The Artifact Reaper Saga Box Set

by Jen L. Grey

  “I, for one, am definitely not okay.” Dad stands up and clutches his chest. “I may look like a fit man, but I haven’t had to lift heavy furniture like that since… well… since we moved into that family home.”

  Holy shit. Is my dad wearing khakis? I don’t think I have ever seen him wear anything other than suit pants.

  “Well, a little physical labor is good for all us every once in a while.” Mom rolls her eyes at me and I notice her posture isn’t as stiff as normal.

  “Yeah, easy for you to say.” He groans. “She got to carry in the light boxes.”

  “Hey now.” Mom points her finger at him. “I had to go through all that stuff.” She shakes her head. “I didn’t even realize how much stuff we had.”

  How could she not? Every spot in our house had something there. This place has to be at least a third of the size of the family home.

  “We had rooms we hadn’t been in for years full of furniture we had to get rid of.” Mom paces in the room. “I had over forty ball gowns. Forty.” She holds her hands out. “Why in the world do I need that many?”

  I have thought that same thing many times but knew better than to ask her. So… I’m not sure why the sudden attitude change.

  Her hand shakes as she reaches out and touches the top of the fireplace. “Every room I had to figure out what we needed to get rid of and what needed to be kept with the exception of yours.”

  Is this when I get in trouble? This is kind of unprecedented, so I’m not sure what’s going on.

  “Janice, you know it doesn’t have to be now…” Dad’s voice is tender.

  She holds up a hand. “Yes, it does. Too much time has already passed.” A tear escapes her, and she brushes it away with the back of her hand. “I’m so sorry I wasn’t there for you.”

  Did she just say what I think she did? Is this really happening?

  Dad walks over and wraps an arm around mom’s shoulders and looks at me. “I am, too, Christina. I don’t know what happened to us. We weren’t always this way. I don’t know if it was us having all the stuff we collected over the years shoved in our face, or the fact we knew we had lost you. Hell, maybe it was the combination of the two, but the past several days we realized we haven’t liked who we’ve become.”

  “What are you saying?” I’ve always wanted parents that were involved in my life and cared for me. Is that what they are saying they want to be? Or is this some kind of game they are playing for the council?

  “What we are both trying to say,” Mom licks her lips, “is that we know it’ll take time to prove this, but we both want to make it up to you. We both realize we have become egocentric, self-involved parents, and weren’t what you deserved. Something happened to us and we became our parents.”

  If they are going to own it then I shouldn’t have to skirt around it. “You’re right. Growing up was hard. You both were always criticizing me. I was never good enough. It was hard and when you left me in that dungeon….” My eyes fill with tears, but I refuse to let them fall. I won’t be weak. I can’t be anymore. At some point, I have to control my own destiny.

  A sob leaves my mom. “I know, baby.” She takes a few steps toward me but stops. Tears run down her face. “I’m so sorry. I wish I could go back in time and slap some sense into that cold, heartless version of myself.”

  For once, neither one of them bring up the Angel’s Breath. However, they are both broken right now and that’s why they are “turning around”. What happens once they are reinstated? “How long is all,” I wave my hand around the duplex, “this supposed to last?”

  “Honey, they are selling our house.” Dad’s voice is soft. “This is indefinite.”

  “You mean you’re never getting your status back?” I don’t understand. That doesn’t make sense. They have served them loyally.

  Mom touches my arm. “The only reason we aren’t in jail is due to our countless years of unfailing service.”

  That’s why I’m confused. “Right. So why are you in trouble?” I’m working for them for God’s sake. “I’m still a reaper and working for the council. I’m doing everything they are asking me to do.” What more could they want from me? What else do I have to give? “So why are they still punishing you guys?”

  “Oh, honey.” Mom tugs me closer and gives me a hug. She pulls back and cups my face. “It’s because you didn’t give them the stone.”

  And there it is. They are going to punish me for that as long as they can. They want to make sure I learn my lesson, but all they are doing is reinforcing I made the right one. This is the real test to my parent’s relationship right here. I bite my lower lip and my tone is light, just above a whisper. “I’m not sure the council are the right people to give it to.”

  My mother’s grip doesn’t change, but she stares me back in the eye. She lets out a breath and nods. “You’re right. They aren’t.”

  Chapter Nine

  The next few days fly by in a flurry. I hadn’t realized it, but Charlie was pissed with Lenny’s little bar set up and had been searching for a better trainer. While I had been preoccupied with the council and spending time with my parents, he had been searching for a more reputable trainer, which he found.

  This guy was off the grid so to speak, and Charlie found him by talking to some friends at the center about the legends of angels. The thing about reapers is we love to gossip about other supernaturals. The one who comes off as if they know the most is, for some odd reason, the one everyone wants to listen to, so Charlie used that to his advantage. One of his friends said he heard of some type of supernatural that lives on the outskirts of town that had gone up against angels. The others made fun of him, but Charlie took note.

  He came back to me one night and told me about this guy. I was able to lock in on him and we found him the next morning. He was very reluctant at first, but once we explained why we needed his help and that we needed something from the angels even if we had to steal it, he was on board.

  The next few days were intense training. I’ve never seen someone with his strength or speed. He doesn’t train us with kickboxing, but with hand to hand combat. Angels don’t fight like humans, they don’t hesitate to use their strength and speed. They don’t slacken their abilities and start out strong. They zone in on the weakest spots and use heavy weapons because it feels lightweight to them. So, we’ve been training with being attacked with large, heavy swords. I use a small angel blade to counter the attacks. It’s light but the metal is resilient and strong and can block the blows. It was his mother’s sword, given to him by his father the day his mother passed. It was several years ago so he is letting me borrow it for the mission.

  Today was an especially grueling lesson. Toby is attacking me in a series of blows which I’m countering, but then he swirls like a blur and attacks me on the left side, chopping down. He flipping knows this is my weakest side, which is why he’s doing it. I can spin around in time to block it all, and wind up falling flat on my ass. The pain radiates through my tailbone and my ears ring. I try to move, but it’s in slow motion. Pain radiates within.

  Charlie rushes over to help which is what Toby expects. Before Charlie can even defend me, Toby has kicked out his legs and tripped Charlie, making him land on top of me, causing more weight to land on me.

  Trying not to land all his weight on me, Charlie reaches out trying to catch himself with his hands, but winds up hitting his head on the ground. “Oh, shit.”

  Great, we are both down for the count. I lay back on the ground in defeat. We’re both dead at this point.

  “What the hell were you thinking?” Toby leans over Charlie and shakes his head. “You can’t react that way. That’s just stupid. You protect her better by standing your ground and battling. Not running over and reacting like that. They’ll expect someone from Earth to do that and will use it to their advantage.”

  “How do you know all of this?” Charlie rubs his head and stands.

  “Let’s say I have more in common with thos
e people than I’d like to admit.” He puts his swords back in his sheath and shakes his head.

  I’ve been wondering the same thing. I attempt to get up, my ears still ringing. Charlie’s arms wrap around my waist, helping me.

  “You can’t make mistakes, or it will cost you her.” Toby’s face is tense and his eyes narrow as he stares into Charlie’s eyes.

  Something happened to him and it wasn’t good. “What did they do to you?”

  “They killed my mother.” His face lines with pain and eyes flash with anger.

  Wait, do angels kill innocents? That doesn’t make sense. “Well, a reaper had to be there to help. But why would we and why would they if it was before their time?”

  His face takes on a smirk and his voice turns condescending. “A reaper is only needed in the Earth realm. They took her to the angel one. The one you seek. Her punishment was for falling in love with an angel and having a child. My father died in a battle after a friend ratted us out.”

  Oh, shit. He does have insider knowledge and a true hatred against the angels. “Why didn’t they kill you?”

  “For some reason, they aren’t allowed to kill the children.” His nostrils flare. “However, this was a way to make their life a little harder for them.” His eyes meet mine and there is a coldness in them that makes me shiver. “But I have a very long life ahead and if I can cause a little chaos in their life from time to time, I’m all for it.”

  I make a note to never cross this guy. He’s kind of scary. I glance at my phone and notice it’s after six in the evening. “What else do we need to do?”

  He glances around. “Actually, that’s enough today. Especially after your fall.” He walks over and lays a hand on my shoulder. “You did well today.”

  “Uh… did you just see my fall?” That was the worst fall I’ve taken since this began.

  “Well, you won’t let that happen again. I’ve been planning on doing that for a while.” He drops his hand. “You two go home and get some rest.” He turns and walks inside his house.

  “Come on, let’s head home.” Charlie heads off toward the car.

  A shower and pajamas sound just like the medicine I need. I limp off to the car and we head back to the apartments.

  I can’t believe the whooping I took today. “Do you think we are ever going to be able to hold our own against the angels?”

  “Hey now,” Charlie glances at me. “Look how far we’ve come.”

  Wow, does he not think I’d catch on that he avoided answering my question? “All right then. When did you turn into one of those type of reapers that avoid answering questions at all cost?”

  He chuckles. “Fine. We suck. I don’t know if we will be able to hold our own, but we have gotten better. But at the same time, they are angels. They are a superior being to us.”

  “Yeah,” I pick at the edge of my tank top, “I know. It’s just, what else am I supposed to do? I’m supposed to go up there and get a vial of Angel’s Breath. It’s not like they are going to just hand it over.”

  “I have no clue what we should expect.” He sighs and runs a hand through his hair. “All I know is I’m sore as anything and we have no way to get there.”

  Shit, he’s right about that. I pull out my phone and scan my contacts for Becca. I haven’t heard from her in weeks. I don’t know what the hell is going on. I take a deep breath. “I’m going to try calling Becca again.”

  “Yeah, I’d give it another try.” He shrugs.

  At the end of the day, we are both at a loss as to what to do. I press send and listen to the phone ring. The line continues to ring and then I’m put through to her voicemail only to be informed her mailbox is full. This is the same song and dance as the last few times. “Surprise, surprise, no answer.”

  “This makes no sense.” Charlie groans.

  Something is up. I messed up agreeing to let the demon keep her. At the time, it seemed like it was the one option we had, and maybe it was then, but it’s led to this. I’m worried we’ve lost her to him. He is charismatic after all, especially to a human that doesn’t know any better.

  Charlie rubs his chin. “Why do you think she can realm jump?”

  That’s the million-dollar question and the answer scares me. At the end of the day, I’m pretty sure it’s my doing. “I am almost certain it’s because I restored her soul.”

  “You don’t think she could do it before?” He slows down as he comes to a red light.

  “No, she couldn’t.” She struggled in my room when I tried to get her to take me to the realm for the Earth Stone. “When she helped me last time, she was clueless. We had to figure it out together.”

  “Well, maybe that would happen if we brought someone else back to life.” Charlie taps his fingers on the steering wheel and keeps his eyes on the road in front of him.

  “Wait,” Is he suggesting what I think he is? “Are you saying I should bring someone else back and see if they can realm jump as well?”

  The light turns green, so he presses the gas down. “Yeah. It would test out the theory and if it works, we would have a realm jumper and our problem would be solved.”

  That’s true, but that could get us into a mess. “Yeah, but what if we reaped someone bad and then brought them back to life and they had all these additional capabilities.” I don’t want to add any more problems to my ever-growing list than we already have. “And would it be someone ahead of their time? I…”

  “No, I have the perfect person.” His eyes shine bright.

  Now I’m curious. He never gets this excited. “Who?”

  “Beth.” A wide grin spreads across his face. “We could get her back. It would benefit us both and she could get us where we need to go.”

  Oh, good. How I want her back. Could I make that happen? But it’s been over two years. “I… I don’t know. It’s been so long.” I pull at my ponytail. “The handful of times I’ve done it, it’s been someone who’s died just in the last few minutes. I don’t know if I can do it for someone who’s been gone for so long. And I mean reapers don’t have souls.”

  “But we could try, right?” Charlie reaches out and touches my hand. “I mean I get it if you can’t, but what if we can make this work, Christina?”

  He’s right. What if I can? It can’t hurt to try. “Okay, let’s go.”

  “Now?” His mouth drops open.

  “Yeah, if I can bring her back, I want her back now, not tomorrow.” Hell, if this works, I’ll be kicking myself for not trying it sooner.

  “All right, let’s do this.” He cuts over into the left lane and turns at the next intersection turning back toward the graveyard.

  We’re both silent as we head to the cemetery. We aren’t sure what’s going to happen, but we are both hoping for the best. We get there in a few minutes and hurry to Beth’s tombstone.

  Without any prompting, I sit down in front of the stone and put my hands down into the ground right above where her casket is resting. I close my eyes and look for Beth. I call for her and seek her out. Since she’s been outside her body for so long, I’m not surprised she doesn’t come the first round. If she is out there somewhere, she’s farther away. I reach deep down into my power and get ready to push the call further, zoning in on her essence even more. Right before I let out the call, a hand pulls me back off kilter and I land on my already bruised tailbone. “What the hell?”

  “Oh, sorry,” Becca laughs, “I didn’t mean to scare you.”

  Charlie grabs my hand and helps me up. “Why did you push her over like that?”

  “I didn’t mean to.” She widens her eyes and places a hand on her chest. “I guess I’m stronger than I realized.”

  Okay, she’s being weird. “No, you just caught me off guard.”

  She crosses her arms. “So, what did you need? You’ve been calling me nonstop?”

  What the hell is going on? It’s like she’s a different person.

  Chapter Ten

  It’s strange to see Becca here and no
w. She looks the exact same, but at the same time, she doesn’t. I take a step into Charlie without realizing. “Have I upset you somehow?”

  “Nope.” She shrugs and glances at Beth’s tombstone. “Just been busy.”

  Something is wrong. It’s written all over her face. “Did something happen?” I have to reach her before she leaves. There is no telling when I’ll see her again. “You can tell me anything.”

  “Awe, you wanna pretend I’m Beth and pretend we’re best friends?” She sneers at me.

  Charlie tenses, but I squeeze his arm. I don’t want him making this worse.

  I take a step away from him. “No, not at all.” Is that what she thinks or what Damien is putting into her mind? “I’m worried about you, Becca. Is that why you’ve been avoiding my phone calls?”

  She sighs. “You do realize the world doesn’t revolve around you, right?” Her hazel eyes flash and her hands clench in fists. “I mean … I get everyone has it out for you, but others can go days without thinking about you … at least when you aren’t calling them constantly.”

  “I’m sorry.” I don’t even know what to do here. “I didn’t mean to bother you. It’s just we need a realm jumper.”

  “Of course, you do,” She leans on her back leg and crosses her arms, her blonde hair blowing in the breeze.

  “I … I need to find the Angel’s Breath. It’s the second artifact.” How do I engage her and make her want to help? I’m totally clueless at this point. “It’s in the angel’s realm. I … I need your help. Please. The fate of the world is at stake.”

  “Yeah, yeah.” She pulls her cell phone out and checks it. “How does this affect me?”

  “Your parents and brother.” Is she being serious right now? “If these items get into the wrong hands, their lives, along with yours, could be impacted drastically.”

  “Oh, yeah. That.” She puts her phone in her pocket. “That sounds bad. Look, I’ve got to go, but I’ll get back in touch. I’m sure I can squeeze you in sometime later.” She lifts her arms and draws a circle transporting out right then and there.