The Balance

by C. L. Nelson

  I rolled my eyes before taking off my sock and shirt. He frowned when he saw that I had a camisole on under my shirt but didn’t say anything. I think for a minute about how to phrase my next question to get the most information for my next article of clothing. “How are hybrids different from humans?” I asked. “Be specific. I will not accept an incomplete answer,” I added before allowing him to answer.

  He frowned. “This game is getting boring. You do know I could just rip your clothes off you, right?” he threatened with a menacing growl.

  I returned his frown with my own. “I’m sure you could, but what would Finlay do to you when he finds out?” I bluffed. I have no idea what Finlay could do to a werewolf, but Jaxon seems to be afraid of him. “We don’t have to continue talking. I can probably ask Finlay my questions when he gets back. I just figured since we are here and there is nothing to do…” I trailed off.

  At that moment, I feel a strange heaviness press down on me. It must be the shielding spell. I ignore the sensation and concentrate on the angry werewolf.

  He growled again before rubbing his face. “FINE! Hybrids are different from humans in several ways. First, most hybrids live longer than humans, some longer than others. For example, the fae and vampires can live indefinitely if they aren’t killed by something, but witches don’t live much longer than humans at all. Witches are basically humans with magic as their blood is heavily diluted and contains very little traces of their hybrid ancestry.

  “And speaking of magic, it is the other main difference between hybrids and non-magic humans. Hybrids all have special abilities that they inherited from ethereals and infernals. The ability depends on whether the species is descended from an ethereal or an infernal. As an example, werewolves are descended from infernals and we get our ability to change shape or transmogrify from our dark ancestors,” he explained. “And that is as much as you are getting out of me for one measly piece of clothing,” he said petulantly.

  “A deal is a deal,” I said as I pull off my camisole. Maybe this wasn’t a good idea. I am not exactly the most comfortable without clothing. I just really want answers and I don’t know if I have much time left. I guess it won’t matter anyway when I am dead. There I go again thinking depressing thoughts. I tell myself to cut it out and think more positively. Finlay is working on getting the reapers off my back. It’s going to be okay.

  I finished my internal pep talk and notice Jaxon is checking out what I have just revealed. “I take it back, baby girl. This game isn’t boring. Now ask me another question, so we can get to the good stuff,” he said with a grin.

  I rolled my eyes before asking my next question. “What abilities do ethereals and infernals have?” I asked him.

  He thought about his answer before responding. He is more intelligent than what you would think from his dumb jock appearance. “From what we can gather based on the abilities that have presented in the light-descended hybrids, abilities that the ethereals have include healing, glimmering, glamour, dream walking, and the ability to induce a number of positive feelings in others like happiness. And based on the abilities that have presented in the dark-descended hybrids, infernal abilities include transmogrification, shadowing, pyrokinesis, corpse reanimation, and manipulation of perceived reality. Both species are thought to be superiorly strong, have heightened senses, and the ability to speak telepathically. However, no one, except for maybe the reapers, has seen an ethereal or an infernal in a very long time, so this is all speculation,” he finished and took a drink of water.

  I decided to take a drink of water too. Mostly to delay taking my pants off and to give myself time to think about what he just said. Do I have abilities I don’t know about? It might explain how I got from the fourth floor to the first floor during the shooting.

  Jaxon cleared his throat to remind me that I owe him an article of clothing. I sighed noisily and start to unbutton my pants. Just as I am about to pull down my pants, Finlay strides into the bungalow.

  He took in the scene and scowled. He immediately turned to Jaxon and started to punch him in the face. “I told you to guard her, not get her naked, you animal,” he screamed at Jaxon.

  I run over to get Finlay off Jaxon. “Finlay, Stop! It’s not his fault. He didn’t do anything wrong!” I started to explain as I grab Finlay’s arm to get him to stop. I just want him to calm down so he can think straight.

  All of a sudden, Finlay’s face smooths out and he stops punching Jaxon. He is just suddenly no longer angry. What I said must have finally gotten through to him.

  “What’s going on?” Finlay asked, sounding confused.

  “I’m sorry, Fin. I had a stupid idea to exchange information for clothing. It’s not his fault. It was my idea,” I explained again.

  Finlay looked like he was getting angry again. “While that may be true, love, Jaxon didn’t have to accept your offer and he certainly didn’t need to look like he enjoyed it as much as he did,” he said while picking up my clothes and handing them to me before going over to Jaxon.

  Finlay kneeled down to the badly injured werewolf and laid a hand on him. Right before my eyes, the bleeding stopped, his nose straightened, and the swelling went down. Finlay moved away before he looked completely healed.

  “I apologize, Jaxon. I can get carried away where Charlie is concerned. I have healed most of the damage I caused and your extraordinary ability to heal injuries should take care of the rest,” Finlay said as if what he just did was no big deal.

  “Whatever. Consider my debt to you repaid and we will call it even,” Jaxon said while getting off the floor. Finlay nodded and they shook hands.

  Jaxon turned to me before he left. “Hey baby girl, if you get bored with the fairy, give me a call,” he said with a wink, handing me a business card.

  “I don’t think she will be giving you a call, dog,” said an angry, but familiar voice from behind me.

  I think I may have jumped out of my skin. We all had our back to the door, and we didn’t hear anyone approaching the bungalow. Standing in the doorway was Kian, my reaper, and he looks like he wants to murder someone. He isn’t alone; two large males who look a little like Kian are standing behind him, both looking like they are ready to fight.

  Finlay and Jaxon moved to stand in front of me like a wall of protection. I am still half-naked when Kian muttered something about my lack of clothes. I flipped him off with both hands from behind my wall of muscle and then pulled my clothes back on.

  “How did you find me, Kian?” I asked, sounding completely unconcerned with the growing tension in the room. I am surprised no one has thrown a punch yet. “I am pretty sure my soul was blocked from your nosey ass. Also, it’s nice that you came to this party looking so festive,” I remarked dryly about the glitter that is all over him.

  He made a noise that sounded like a growl. I guess more than just werewolves growl when angry. “Your boyfriends left a trail,” he said. “Now tell them to stand down before they get hurt,” he told me like I have any control over Finlay and Jaxon.

  Finlay pulled his sword from the sheath on his back. I guess he figured he was going to need his sword and kept it with him. “I won’t let you kill her,” Finlay told them.

  Jaxon’s hands turned into claws. “You will have to go through me too,” he threatened before speaking to Finlay. “You owe me a favor for this, fairy,” he said, and Finlay nodded once in agreement.

  Kian gave a disgusted laugh. “We aren’t here to kill her. She just needs to meet with the Ladies of the Waiting. There was probably just some mistake and after we figure it out, she can go on with her life.”

  Finlay took a step forward. “I don’t believe you. Someone has already tried to kill her. She is mine and I won’t let you take her.”

  I was about to argue that I wasn’t anyone’s property when Kian reached forward as if he was going to grab Finlay and then pulled back with his fist clenched without having touched him.

  Finlay dropped to the floor and Jaxon stepped b
ack like he was afraid.

  “WHAT DID YOU DO?” I screamed at Kian as I ran over to Finlay’s lifeless body and checked for a pulse.

  Chapter 11

  Kian

  Dashiel and Jarrett are standing behind me in shock. The werewolf is cowering in the corner, looking like a whipped puppy, and Charlie is on the floor sobbing over the lifeless body of the light fae.

  I stand frozen in place. I can’t believe I just ripped out his soul. It is impossible for anyone but the King of the Reapers to remove a soul from a living body. I shouldn’t have been able to do that, but something just came over me and I reflexively reached for his soul to tear it out.

  It’s breaking something inside of me to see Charlie this upset. Her grief shouldn’t affect me this much. I have seen thousands of grieving friends and loved ones over my years as a collector. The souls I collect are often not alone when they die. I usually block my pickups from seeing their loved ones’ reactions to their death, especially in violent, sudden deaths.

  Imagine you die suddenly. That is traumatizing enough as it is, and it’s hard to accept for most souls. You are confused and I explain things. Eventually, you accept that your current journey has ended and come with me.

  Now imagine that you are able to see the reaction of your loved ones. They are sobbing over the empty shell that was your body. You love them and don’t want to leave them, especially when they are in so much emotional pain. It would make accepting the end of your current incarnation so much harder.

  While I block the souls from seeing their grieving loved ones, I still see it. I’ve done this long enough that it doesn’t bother me anymore. It’s just part of my job.

  But this is my fault. I caused this and it is physically hurting me to know I caused Charlie’s pain. I can fix this. Creators, please help me fix this.

  Pulling my attention away from Charlie, I refocus on the soul that I have taken before its scheduled time. The fae’s soul isn’t behaving like a normal soul. He should be alert and reacting to the situation. He should be confused or pissed off, but he is not reacting. It’s like he isn’t even here. What if I broke his soul? What if I can’t fix this?

  I try to gently move Charlie out of the way, so I can try to put the fae’s soul back, but she launches herself at me and starts to punch me.

  She is in a rage like I have never seen. Did I just see her eyes flash black? No, couldn’t have. She doesn’t have much energy to make the punches do damage like the last time, but each time her skin touches mine, it leaves a small burn that heals almost immediately. What is she? After a minute, she collapsed to the ground from her exhaustion and grief.

  I move to the lifeless fae. I have no idea what I am doing. I take souls out, not put them back in. I assume the process is similar, only in reverse. Taking a soul out of a body is not normally as violent as it was when I ripped the fae’s soul out. It is usually a gentle experience, so we don’t traumatize the pickups. When extracting a soul, a reaper places their hands, or their borrowed hands, over the recently deceased body of the pickup. With a gentle tug from the reaper’s soul, we pull free the designated soul.

  I kneel next to the fae and hold my hands, one still clasping the soul, over his body. I try to gently press the soul back into the fae’s body, but it doesn’t work.

  My hands are trembling. I am starting to sweat, even with the A.C. blasting. What if I can’t put his soul back? I have never seen my father put back a soul. What if it can’t be done?

  I look up at Charlie who is kneeling next to me, clutching the fae’s hand. Tears are streaming down her face, but she is silent, looking at me with a mixture of hatred and hope.

  She’s counting on me to fix my thoughtless overreaction. I take a deep breath and think. The soul was forcefully ripped out of a living body. Maybe I need to forcefully put it back in.

  I take one more deep breath and then shove the soul with all my strength back into his body. There is a slight resistance at first but then the soul penetrates the body.

  The fae’s body jolts like it was hit with electricity but then falls still. Nothing is happening. He isn’t breathing. It didn’t work.

  Oh dear Creators, what have I done?

  “YOU KILLED HIM!” Charlie screamed at me.

  “Charlie, I am so sorry. I didn’t mean to.”

  “Shut up. Shut up. SHUT UP!” She put her face in her hands and continued to cry.

  I stand up and back away to give Charlie space to grieve the loss of her friend. I am startled when a hand is placed on my shoulder.

  “Kian, you made a mistake, but we need to take the girl back to her apartment for the meeting with the Ladies,” Dashiel said.

  “No, we can’t leave. The reaper that is supposed to collect his soul should have been here by now. What if he wasn’t supposed to die and I just threw off the Balance even more?” I said, shaking my head in disbelief.

  “Oh shit. I need to go then. I have to go pick up some females and have some fun before the end of the world starts,” Jarrett laughed. “Relax, Kian. I am sure the reaper will be here soon.”

  “Yeah, they are probably just running late. It was probably a weaker reaper that needed to borrow a body and then get to this island,” Dashiel added. “Now, get the girl, and let’s go before I kick your ass. I’ve got other shit to do.”

  Charlie grabbed the sword that was dropped by the fae and scooted herself back into a corner. She got to her feet and held the sword with both hands in front of her. “You’re going to have to fight me to take me anywhere. I have nothing left to lose, assholes,” she said, looking completely feral.

  I hold up my hands and take a step towards her. “Charlie, I’m sorry about what happened but we need to go.”

  She swings the sword at me threateningly but cutting only air. “You’re sorry? YOU’RE SORRY?” she yelled. “You just killed the person I love most in this world and you are sorry?”

  She advances toward me, lifts the sword over her head, and swings it at me, intending to seriously injure me.

  It happened fast, and I barely managed to jump out of the way. I look at her. Her eyes are red and swollen from crying, but they are burning with anger as she glares at me.

  Tearing my gaze away from her face, I finally noticed that her sword has sliced through the floor of the shelter and is now stuck in the ground beneath.

  Charlie let go of the sword and sank to the floor, unable to hold herself up.

  The bungalow is incredibly silent. No one saying a word. Charlie is exhausted and Dashiel, Jarrett, and I are all surprised by her display of strength and speed.

  Suddenly, the fae sucked in a huge breath.

  We all jumped, startled by the break in the silence. Our eyes darting toward the fae.

  Thank the Creators!

  “Charlie…” he wheezed, searching for her.

  Charlie crawled over to him, and he weakly wrapped an arm around her.

  “Thank god. Oh dear god, thank you,” she said as she climbed on top of him and clung to him as if she can keep his soul from floating out by blocking it with her body.

  The light fae chuckled weakly. “I would have had my soul torn out years ago if I had known that is what it would take to get you on top of me,” he joked as he rubbed his hand up and down her back to comfort her.

  As relieved as I am, I can’t stand to look at their affection for each other. “We will give you a couple of minutes, Charlie, but then we need to leave,” I tell her as I start to walk out the door.

  “I’m still not going anywhere with you, asshole,” she started to yell at me but was interrupted by the fae.

  “Charlie, love, it’s okay. I was visited by the Creators while my soul was out of my body. They told me that everything will be okay if we go with the reapers to meet with Destiny and Karma,” he explained to her, sounding almost peaceful.

  Charlie looked doubtful. “How do you know you weren’t just hallucinating or something?” she asked him.

  He looked directly in
to her eyes and said, “Charlie, I won’t let anything bad happen to you. Do you trust me?”

  She rolled off him and got to her feet. “I will always trust you, Fin. You have protected me for thousands of years,” she said while holding out her hand to help him up.

  She did the same thing for me, but I rejected her help. The light fae took her waiting hand without hesitation.

  The fae walked up to me and stuck out his hand. “Sorry about threatening you earlier, but there is nothing I wouldn’t do for Charlie. My name’s Finlay, by the way,” he said while waiting for me to shake his hand.

  I thought about it for a moment and then shook his hand. “It’s fine. I understand. I’m sorry I ripped your soul out. I’m Kian and these are my brothers, Dashiel and Jarrett,” I said. My brothers waved in greeting.

  The relief has spread throughout the cabin. The tension has completely lifted. Everyone seems to just be happy that we avoided tragedy. Even Charlie seems to be more energized and in a good mood.

  Charlie stepped forward to greet my brothers, studiously ignoring me. “Hi, I’m Charlie. I’m the one all this fuss is about. And this is- hey, where’d Jaxon go?” she asked, looking around for the werewolf.

  “He ran off like a coward while we were distracted with…uh…the fae’s temporary issue,” Dashiel said, being as tactful as he can be. “We should leave before someone else shows up. If we can find you here, then someone else can too,” he continued, getting back to business.

  “I have an apartment in Paris that we can use. No one knows about it except for the dates I bring back there. I pay the rent in cash, so there should be no paper trail to help someone find it,” Jarrett suggested.