin everyone’s lives?”

  “She’s still alive, I think.”

  “I have an archangel grandma. Awesome!”

  “He thought that if he became a Grim Reaper, his heavenly family would appreciate him more, maybe even accept him. So, he did. He made something of himself.”

  “Let me guess. It didn’t work out.”

  “No. After all, he was just one of twenty-two Grim Reapers. And once his two-hundred-year career was over, he’d go back to being just some nephilim, like before. Maybe a nephilim teaching at the Academy, but nothing special.”

  I scooted closer to Yoli. “And what did he do to become special? In this parallel dimension you traveled to…”

  “Err… I don’t know.” She averted her gaze. “I woke up.”

  We were both silent for a minute. For some reason, I had the odd feeling that she wasn’t telling me everything. But why would Yoli hide anything from me? It didn’t make any sense. You’re being paranoid again.

  “You have to go back. Find me again and get the end of the story.”

  “It doesn’t mean that your father from this universe will do the same thing. You said it yourself: dreams aren’t prophecies. Things don’t happen the same in the parallel universes.”

  “Yes, but they do happen similarly. It would be something, at least. An idea, a clue, a lead. Better than nothing.”

  “But it helps, right? Knowing his story. Where he came from, how he thinks…”

  I smiled and tucked a strand of blond hair behind her tiny ear.

  “It does. Thank you. Just keep looking for my mother. I can’t explain it, but I feel like she holds the key to getting rid of him forever.”

  Yoli nodded.

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  The truth was… Morningstar’s sappy story didn’t help me much. Sure, now I had the personality profile Headmaster Colin had asked me to put together. At least someone was happy. I could understand why he wanted to keep it all secret. Valentine Morningstar was ashamed of himself. He was ashamed that he was a hybrid, because his mother had taught him that he wasn’t good enough and he’d never be good enough, no matter what he did. Not even if he became the most powerful Grim Reaper the world had ever seen, which he now was. If she’d relented and given him her validation, then he wouldn’t have been walking around and scaring the shit out of people with crazy talk like: “The reign of Life and Death is nearing its end.” I was totally imitating his voice in my mind.

  His heavenly family was not impressed. So, he was planning something big. Something not even his archangel mother would be able to ignore. But what was it? Except that it was going to be super bad for all of us, I was lost. And Yoli wasn’t giving me anything of substance. It didn’t help that the more I thought about her story, the more I felt like she was hiding something from me. Lying to me, even. I just needed her to find my mother already. Katia Angelov would know what to do. She’d been in love with him, and there was a fair chance that he might’ve told her about his plan. When they met, he was already in his third term of reaping. Whatever he was going to do, he’d been working on it way before I was born.

  Time was running out. We were preparing for the final exams, graduation was upon us, and I still didn’t have the slightest idea about how I could retire my father and take his place as a Grim Reaper. Busy with studying and not failing tests, I ended up ignoring both Yolanda and my ex-boyfriends. I kept telling myself I’d have time for lustful love and sisterly love later. Most days, I felt like the executioner named Time had put a rope around my neck, and he was tightening it just a little bit every twenty-four hours. I was becoming restless. Soon, he’d pull the lever, the floor would disappear from under my feet, and I’d hang helplessly, my legs kicking.

  What a dreadful image.

  It was almost summer.

  The Holy Chapel and the Unholy Chapel were the only places where I could breathe in peace, comb through my thoughts, turn within, and find specks of courage that helped me survive another day. On this particular evening, after Lite
rature with Professor Lovecraft, I felt like going to the Unholy Chapel. I walked up to the altar, looked upon the statue of the horned Devil, mockingly asked him what he thought about my dumping his son, then went to light candles for the two women who’d been my sacrifices in September and December. I wasn’t feeling very good, to be honest. I should have brought my third sacrifice to the Great Old One at least a month ago, if I were to keep up with my four-month-schedule, which was a stretch as it was. But since I wasn’t talking to Paz or the others, I didn’t have a good candidate to send down the well. Even if I were to try and find one, I wouldn’t know where to start. I guess I was in denial. At least, I wasn’t feeling as awful as the first two times, so maybe I could make it until graduation. Maybe.

  But if you’re rotting, Mila, how will you have the strength to defeat Morningstar?

  Didn’t I already know by now? If I were to defeat him, indeed, it wouldn’t be in battle. It wouldn’t be with scythes. How, then?

  Maybe we can both do a Sudoku puzzle. But if my brain decomposes, he’ll beat me at that, too.

  God, my future looked bleak!

  I stepped out into the warm light of the sunset. The chapel’s second exit led into a clearing, deep in the forest. I remembered when Patty and I came here for the first time, and she showed me what she could do with her succubus powers. It was winter, and she’d made roses bloom.

  A shuffle behind me. I rolled my eyes, expecting GC or Paz to pop out of nowhere and beg me to take them back.

  “I told you to stop following me.” I turned around lazily, but when my eyes fell on my visitor, I froze in place. “You.”

  Valentine Morningstar was pissed off. He usually looked grim and displeased with the whole wide world, but now he looked like he was about to murder me. For the second time.

  I pulled the bell out of my pocket and called Corri. When the pixie appeared, I whispered to her: “My scythe.” She made it materialize out of nowhere. Must tell Mrs. Charon she needs to teach us how to summon our scythes. But that was stupid. Once Grim Reapers, we’d practically sleep in bed with them. As students, it was safer to leave them in our dorms when we didn’t specifically need them.

  “I thought I taught you better.”

  “What?”

  He was fuming. I held my ground. Whatever he was talking about, one thing was for sure: he’d never taught me anything, good or bad.

  “It’s very unladylike to poke your nose into things that are none of your business.”

  “I honestly don’t know what you’re talking about.” I kind of did, though.

  He took a step toward me. Unwilling to let him intimidate me, I took a step toward him, too, scythe at the ready. Even knowing there would be no outcome, we could still fight.

  “You wanted to know when and where I was born, who my parents are… You wanted to know why I became a Grim Reaper and why, after two hundred years, it wasn’t enough. You wanted to know why I never want to retire. Well, did you find your answers? Do you feel better now? Wiser?”

  He swung his scythe at me, and I blocked him. We stayed like that, scythes crossed, for a minute. With a grunt, I pushed hard until he stepped back and took his position again. He laughed.

  “What’s the matter? Is it that time of the month?”

  I sneered at him. I was weak. My hip popped when I took a step sideways, and it didn’t sound good. I could feel my muscles struggling to keep up with the signals sent by my brain, and failing miserably. He had me.

  He tried to hit me again, and I moved out of his way.

  “Of course, you’re too useless to get the info yourself. Dream jumping in exchange for immortality. Are you happy with your deal?”

  “Wasn’t my choice,” I spat through gritted teeth. He swung at me, and I barely managed to dodge it. I was slow, too. Damn it!

  “You got yourself a little pet. I must admit, you’re useless but smart.”

  My heart sank. He took a step toward me, then another. He knew by now that I wasn’t going to attack him because I could barely defend myself. He probably couldn’t guess why, but he took advantage of my weakness anyway, and tried to corner me.

  “How do you know all this?” I managed.

  “You thought your mother and I don’t talk anymore? We’re not best friends, mind you. She hasn’t forgiven me yet. But I visit her from time to time, make sure everything’s under control. She told me about your… what’s her name? Doesn’t matter.”

  Eyes wide and mouth agape, I couldn’t say a word, couldn’t move a muscle. He was towering over me now, and all I could do was stare at his parchment-like face.

  “You sent that kid to find her. So very bold of you. Daughter, you’re more like me than you think.” He grinned darkly. “Look at you! I have the perfect name for this journey you’re on: The Making of a Villain.”

  “I’m not a…”

  He raised his scythe above his head, and when he let it fall upon me, I didn’t block him. My arms turned to jelly. He knew. My mom knew. Yoli knew… That meant one thing and one thing only: my cousin had been lying to me.

  “Do it,” I whispered.

  Things would’ve been so easy if he could kill me. I’d exit this life, go to atone for my sins in Hell, and forget about how epically I’d failed. I closed my eyes and waited for it. I knew it wouldn’t happen, but I still waited for it. The blade of his scythe stopped a few inches from my forehead. I could hear it rumble. I opened my eyes and looked at the tiny cracks that served as a reminder that Morningstar couldn’t kill me. Ever. I was blood of his blood.

  What happened next was a blur. A golden bull jumped between me and Morningstar, his horns digging into the Grim Reaper’s stomach. Valentine flew a few feet in the air and landed with a grunt. Slowly, he pulled himself to his feet, his eyes trained on the beautiful, strong animal that had attacked him. Paz came out of nowhere and helped me up. Francis and Sariel stepped out of the forest as well, scythes at the ready. My father looked at the five of us for a long moment, probably contemplating his chances against my four warriors.

  “It was good catching up, daughter,” he said, then teleported away.

  Corri popped out of nowhere, specks of pixie dust flying out of her buzzing wings.

  “I’m sorry, Mistress. I didn’t know what to do! I called for help!”

  I pulled myself free from Paz’s protective hold.

  “I can take care of myself, thank you very much,” I grumbled.

  “Didn’t look that way,” GC said, now standing in front of me in his glorious naked form. He’d shifted back, and he was in dire need of clothes.

  I rolled my eyes at him. At all of them. “You know he can’t hurt me. Come on!”

  “Mila, you’re weak.” Francis stepped closer and studied me with concerned eyes. “It’s been too long. Way over four months. Are you trying to commit suicide?”

  I shrugged. “I don’t want to do this anymore. I can hold on until after graduation. Death will give me immunity, and this whole rotting business will go away.”

  “You’ll be a pile of teeth and bones until then.” The tone of Sariel’s voice said he was tired of my bullshit. “You have to do it. Today. Now.”

  “I have a good candidate,” Paz said.

  I rubbed my aching temples. “You’ve been looking for a blood sacrifice for me?”

  “Of course I have. We’re in this together.”

  “No, we’re not.” I looked at them as intensely as I could, hoping this time my words would actually get through their thick skulls. “I’m not your responsibility. You don’t have to find victims for me, make sure I do the ritual, and you definitely don’t have to save me from Valentine Morningstar. We’re separate people. I take care of my shit, and you take care of yours. You asked me countless times why I needed a break. Well, this is a top reason. We’ve become co-dependent! We do everything together, we’re too involved in each other’s lives, and it’s gotten to a point where if I want to do something b
y myself because I believe it’s my responsibility to do it, you won’t let me. What the hell?! You’ve helped me a lot, and God knows I appreciate everything you did for me. You helped me stand on my own two feet. But the clock is ticking, twenty-two students will become Grim Reapers, and the rest will go work in research or whatnot. You don’t want to be among the rest, okay? You must focus on yourselves, your grades and your worth scores, and make sure you make it. You make sure this story ends with the four of you becoming Grim Reapers! Leave the whole Morningstar drama to me, because that’s my business. Same with the ritual. Don’t worry, I won’t die again. I’ve made it this far.”

  “Mila…”

  I straightened my clothes, grabbed my scythe off the ground, and motioned for Corri to get ready to teleport with me.

  “There’s something I need to do now, and it can’t wait. Think about what I told you, okay?”

  The funny thing was that I wasn’t even lying to them. Sure, that wasn’t the main reason why I couldn’t be with them now, but it was at the top of my list. I needed to do this alone, and I kind of knew how. Kind of. If I failed, I needed it to be on me, not on them. And there was a good chance that I was going to fail.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  “Why did you lie to me?”

  I’d teleported straight in the middle of Yolanda’s bedroom and took her by surprise. She was reading in the armchair by the window that used to be mine. The book she dropped when I startled her also used to be mine.

  Dressed in my red and black uniform, with my shiny scythe in one hand and Corri on my shoulder, I knew I looked menacing. Good. Because I needed her to tell me the truth this time.