I clutched Chris’s arm, holding him back, my eyes fixed on Killian. ‘Is it true? Do you know of a way to defeat Grimm?’
Killian’s cold stare froze me in place. He lifted one eyebrow. ‘If you can think with your brains instead of what is between your legs, there is a chance.’
‘If you don’t shut up …’ said Chris, his hands knotted into fists.
‘You will do what? Bore me to death with harsh words and ineffectual action? Do yourself a favour and shut the hell up. I have a plan.’ His teeth gleamed when his mouth opened into a barracuda smile. ‘It is Cade’s plan, one to bring about the end of Almorthanos and any who side with Clan Davilia, including the Grim Reaper.’
At Killian’s insistence we moved to the large dining table. He sat across from us, briefcase unopened in front of him. ‘First some background information. Not only is Cade the biological father of your host body, he is also your distant uncle, both of your host and your original body. Liren’s blood runs in both families and Cade’s visits to Mrs Bradbury ensured her son would be borne with a strong Tr’lirian heritage.’
‘I don’t have wings. I can’t slip into the astral plane, so what is it you want me for?’
‘We are unable to reach Almorthanos while he is tucked away inside Demania, and Grimm rules the Underworld so we will have no luck getting to him when he arrives there either. For Almorthanos to be vulnerable we need him alive, in a mortal body, on this plane. The trick is how to get him here without realising it is a trap. That is where you come in,’ said Killian, his eyes on Chris.
Killian wore a sharklike grin as he continued. ‘We never thought it possible, until you were resurrected in Chris Bradbury’s body. A most fortuitous benefit of our breeding program. One that will prove even more useful than ensuring those of Cade’s blood were born into positions of power here on the physical plane.’
Chris leant back in his seat, face blank, right hand flat on the table in front of him, fingers spread out as if to ground himself. ‘I’m the bait,’ he said, his deep voice muted.
‘Indeed. As soon as we realised what had happened, Cade and I knew such an occurrence would be sure to catch the attention of Jonathon Grimm and through him his master.’
Chris’s body tensed and I put a hand on his arm. He turned and gave me a tight smile, but the knot in my stomach did not go away.
Chris’s brow furrowed as he considered Killian. ‘All the bull you’ve been feeding me, the research you’ve supposedly been doing, why string me along?’
‘Do not forget, you are the one who contacted me. I merely observed the situation until you sped up the clock. Your determination to find a way to save Miss Morgan and yourself from Grimm forced my hand. I could not risk you doing anything to jeopardise Cade’s plan. So I fed you a few juicy titbits here and there, biding my time until the deadline came upon us.’
‘By jeopardise, you mean you didn’t want us to find a way to defeat Grimm,’ I said, the bitter words making my stomach churn.
Killian turned his cold gaze on me. ‘Precisely. I led Chris to believe I had a solution to your dilemma and prevented you from exploring other avenues. It would not have suited our purpose for you to discover you held the power to defeat Grimm within your own hands all along. Your necklace is all you ever needed. One blast from it and Grimm would be sent back to the Underworld severely weakened, unable to trouble anyone for quite some time.’
I surged out of my seat. ‘You bastard. Grimm has my mother’s soul, he’s going to torture her, and he turned my best friend into a Wraith. I could have stopped him, if you’d told us the truth in the first place.’
‘Your mother is yet another one of Malia’s get, why would we care about easing her suffering. As for your friend - Cade and I realised there would be human casualties as a result of our plan, she is merely the first of many. Besides, you would need years to master your necklace’s unique properties. You have had a week, not near enough time to attune yourself to its energy and learn how to manipulate the psychic power it holds.’
I clasped my necklace in both hands. When I’d yelled at the young men fleeing the accident the other day, they’d heard me. Was this what Killian meant when he talked about the necklace’s unique properties? I opened my mouth to ask, only to go silent when I caught Chris’s look of caution.
Chris thumped his fist on the table. ‘Damn it, Killian, you have no right to play with our lives.’
‘Of course I do, and your sacrifice will not be in vain.’ Killian gave a razor sharp smile. ‘Cade’s human son will be remembered long after his death frees us of Almorthanos’s influence. He will make Hell on Earth a pleasant prospect if he should roam unchecked across this world.’
‘What about Tyler? How shall she be remembered?’
Killian’s face hardened. ‘Any tainted with the blood of Malia or Almorthanos will be expunged from memory, it will be as if they never existed.’
I gasped, half choking on a brittle laugh. ‘You get what you want and anyone who doesn’t fit in your world view gets exterminated.’
‘It is for the best, trust me on this. But enough chit chat. You need to understand the part you are to play in,’ he checked his watch, ‘four hours. At midnight tonight, Miss Morgan, you will reap Chris’s soul and hand him over to Grimm. He will then kill you and take both your souls back to the Underworld. You will then let Almorthanos out of Demania while Chris explains to Grimm exactly how he came to be resurrected. Once they have found a suitable candidate who is descended from Malia, Almorthanos can be brought back to life and Cade and I can kill him.’
‘You can’t be serious.’
‘You wanted to know how you could defeat Grimm, this is it. You both have to die.’ He shrugged. ‘Cade and I will take care of the rest.’
‘Get out.’ Chris stood up so fast the heavy timber chair he’d been sitting on fell to the floor behind him. ‘Get out before I kill you.’
‘Did you not learn anything? You cannot touch me,’ said Killian, with a smirk. Then he vanished.
Chris spun around, eyes scanning the room as he stepped over the fallen chair. Then he lunged forward, fist ramming into Killian’s stomach when he materialised.
‘I may not be able to weave in and out of the astral plane, like you,’ said Chris, ‘but I’m not blind.’ He sneered at Killian. ‘I guess it’s one of the side effects from having Cade as a father. Ever since I was resurrected I’ve been able to see into the astral plane. You can’t hide from me, Killian. I will find you and I will kill you.’
‘You do not scare me, boy. You are as good as dead anyway. Come midnight Grimm will have your soul and there is nothing you can do about it.’ Killian snatched up his briefcase and stalked out of the penthouse.
I watched him go, all my hope leaving with him.
Chapter 37
Chris pulled me around to face him. ‘Don’t give up.’
‘Why not? He’s right. We’re as good as dead.’
‘As long as we have breath in our bodies we’ll keep fighting, and even after if we have to. Killian said your necklace holds the power to defeat Grimm.’
‘But I don’t know how to use it and we have no time to figure it out. Grimm will be here in a few hours.’
‘You used it before, remember? You made people hear you when you were in astral form. You can do it again.’
‘I don’t think yelling at Grimm is going to have much of an effect,’ I said, although I allowed Chris to lead me to the couch. We sat facing one another.
‘Focus on your necklace, try to forge a connection with it,’ he said.
I placed both hands on the necklace, gripping the wings on either side of the skull, closing my eyes as I concentrated on the shape of it beneath my fingers. Cold, hard, it remained an inanimate object, repelling the warmth of my hands. I let go.
‘It’s no use. The only time it does anything is when I’m called to reap. I can’t even control when I take astral form, how am I supposed to make it do anything.’
/> ‘Keep trying,’ said Chris. ‘Think about reaping my soul, see what happens then.’
‘What if something goes wrong and I reap your soul for real.’
‘You won’t.’
I shifted uncomfortably on the couch, steadying my breathing as I took hold of my necklace once more and thought about reaping Chris’s soul. Warmth blossomed beneath my hands and I stiffened, tightening my grip so I couldn’t make accidental contact with Chris.
I didn’t take astral form but the room receded, my focus shifting to the point below Chris’s throat. I could feel his soul, sense its readiness to answer my call. I closed my eyes to block out the temptation only to open them when my lower regions quivered with the memory of the ecstasy that came from reaping an illegitimate soul. I held my bottom lip between my teeth and bit down until I could taste blood. I blanked my mind until only the connection with my necklace remained.
Like a beating heart, it pulsed with life and my own heart settled into the same rhythm. I forgot about everything else, my mind filled. The steady beat getting louder and louder the longer I listened.
I came to with a thud, my hands torn from the necklace, Chris’s anxious voice ringing in my ears. ‘Tyler, can you hear me? Tyler, wake up.’
My eyelids fluttered, the light harsh after the tranquil darkness I had been immersed in. I struggled to keep them open and focus on Chris and the more I gazed into his blue eyes the easier it became.
Chris knelt beside me, and his head sagged to my chest when I gave him a weak smile. ‘Let’s not do that again,’ he said, his words rumbling through my body.
‘What happened?’ I asked, my mouth dry, voice crackling. ‘Can I have some water, please?’
Chris helped me to a sitting position and then headed to the kitchen. I studied the clock on the wall. Quarter to midnight. I’d lost over three hours.
The necklace’s heartbeat continued to gently vibrate throughout my body. I wanted to concentrate on it, to link with it and lose myself in its steady beat. It swelled, reaching out to envelope me within its rhythm.
‘Tyler, here’s your water.’ Chris stood in front of me, holding out a glass, and I struggled to pull myself back to reality. My hand didn’t feel like it belonged to me when I reached out and took hold of the glass, but as I sipped the cold water the necklace’s heartbeat retreated.
I rolled the water around my mouth, letting it slowly drip down my throat. ‘Tell me what happened?’
‘I couldn’t wake you. I thought you were lost in the astral plane.’
I shook my head and frowned. ‘I think I was inside the necklace, our hearts beating as one.’ I gazed at Chris. ‘Is that even possible? It’s dead, isn’t it?’
Chris ran his good hand through his hair. ‘I don’t know.’ He hesitated, and a hopeful gleam lit his eyes. ‘Did it happen to hand you an instruction manual while the two of you were bonding?’
‘Sorry.’
‘I guess we’re on our own.’ He pulled me to my feet and wrapped his arm around me. I tucked my head under his chin, taking comfort from his presence. If Grimm won then this would be the last time I felt the touch of a living being.
‘Oh good, you’re both here. Saves me the trouble of hunting you down.’
We sprang apart and I fought back a curse when I saw Grimm’s reflection in one of the full length mirrors hanging on the wall on either side of the sideboard behind the dining table. The other mirror showed the Underworld, and my mother imprisoned in a cage of mist.
‘Mum,’ I said, starting to move towards her, one hand rubbing my necklace as it sent tiny shocks into my skin.
Chris grabbed my arm and pulled me against his side, his eyes never leaving Grimm. ‘Leave Tyler’s mother out of this, Grimm. She has nothing to do with this. Let her go.’
‘On the contrary, she has everything to do with this, otherwise how am I to ensure the two of you do as I want. Judging from the secrets Tyler has been keeping, I have been too lenient with her. It is time she found out exactly what it means to go up against the Grim Reaper.’ He clicked his fingers and the mist lashed my mother’s body. She screamed each time the icy tendrils touched her, ripping into her flesh. Grimm clicked his fingers again and the mist retreated. Mum sank to the floor of the cage, weeping, steaming welts all over her body.
‘Please, Tyler, do what he wants,’ she said, her eyes finding mine. ‘I can’t take any more of this.’
‘Enough, Grace,’ said Grimm. ‘I’m sure Tyler is regretting her disobedience and is only too willing to comply. Aren’t you, Tyler?’
‘You bastard. Leave my mother alone.’
‘Reap his soul and your mother goes free. Defy me and I will not hold back. She will be flayed until nothing remains of her soul but scraps, and then I will bring her back and do it all over again, and I will keep on doing it. For every second you refuse me she will be remade to suffer the same fate.’
I choked down a sob, my eyes going from my mother’s pain-ridden body to Chris’s beautiful eyes. He gave me a sad smile and nodded his head.
‘It’s okay,’ he said. ‘I understand. She’s your mother.’
I shook my head, taking a step back when he moved towards me. I put up a hand to ward him off. ‘No, I can’t do this. I won’t kill you.’
‘I want you to do this. You’ll never forgive yourself if you sacrifice your mother for me.’
‘Do you think I’ll be able to forgive myself if I kill you? I won’t do it, Chris. I can’t.’
‘Enough of this,’ said Grimm. ‘Tyler Morgan, will you or will you not reap this man’s soul?’
‘I will not,’ I said, casting a beseeching look my mother’s way, begging her to understand why I could not kill an innocent man, even to save her.
‘Then I will.’ Grimm hunched his shoulders and moved forward, his body stretching across the mirror’s surface before coming back together on the other side.
I stepped back, trembling, as he took his first step inside Chris’s penthouse.
He brought with him a wave of frigid air. It froze me in place as he strode towards Chris, one hand outstretched. He stood mere inches away from Chris and I struggled to move my limbs, desperate to get between them. But I couldn’t move; my ears filled with the sound of my heart beating louder and louder.
No, it wasn’t my heart. It was the necklace.
I gave myself over to the beat, merging my own heart to it and the freezing paralysis vanished. I launched my body forward, knocking Chris to one side, Grimm’s bony fingers connecting with my shoulder. Pain ripped through my chest as my soul responded to Grimm’s call, but I twisted away from him and broke the connection.
Now it was my turn.
I lunged for Grimm, one hand on my necklace. It instantly warmed beneath my touch and I grabbed hold of his throat. He did not have a soul, his body an extension of the Underworld, so I focused on the beat of my necklace. It throbbed throughout my body and when it filled me completely I opened my mouth and let a primal scream rip its way out of my lungs.
The soundwave surged through Grimm’s body, blasting its way into every part of him. He staggered and spun around, face contorted with rage. Then he morphed and suddenly I stood face to face with the Grim Reaper.
He launched himself at me and I darted to one side, desperate to avoid his skeletal touch.
‘Run,’ I screamed at Chris. He was down on one knee, face filled with horror.
Chris shouted something, but I couldn’t hear him over the beating of the necklace’s heart. It drowned out my thoughts, leaving only instinct behind. I turned around and faced the Grim Reaper, hands at my sides.
I merged with the necklace. I no longer needed to hold it to see Grimm’s true shape.
His cloak billowed in a wind created by the screams of thousands of souls. They writhed in agony, pleading for freedom, coalescing into skeletal limbs one second and separating into individual souls the next, all crying out for me to help them. A chain of souls stretched back into the mirror, tether
ing the Grim Reaper to the Underworld, feeding him with stolen energy.
A deadly parasite, he sucked them dry to maintain his connection with the physical plane. Dead souls fell away, their husks scattering to the floor even as the mist forced fresh ones into bondage.
The Grim Reaper pointed a skeletal finger at Chris and his body jerked, mouth open in a scream I could not hear. He rose into the air, back arching as the mist pulled him towards death.
More and more souls were flowing out of the mirror and into the Grim Reaper, strengthening the chain.
The mist deposited Chris at its master’s feet and he slumped down, defeated, as skeletal fingers grabbed his throat to extract his soul.
I grabbed hold of a chair and swung it as hard as I could at the mirror. It crashed to the floor, and the Grim Reaper screamed as his chain of souls was severed. Souls flew out from beneath his cloak, balls of light dancing in the air as they fled. They were so bright I had to close my eyes and turn away. When I could open them again jagged pieces of mirror lay on the ground, each one showing a tiny refection of Grimm, his mouth open in a scream with no sound. Mist swirled over each piece and when it vanished so did he.
I ran to the other mirror, watching as my mother painfully stood, her hands reaching through the bars. I put my hands against the cold surface and pressed down hard, wanting to force my way inside so I could pull her out. Mist covered the mirror and she disappeared along with it. The electrical current flowing through my necklace stopped, even as the heartbeat faded away to nothing.
I sagged to the floor, huddled into a ball, sobbing harder than I ever had before. My mother was gone, trapped in the Underworld, and it was my fault.
Chris came up behind me but I resisted his efforts to comfort me. I couldn’t bear his touch, not then. I didn’t regret what I had done. But he was a reminder of all I had lost. I got to my feet, wiping at my face as I turned around, steeling myself against the concern sure to be evident in his eyes. But he wasn’t looking at me. His gaze fell on my necklace.
Lost Reaper (The Reaper Series Book 1) Page 24
