Page 19 of Guarded By the Reaper

The last one, a hulking monstrosity with arms like tree trunks, charged. It moved with surprising speed for something so massive, its clay feet pounding the asphalt, its eyes fixed onMillie. I didn’t have time to think, only to react. I pivoted on my heel, out of the reach of its claws. The Poppet didn’t stop and lumbered towards me. I let it come. The Poppet roared and swung its massive arm at me. I ducked, the air whooshing past my skull, and rammed my scythe upward. The blade found its mark, splitting the creature in two from groin to sternum. It crumpled to the ground, and I stepped back as its remnants dissolved into dust.

There were more in the shadows, ready to strike. We had to get out of here.

Chapter Ten

Millie

The world snapped back into focus. The dust settled. Grim stood there, my protector, his dark form silhouetted against the bright sky. They were gone. Really gone? A shudder ran through me, a mixture of relief and terror. My keys. I needed my keys. They lay on the ground. My hand shook as I bent to pick them up, my fingers brushing against something rough and brittle. Clay. The Poppet’s face. That single, staring eye. I scrambled back, my heart pounding.

Get a grip, Millie.

Grim was already at the passenger’s side of the Bentley. I fumbled with the keys, my fingers clumsy. Finally, I managed to unlock the car, almost throwing myself into the driver’s seat. My hands were shaking so badly I could barely hold onto the steering wheel.

“You killed them,” I said, my voice trembling. “I didn’t know it was possible.”

“They can’t be killed because they’re not alive,” Grim said. “All I did was stop them from getting to you. For now. They will come again. Ma-Vasha can make hundreds of them if she wants.”

I took a few deep breaths, willing myself to calm down. This wasn’t the time to fall apart. Elysia needed me.

“Okay,” I said. “Okay.”

When I felt like I could at least hold the steering wheel without my hands shaking, I pulled out of the parking lot and sped towards Asterhaven. The silence in the car was heavy. What had Grim said? Hundreds? Hundreds of Poppets? I could barely handle three.

Grim didn’t pressure me to talk, which I appreciated. He just sat there, and it felt like riding with a shadow or a phantom. My thoughts were racing. I gripped the steering wheel tighter, myknuckles turning white. The familiar scenery of Mercer Island whipped past, blurred and distorted by my anxiety. The stately mansions, the lush green lawns, the sparkling blue water of Lake Washington – it all seemed unreal, like a postcard from a past life.

I’d been living in a bubble, shielded by wealth and privilege. Now the bubble had burst, and there was no going back. It was all my doing. I had summoned Ma-Vasha. It was my fault. But I’d done it for a reason, and a very good one at that – because I refused to lose my sister to leukemia. If death had to take one of us, better me than her.

Elysia was waiting for me in the foyer. Her expression was a mixture of excitement and worry, her bright blue eyes wide with anticipation. She launched herself at me the moment I stepped inside, her thin arms wrapping around my waist.

“Millie! You’re back! How’s Lady Mews? Is she okay?”

I knelt, gathering her close, burying my face in her soft, dark hair. She smelled like sunshine and crayons, and everything good in the world.

“She’s doing great,” I said.

“Can she come home? Please, Millie, please. I miss her so much.”

Elysia’s words were like tiny daggers to my heart. I hated that I couldn’t give her what she wanted, that I had to make her wait, had to prolong her agony. But what choice did I have?

“The vet said she needs to stay there for a little while longer, to make sure she’s all healed up.” I pulled away, reaching into my purse for my phone. “But I took pictures! Do you want to see?”

Elysia’s face lit up. “Yes! Show me, show me!”

I scrolled through the pictures: Lady Mews curled up in her little cage, her leg in a bright pink cast, Lady Mews blinking sleepily at the camera, Lady Mews being cuddled by the vet. Elysia’s smile grew wider with each picture.

“She looks so funny with that pink cast.”

“I know, right?”

I tucked my phone back into my purse. Elysia was quiet for a moment, her brow furrowed in thought.

“I’m bored,” she announced. “Can we play a game?”

“Sure, honey,” I said, forcing a smile. “What do you feel like playing?”

“Settlers of Catan?”

“You’re sure you’re up for that?”

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