The Reapers (The Hunted Series Book 1) Page 3

  Nivian

  Nivian jumped down and landed gracefully on the ground. She had waited for him to run a short distance ahead, determined to follow him. That was odd. Did he see me again? She banished the thought. It’s impossible. There was something different about this human; perhaps he was somehow linked to the hunters as Caspian suspected. If, that is, the theory was even correct.

  Nivian sat in the back corner of her favorite coffee shop and contemplated what to do next. She had followed him for a while before giving up. He hadn’t done anything worth watching and quickly bored her. She hoped he would give her something to work with next time. Eventually, she retreated to her favorite place to think of a plan. Typically she would confront a mystery head on, but Caspian had warned her to keep her distance. And that posed a bit of a problem. Even though she didn’t understand why any reaper would need to be careful of anyone, to take his warning lightly would be a mistake on her part. She twirled a strand of her hair and pondered how to get the answers she needed.

  The bell on the café door jingled, bringing her out of her reverie. The human stepped through the entrance. She inhaled a sharp breath as she watched him walk to the counter. He waited in line and looked at the menu. Nivian gathered her powers into herself. The energy of her powers swirled around her. Now the entire coffee shop would be completely oblivious to anything that happened around her small corner. She felt more at ease now that she’d prepared her defense. Nivian leaned back in her chair with her back to the window to observe the entire room and waited to see what would happen. It was a small café with only a few booths at the far end and five smaller two-person round tables in the corner where she sat. When he ordered his coffee, he leaned forward and spoke softly to the barista.

  Kain

  Kain smiled at the barista one last time as she handed him his coffee and a folded up napkin with her number on it. He turned around and stopped in his tracks. His body stiffened in shock as their eyes locked with the strange light blue ones that had haunted him for days. The pale haired girl sat alone in the corner, her arms crossed as she glared at him.

  Most of the customers had taken up the available seats though her nook remained empty as though everyone were avoiding her. Mischief sparkled in Kain’s eyes as he took a seat two tables away. He sat and slowly sipped his coffee, his face a neutral mask. Occasionally, he lifted his eyes to meet hers.

  With one final sip of his coffee, he took another glance at the girl whose eyes still bored into him. He stood, his mouth turned up on one side into a crooked grin. The girl was bold to follow him so openly.

  Her mouth dropped open. He loved that he could shock this stranger. Not giving her time to react, he turned on his heel and walked to the door, tossing his cup and the napkin in the trash on his way out.

  Nivian

  Did he just smile at me? Who is this guy? Nivian continued to sit in the corner of the tiny café, unsure what to think about the smile. He had seen her. Drawing on her reapers' ability to make humans unconscious of the space she occupied hadn’t worked on him. If Caspian’s fears about him being a hunter were right, then she needed to be careful. Panic stole her breath. The human could see her when he shouldn’t have been able to. She needed to see Caspian and find out exactly what he wasn’t telling her.

  She got to her feet, pulled her hood over her head with a rough tug, and transported herself to her balcony. A sigh escaped her lips as she leaned back against the wall. She tilted her head up to the sky and watched a flock of birds flying south. Peace. The light breeze ruffled the pale yellow chiffon curtains through the open balcony doors.

  “You’re looking rather pensive today, Nivian.”

  Nivian spun around and relaxed when she saw the owner of the voice. “Hey, Camira,” she greeted her friend. Camira sat with her legs stretched out on the couch, her arm bent to prop up her head. The Cheshire grin she always wore spread across her face.

  “What’s going on?” Camira swung her legs down and sat up, as her smile faded from her lips.

  “It’s nothing. It’s just that…” Nivian tugged on a lock of hair and sat down next to her friend. She debated how much she should say. Who else could she talk to about things like this if not her best friend? “I think a human saw me.”

  “Humans can’t see us unless we want them to. You know that, Nivian. You didn’t breach protocol, did you?” She asked and leaned forward.

  “No, I didn’t. I never do.” Nivian looked down, her eyes glazed over at the memory. “He seemed to look right at me. I could have sworn he smiled at me.”

  “Maybe you let him see you because he was hot, and you wanted him to see you.” Camira grinned and wiggled her eyebrows.

  Nivian looked at her friend with one eyebrow raised, looking doubtful.

  “Okay, okay, probably not.” Camira leaned back on the couch and held her hands up in surrender. “He could have just been looking at something in your direction? Did you look behind you? What if he saw his girlfriend and smiled at her?”

  “I suppose you’re right. I didn’t look behind me. He was probably looking out the window. I’m just acting silly.” Nivian gave her friend a placating smile. Camira didn’t seem to think it was anything to worry over. But doubt crept into Nivian’s mind once more. The stress of having to attempt a mark more than once had made her see things that weren’t there. She needed to recharge.

  Weightlessness washed over her in calm waves. She could spend forever like this; floating on the wind like a feather.

  A violent jolt seized her body. The world disappeared and surrounded her in a thick layer of darkness. Pressure weighed down on her as it forced the air from her lungs. The temperature dropped and sent a shock through her system. Nivian tried to open her eyes, tried to move. Tried. But nothing happened.

  Burning.

  My lungs are burning.

  I can’t breathe.

  Helpless. She struggled to move, to breathe, to open her eyes, but her body refused to obey her commands. Nivian opened her mouth to call out for help. Call out to who? She couldn’t remember. Fear gripped her and pulled her deeper into her unmoving prison. The cold slowly seized every bit of feeling from her body.

  Nivian shot up, panting heavily. She placed her hand over her heart to calm its racing beat. It was only a dream. She dreamt every night; always the calm feeling of weightlessness. But tonight something had changed. Something had twisted her dream and turned it into a nightmare. The small clock glowed on her nightstand. 3:26 A.M.

  Nivian untangled herself from her blankets. She needed air.

  She stuck her head out into the hallway, the only sound that greeted her was the buzzing of the flickering hallway lights. All the people who lived in the complex were sound asleep in their beds. Quickly she shut the door behind her. Heading for the stairs, she climbed the steps, taking two at a time, to the roof access door. The chilly night air washed over her. She took a deep breath and pulled the crisp cold air into her lungs.

  The clouds passed by the full moon, bathing the quiet earth in its light. Nivian tilted her head back and allowed the quiet beauty to envelop her. She spread her arms wide and welcomed the chill night air. She turned in a slow circle as a light dusting of snow began to fall.

  Her eyes shot open as a hand grabbed her wrist and tugged, spinning her up against a hard body.

  “Caspian,” she said breathlessly, as she glanced up into his dark, midnight eyes. Butterflies fluttered in her stomach from the intense expression on his face. Was she dreaming again? She hoped so. This dream was much better than the last one.

  “Good evening, Nivi,” he said and brushed a tendril of hair behind her ear.

  “H—how did you know I was here?” She stammered.

  “You spend half your time out here. I took a chance.” He shrugged. A confident smirk played on his lips. She leaned back and let him wrap his arms around her. He always showed up when she needed his presence.

  After a while she spoke.

  “Caspian, I followe
d the human today.” Nivian pulled away, the immediate loss of his warmth cleared her head. Caspian’s back stiffened, his mouth forming a tight line.

  “He saw me, I know he did.”

  Caspian nodded. He led her to one of the old patio chairs that sat abandoned on the roof. He knelt down in front of her and framed her face in his hands. “Nivian, you are taking unnecessary chances. He could hurt you.”

  “Caspian, he only looked at me, I kept my distance.” She placed a hand on his arm to reassure him.

  He hung his head and let out a slow breath. She could see the inner debate that waged inside his head flitter across his face.

  “I think it’s time you knew what you were dealing with.”

  Nivian nodded and silently waited for him to continue.

  “The history of the reapers you know. However, there is a part of our history kept hidden, locked away by Silas. He felt it best to keep the history of the hunters and the past a secret.”

  “Yeva and Silas were created to keep the balance of life and death, both equal in power to keep the other in check.

  “Yeva?”

  “Yes, she was created as Silas’s counterpart, the protector of life. The memory of her was taken away with the memories of the hunters.”

  Nivian wrung her hands. This must be the reason no reaper could remember the beginning of time. Not that many ever thought about it.

  “Mortals were not meant to live forever, but to live short lives, taken when the life energy needed to be renewed by the earth. As the human population grew, it was necessary for Silas and Yeva to have help. And so, Silas created the reapers to carry out our duty and Yeva created the hunters. But they were not called hunters at that time; they were watchers.”

  “Watchers?” The title nagged at the back of her mind. There was something that felt so familiar to her about the word. Though it was impossible for her to place why.

  “I will get to that in a moment, Nivian,” Caspian said patiently. “The world lived in balance. Until a group of mortals discovered the fountain of Nathka; some have called it the fountain of life. Those who drank from its waters would live forever. This could not be allowed. If any mortal took on a life span that was unnatural or longer than their life energy could sustain, an imbalance would be created. We do not know for sure how they found it, but it no longer matters.

  Caspian moved to face her, the intensity of his stare made her breath hitch.

  “The discovery of the fountain lead to the great war called The Dissension.”

  “The Dissension?” She echoed. Her head was beginning to hurt. There was so much she didn’t know, so much she didn’t remember. She couldn’t wrap her head around it all.

  “The Dissension is when the watchers descended from their divine purpose to one of destruction. During the war, there was a tremendous loss for both sides. The watchers became less and less like the divine beings they once were. They grew arrogant and envious of the reapers’ power. They changed their powers and began to use them against us. From that point onward, they declared themselves hunters. The fallen hunters were believed to have died in the war. Silas believes a few true hunters remained steadfast on their mission, went into hiding; however, in the chaos following the war it was impossible to keep track of, and we never knew for certain.”

  “So, the hunters that survived should be the ones that are trying to keep the balance.” There was so much more to this mess than she could learn in a single night.

  “That is what we previously thought. However now we are doubtful.” Caspian stopped.

  Nivian knit her eyebrows together; confusion and understanding flickered across her face as the information sank in.

  “I see. So you think this human is a hunter?”

  “Did you show yourself to him, Nivian?”

  “No?” Her voice was barely audible. “I mean, no. I would not intentionally reveal myself to a human like that.”

  “Then yes, Nivian, I do think he could be a hunter.” Absentmindedly, his thumb drew lazy circles on her wrist. Nivian shivered, the weight of what could have happened sunk in, chilling her insides.

  “Come, you need your rest.” Caspian pulled her up by her hand. She held his hand and followed behind him in a daze as they walked back down to her apartment.

  He led her over to the bed, pulling the covers over her, and kissed her forehead lightly before he turned to leave.

  “Caspian?” Nivian whispered, her voice tight in her throat. The thought of being alone at this moment terrified her. He stopped and looked back at her. “Will you stay with me?”

  He nodded and settled himself behind her on top of the blankets, pulled her up against his chest, and wrapped his arms around her. The scent of jasmine drifted up from her hair and surrounded them as she let herself sink into his embrace. Her breathing slowed, then deepened, as she relaxed, drifting off to sleep.

  Four

  Nivian

  Caspian was gone when Nivian woke up. She could still feel the weight of his arm around her. Sighing, she snuggled her face deeper into her pillow, heat burning her cheeks. Asking him to stay? She had to have been considerably shaken to be so forward with him. Though he hadn’t seemed to mind. They had grown close, by reaper standards, over the last few thousand years. He always teased her and had been friendly, but only recently she had felt as though he were more than just someone who gave her assignments. She could talk to him about anything and knew she could trust him beyond a shadow of a doubt.

  Nivian rolled over. A hot cup of coffee sat on her nightstand waiting for her. The steam curled up from the cup. Caspian must have been with her until a few moments ago.

  Pushing herself up to sitting, she lifted the coffee mug to her lips, and inhaled the bright aroma. Her eyes closed in pure joy.

  Taking a sip, she mulled over the forgotten history she had learned from Caspian. Nivian found it hard to believe there were hunters still living. After thousands of years of reaping, she had not once been seen by a human, but now everything had changed. Now there was a human who was able to see her. It had to be a coincidence. It was more likely hunters had in fact been wiped out, and she was feeling tired of the monotony of her eternal existence. Most days she was perfectly content to perform her duties. A hunter would have attacked. This mortal she had followed didn't even try, and if she weren't mistaken, he had seemed almost friendly. She took another sip of coffee, then set the cup down.

  Had she become bored of the eternal sameness of it all? It was the only explanation that made sense. Camira was right. Part of her just wanted to be seen, and it caused her to slip up back in the coffeehouse. Doubt prickled at the back of her mind. Now, in the light of day, it seemed more logical that she had let the human see her. She had let her nightmare affect her, making her think the most foolish things. Not only had she tricked herself into believing it, but she made a big deal to Caspian as well.

  She should talk to the human, question him. And once she straightened things out she could clear it up with Caspian. Nivian ran a hand down her face in embarrassment. Oh, imagine how stupid she would look when she told him she had just slipped up and freaked out over nothing. If it ever got out, she would be a laughing stock. What reaper lets a mortal see them and not realize it? Cringing at her actions, she crawled out of bed. She picked up her coffee cup and started to get ready. The only way to know if the human had seen her was to find him again and see.

  The world went black. A loss of energy shot through her, turning her world upside down. She grabbed at her head and slammed her shoulder into the wall to keep from falling. Her mug fell from her hand and shattered on the floor. She rocked backward on the edge of a cliff about to fall over the edge, as the world spun. Coffee splashed over her legs and splattered the wall. She landed hard on her knees, unable to keep her balance any longer.

  The sensation faded, and Nivian shook her head to clear the lingering effects.

  “How strange. I wonder what that was,” she said, as she willed the world to ri
ght itself. She had never felt anything like it before. The stress of her failure, the strange human, and her uncertainty about the message her dream was trying to send were all taking its toll on her.

  As soon as she felt steady again, she pulled herself up and grabbed a towel to clean up the spilled coffee.

  Kain

  Kain propped open the doors to The Saving Grace soup kitchen, to let the short line of people inside. It didn’t matter who they were or who they use to be, sometimes people just needed a little something to help them get by, whether it was a hot meal or temporary shelter. There was no sense in making them wait outside in the cold while he prepared the food. He held the doors open, as the people filed in to warm up and greeted them individually as they entered. After the last person was inside, Kain turned to follow him, but stopped short when a deep groan from the side of the building caught his attention. He let the door swing shut behind him as he went to investigate the sound.

  He rounded the corner of the alley and called out, “Is everything all—” He stopped dead in his tracks, a cloaked figure stood over an old man. The homeless man curled up in a ball, lying on tattered and dirty blankets. His clothes, shabby and worn, were covered in dirt, his socks full of holes exposed one heal and several toes.

  The cloaked man briefly looked up at him with a cheerless expression before turning to focus on the old man. He pulled out a small watch and carefully examined it. The figure nodded once, then put it away.

  Kain rushed to the old man in the alley. “What gives?” he demanded and roughly shoved the cloaked figure out of the way. “Hey, old man, are you okay?” The homeless man groaned in response.

  “Don’t just stand there, help!” Kain looked back, but the cloaked man was gone. What’s with these strange people in hoods lately? There must be a new cult in the city. He dismissed that train of thought and turned his attention back to the man before him. The old man was thin, too thin, and covered with dirt. He didn’t seem to be injured, just malnourished and cold.