The Reapers (The Hunted Series Book 1) Read online

  A large bus sped toward the intersection with no indication of slowing. That moment, a woman yelling into her phone passed in front of him and stepped into the street without looking. She slipped on a frozen patch that covered the curb. Her ankle twisted and she let out a yelp. Her body lurched forward as she tried in vain to take her weight off the injured foot and balance in her sharp stilettos.

  The abrupt movements broke Kain’s concentration on the figure in the middle of the road. He reached out and jerked her back onto the sidewalk. The woman landed with a hard THUD as the bus zoomed by, splashing up mud.

  “Are you kidding me?” Cassandra threw her hands up, and looked down at her expensive —and now ruined— suit, coffee dripped down her front. She picked up her mud-covered phone with her thumb and index finger and huffed in disgust.

  “Are you all right?” Kain knelt down next to her and checked her over. He picked up her leg and carefully examined it for anything that might be broken.

  “Ouch!” She scrunched up her face in annoyance.

  “It doesn’t appear to be broken, just sprained. Can you try to flex your ankle?” He gingerly set her foot down.

  Cassandra grimaced in pain and snapped at him, “Can you freaking bite me? Now I’m going to be late for my meeting with a client.” She cringed at her harsh words. “I’m sorry, it just hurts.” She flexed her foot and hissed.

  “You would’ve been killed if that bus had hit you.” Kain pointed up the street at the bus disappearing around the corner.

  “Oh my god!” Her mouth dropped open, the realization dawning that her life had almost ended. “You saved my life; you’re an angel! The light was green, it couldn’t have changed so fast.”

  “Try to stand. Where do you work? I’ll help you walk there.” Kain held out his hand to Cassandra. “My name is Kain.”

  “Cassandra.” She slipped her hand into his and let him pull her to her feet.

  Kain placed his other hand on her elbow for support and pulled her up. She wrapped an arm around his shoulders for support as they walked. He again looked toward the intersection at the strange figure dressed in a black cloak. She glared at him, arms at her sides, and her fists clenched. Why does she look so angry? He opened his mouth to call out to her. A truck sped by and blocked his view for a brief moment. When it passed, she was gone. Kain looked up and down the street, but no trace of her remained. He shook his head, dismissing any insane notion that tried to cross his mind. Reaching out, he lifted Cassandra to her feet, and helped her walk to work.

  Nivian

  Nivian ground her teeth, furious. She had failed. She never failed. Her mark lived. It should have been impossible. The mortal had looked right at her. How could he possibly have seen her? Impossible; no one could see a reaper who didn’t want to be seen. It was not her M.O., even if it hadn’t already been against protocol. No one had ever been able to stop her before. Humans were never aware of a reaper’s presence, or the events happening, until it was too late to interfere.

  Her eyes shot daggers at the mortal who had ruined her mark, as she silently fumed. In recent times, humans had been able to postpone the slow deaths caused by The Timeless reapers through medical advances, but nothing could not stop The Silencers, they could never stop her. Yet, this one insignificant human had. This shouldn’t have happened. She would have a talk with Caspian. Saying this mark “had a presence” was a bit of an understatement. Nivian huffed in exasperation, and threw her hood over her head and vanished, teleporting to the gates of the G.R.I.M. Headquarters.

  Appearing outside the massive gates, Nivian forced herself not to run. The last thing she needed was to draw attention to herself at a time like this. How humiliating!

  At a brisk walk, she hurried into the Great Hall, passing the others who were milling about, and jogged up the stairs to the top floor. She stopped before the large doors of Caspian’s office and took a calm breath to collect herself. Nivian pushed open the black, glass doors and walked in, anxious to figure out what had happened.

  Caspian stood and leaned a hip against his large desk, as he casually looked over the Tome of Fate for the next reaper’s assignment. The Tome was large, bound in dark brown leather with intricate designs stamped into the side of the binding, an eye in the center of the cover. Pages made of a delicate and shining thin paper it was almost translucent filled the space between the binding. Caspian could see everything within the pages of the book, who was to be marked and when. Created by two of the three Fates: Clotho, Lachesis, and Atropos. Clotho weaved the book, and Lachesis placed the words into its pages where they would live, forming the words that would answer the chosen reader’s questions. It was Atropos who created the scythe for the reapers and gave them the power they possessed over death.

  “Nivian, I am glad you are here,” Caspian said, as he glanced up from the large tome. “What is wrong? You look worried, Nivi.”

  “Caspian, he saw me!” Nivian said. She hated that her voice shook, hated that she was not her normal calm and collected self, and hated feeling as if she was missing something. She took a deep breath to calm and steady her shaky voice. It didn’t work.

  He tilted his head ever so slightly to the side that Nivian would have missed it if she had blinked. Caspian closed the book, set it down, and walked over to her. A long moment passed as he stood before her. He placed his arm around her shoulders and led her to the chair in front of his desk then motioned for her to have a seat.

  He sat on the edge of the desk and crossed his arms. “A mark will often see you as you reap them, Nivian. You know that.”

  “Not my mark. An unmarked human.” That got his attention. He raised an eyebrow. “Some mortal interfered with my reaping. He looked at me. Twice. An unmarked human has ever seen me in my this form before!” She let out a heavy sigh and threw her hands up in disbelief. “I failed, Caspian. I failed.”

  “No one can stop a Silencer.” Caspian’s voice was flat, his face held no hint of humor.

  “He looked me right in the eyes. There was no one else he could have possibly been looking at. How is that possible, my Lord? Is this what you meant when you told me she had a presence?”

  “Caspian,” he said, absent-mindedly correcting her. He leaned his hip against the desk again and rested his chin in his hand. His narrowed eyes studied her face. “I see.” He nodded. A few strands of his coal black hair fell over an eye. “I knew she had a presence around her. However, I had been unable to find the source of it. I have a suspicion of what the cause could be, yet it does not seem possible.” His eyes clouded over; he appeared to be talking more to himself than to her.

  “Caspian, please, just tell me. I don’t understand what’s going on.” Nivian walked up to him until there were only a few short inches of space between them. Placing her hand on his arm, she brought his full attention back to her.

  “No need to worry, Nivian. It is all right for the time being. The occasional failure is understandable. You should go on home and try again tomorrow.” Caspian took her hand in his, gave it a soft pat and lead her to the door. Her head spun from his quick dismissal. A mortal seeing a reaper didn’t "just happen." Something was going on, and she was going to find out what it was. Nivian looked up at him, her eyebrows pulled together. Caspian’s mouth was drawn into a tight line as he looked forward, already deep in thought.

  “Caspian?” Nivian whispered, as she clenched her hands at her sides.

  “Nivian, I will see you soon.” His eyes flashed, silencing any further discussion.

  Nivian allowed him to lead her out of the room without so much as a goodbye. She tossed a confused look over her shoulder at the closed door. Nivian shrugged and continued down through the Headquarters, confused about what had just happened. He had never dismissed her so abruptly before. It was clear he was hiding something. As soon as she was outside the front gates, she drew her hood over her head and vanished.

  She landed in the foyer of the studio apartment she called home. It held little more th
an her bed and a few odd pieces of furniture, but it was functional. The walls were bare. A kitchen was to the left of the entry with a square island, only a few feet wide in the center and surrounded by three mismatched barstools. The small living space, separated by a tall partition, doubled as the bedroom. An antique chair sat in the corner, and a love seat placed just off center to create the semblance of a room. She had arranged the bed between the dresser and the ceiling high French doors that led to her favorite part: The balcony. A simple setup by human standards, but she didn’t need much. In fact, she didn’t need any of it. Nivian loved human existence, and she wanted a minuscule piece of it for herself.

  Or, more accurately, what she thought the human experience was. She had never spent any length of time with a mortal, at least not outside of reaping one. She’d been inside homes, businesses, and all of their various structures, but that had been purely business. All she knew, which wasn’t much, she had learned from a distance. But the idea enthralled her. She wanted to find out more, but was unsure how to how to go about it. To observe a human was like watching a legend come to life. What she could see, Nivian knew didn’t even scratch the surface.

  She had adopted several human habits, a place to live, things to put in it, drinking coffee, and sleeping. There wasn’t a reason for her to sleep, but she could when she wanted to. It had become a routine she craved more than a need. Caspian humored her and had helped her to obtain the apartment years ago. The balcony felt almost out of place in this building. It had just enough room for two people and a few potted plants.

  Frustrated by the night’s events, she quickly transformed into her human identity she used when she wanted to be seen by mortals. She went out onto her balcony, sat down with her back against the railing, and tilted her head back to look up at the graying sky, the light breeze brushing across her skin. A light drizzle fell, and she welcomed the chilled feeling of the rain. Although it was small, she loved her charming sanctuary that looked out over the city.

  “Nivian?” Caspian’s voice asked.

  She lifted her head to see him standing in the threshold of the balcony door behind her. She spared him a bored glance and blinked a few times in his direction before dropping her head back to watch the brewing storm above her.

  “I could not talk to you earlier,” he said. “It had to be here, where no one would overhear us.”

  Nivian stood and dusted an invisible piece of lint off her shoulder before she crossed her arms. Caspian towered more than a head over her, and though she would never be intimidating to him, being on her feet would bring her closer to equal ground.

  “What is going on, Caspian? First you blow me off, and now you have some big secret you couldn’t talk to me about.”

  “Tell me about the human.”

  “He was ordinary, nothing about him stood out. I was in the middle of my mark when he stood and looked me in the eye. The next thing I knew he had stopped my mark by pulling her to safety.”

  Caspian nodded and let out a deep breath. “I felt a presence around her after pulling her name from the Tome. I wasn’t sure what it was. I still cannot be certain yet, though I have an idea. I need you to be careful; something strange is happening around various marks.”

  Nivian raised her eyebrows in disbelief. “Thanks for that.” She turned her back to him and leaned her arms on the railing. “I’d already figured that part out.”

  “Don’t be like that, Nivi.” His face fell at her biting remark.

  “Caspian, I need answers, not riddles, or to be told what I already know.”

  “You are sure he saw you?”

  “I—I don’t know. I mean, I think he did. But he was a bit far away for me to be entirely confident. Now, I’m not sure. Is it even possible?” Nivian chewed her lip. “I’m not sure.”

  The silence between them stretched out until Nivian thought there was nothing left for either of them to say.

  Caspian took a deep breath and said, “all I can say for now is that I suspect there is a hunter out there. If I am right, then the human who interfered with your reaping might be one of them.”

  Nivian threw him a warning glance. “A hunter? I thought we were the hunters.”

  “They are mortal, but they are not human. All you need to know is that they are the only force ever to exist to have the ability to stop a reaper.”

  “What does that mean?” She stood up straight and faced him again.

  “It means they are dangerous to reapers. They have the power to not only interfere with our reapings but also the ability to destroy us.”

  “Reapers can’t be destroyed!” Nivian gaped at him in shock. “And if they were a threat to us, then why don’t we know about them?”

  “They were thought to have been killed off by reapers long ago. It wasn’t important for you to know any longer. They are now just part of our ancient history, or that is what they should be. Reapers were meant to have forgotten them. Silas had his reasons. We have only recently heard whispers in the human realm, hinting at the possible continuance of their existence. We need to know for sure.” Caspian leaned over the railing next to her and hung his head. Water drops rolled off the ends of his hair, dripping onto the back of his hand.

  “And you think this human might be one of them?” Nivian slid over to stand next to him.

  “I am not sure yet. Humans will often appear to look directly at us if we happen to be in their line of sight.” He looked down at her, concern written across on his face. “Even so, please be careful, Nivian, and keep your distance from him for now, until I am sure.” His voice was low. The lights from the city illuminated his face, highlighting his handsome features. Nivian looked away when she realized she was staring. Her cheeks heated as a blush crept up her face.

  “I will,” Nivian said, bumping him with her shoulder, “Caspian.”

  “Finish your mark,” Caspian said, straightening up to leave. Nivian nodded, watching as he threw his hood over his head and vanished. With a sigh, she walked back into her apartment.

  Three

  Nivian

  Nivian lay on her bed as the sun filtered in through the balcony doors. She groaned and rolled over, burying her face in her pillows. Between her frustration with the human and the gnawing feeling in her gut that Caspian wasn’t telling her everything she needed to know, sleep had evaded her most of the night. Nivian wanted—no, she needed—answers to whatever was going on and knew that there was something different about this human.

  What if this human was one of the hunters Caspian had mentioned? What would that mean for her and the other reapers? Why had Caspian told her to be careful? He wouldn’t have said that, unless, there was a real threat. How could a mere mortal hurt her, or any reaper for that matter? She could understand them being pests and interfering with the reapings, but what could a half-human, half—whatever actually do? They were still part human, so how powerful could they be?

  With a frustrated growl, she threw her pillow across the room. It hit the wall with a soft thud and slid to the floor. She stared at her ceiling and chewed her lip. She needed to do something about this situation.

  Kicking off her covers, Nivian pushed herself off the bed. After she took care of her mark, she planned on doing a little investigating on this mortal who complicated her peaceful life. Maybe she could find some answers as to what was going on.

  "First things first," she sighed and trudged into the kitchen. She’d need a large pot of coffee she had to deal with this headache of an assignment.

  Nivian threw on her cloak and transported herself to the downtown courtroom where the lawyer argued her case. Cassandra halted mid-sentence, clutched her left arm and collapsed to the ground, where she succumbed to the heart attack. Humans flocked around her but were unable to save her. As her life thread was cut, the lawyer had snapped at Nivian and demanded that her soul be put back inside her body so she could finish her closing statement and win.

  It hadn’t gone exactly how Nivian had wanted it to, but
at least this time there had been no interference from any annoying humans.

  Finally, it was time to set out and see who this mortal was who had ruined her reaping.

  She found him quickly enough. The interfering human’s energy was intense—it pulled at her the moment she had zeroed in on it. She concentrated on his life force, reached out, and searched for his location. His energy gripped at her spine, she could feel the mortal head toward the tree she perched in. The connection wasn't as strong as it would have been had he been her mark, but it stood out like fire against a night sky.

  “Time to see who—or what—this guy is,” she murmured and pulled her cloak over her head to wait for him. A moment later, he rounded the corner. He wore black sweatpants and a red hoodie with the hood pulled over his head. His face was hidden as he approached her tree. But she knew it was the mortal she sought.

  Kain

  Red sneakers hit the pavement with a rhythmic thudding that matched the heavy pant of his breath. A chill enveloped him and tightened his fists as tension filled his body. He could sense the weight of eyes on him. An icy hand grabbed at his spine, freezing the blood in his veins. Kain slowed to a stop after a few paces, and pulled his headphones out of his ears and looked over his shoulder. Nothing stood out; a few pedestrians milled about, but nothing out of the ordinary. It was still early enough for the city to feel empty. The same as any other day. He gave one last glance behind him, trying to shrug off the sensation, and continued on his run.

  He slowed again when he spotted a small movement a half block ahead. Sitting in a bare tree, a petite girl with long, platinum blonde hair. She sat, casually positioned on a high branch with black cape whipping around her dangling legs.

  How odd. He narrowed his forest green eyes and kept going. It seems I have a stalker. She came across as odd more than threatening. Busy intersections, tall trees, and who knew where else, he shook his head, this girl had a death wish hanging out in places like that.