Page 143 of Shades of Silver City

There are quite a few warehouses here, separated by concrete lots. Further east, beyond the warehouses, the city prison stands like a storm cloud, with its own wall wrapping around the property. Beyond that are deadly cliffs jutting over the sea.

I study the enormous concrete prison building one last time and shudder. At least I wasn’t in there.

Arlo must’ve wanted me for some reason. I still can’t figure out why, though.

Wordlessly, we jog to Godric’s vehicle, and Scathe and I get in the back.

“Where are we going?” I ask.

“To the last place Scathe saw Archer so we can follow his trail.”

As soon as I put my seat belt on, I lean over to kiss Scathe’s head. “You’re a good boy, huh?”

The goodest of all.

Godric floors the vehicle, and I jerk forward, slamming my hand into the passenger seat in front of me. “Good Gods, you maniac.”

I turn back to Scathe. What do you mean that Archer lost his cool…because of me?

Scathe sits alert on the seat next to me, staring out the window. I’ve known him my whole life. He’s always struggled with the darkness inside of him, Tasia.

I frown, staring out my own window and watching the warehouses whip past in a blur. We’re winding through the back roads, heading toward the city.

Archer has a gold soul-shade though. How could he possibly struggle with darkness?

I didn’t know the extent of it, Scathe says. I don’t think he knew either.

Are you saying he didn’t know he was a fucking reaper? I ask him.

Scathe yelps. Why is that so difficult to believe? You thought your dad was a good man. It’s easy to ignore things we don’t want to believe.

“Hey, leave my dad out of this,” I say angrily.

Godric makes a questioning noise, glancing at me in the rearview mirror. I shrug, and he turns his attention back to the road.

No need for hostility, but your passion about the matter, instead of looking at the facts, proves my point, Scathe says.

Scathe…I don’t want to talk about my dad right now.

The city rises up ahead of us, sunlight reflecting off the skyscrapers. The traffic gets more congested, and Godric swerves through the streets with reckless abandon. I clutch my churning stomach, willing myself not to get sick.

You should know, Scathe says, even after you abandoned Archer, he sent me after you. To protect you.

“I didn’t abandon him,” I say as we pull into a familiar alley. We’re at Archer’s city apartment. Godric parks behind Archer’s motorcycle. Scathe’s sidecar is still connected to it.

Didn’t you, though? He gave in to his darkness to protect you. He put you first, ahead of his own morality. He found out a truth he wasn’t prepared for, and you left him to clean it up on his own.

I unbuckle my seat belt and open the door. Scathe places his paw on my lap, grabbing my attention. When I turn to him, his icy eyes peer right into my soul, as if sending me a message beyond words.

Tasia, Archer’s life mission has been to protect people. Save them from harm, not cause harm. He is not a judge or a jury, nor is he an executioner. Reaper magic or not, give him the same grace he’s given you.

A knot of guilt tightens in my chest.

Did I overreact?

Archer didn’t actually kill Reed. Reed killed himself, and he was dealing dreamdust—killing others inadvertently.

Is he okay? I ask, suddenly worried about Archer. He always seems so strong, so self-assured. I didn’t realize he could potentially be struggling with his own inner darkness.

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