Page 20 of TBR: Dead But Well Read

He lifted his blade, ready to swing it again the moment he spotted an opening. Despite the way he towered over her, the tiny woman refused to back down. She crossed her arms and popped her hip out on one side. It was the pose of an angry parent at a school meeting, or that of a cocky cheerleader getting ready to throw down and knowing she was going to win.

What paranormal species did she belong to? Some type of warrior race was my guess, based on the steel spine she possessed, combined with her unsettling lack of fear.

The reaper swung again, and with an angry shout, she rushed straight at him. Reapers were at the top of the known food chain on Earth. They weren’t used to being challenged or disobeyed, so he clearly wasn’t expecting her attack.

She leaped forward and ducked beneath the blade, not even flinching as it sliced into her shoulder. Grabbing his extended arm, she turned and bit into his flesh. Hard. The reaper’s scythe clattered against the stone floor as he roared in pain and tried to shake the woman off him.

Seizing the opportunity she’d given us, we scrambled off the floor. We rushed to help her, although I’m not sure she truly needed our help.

A reaper’s blade was their most powerful weapon, but it wasn’t their only weapon. Grabbing a knife from the folds of his cloak, he pulled back his fist, preparing to bring it down on top of her skull.

“Axelle!” Rhodes roared.

So this was the ghost who’d captured the interest of both my brothers?

I watched in awe as Rhodes and Lochlan moved in perfect harmony, protecting Axelle, while dodging the knife blade and delivering their own punches. It looked like a violent dance they’d practiced hundreds of times.

Despite our extensive skills, a reaper was as close to a final boss as you could encounter on Earth, and this one was powerful. We needed an escape plan so we could regroup.

“What’s going on?” an unfamiliar voice boomed.

My blood turned to ice. I didn’t need to see the speaker to know I was in the presence of Death with a capital D.

The first reaper took advantage of our distraction caused by the newcomer’s arrival. With renewed energy, he lashed out with his knife. This time, the blade sliced into Rhodes’ skin, opening his chest.

Rhodes stumbled back before dropping to his knees.

Axelle let go of the reaper and rushed to his side. “Rhodes!”

The reaper grabbed his scythe and rushed forward, lifting the blade over my fallen brother.

“Enough!” the new reaper shouted.

The first reaper was too caught up in his bloodlust to care. Lochlan and I lurched forward, raising our blades in a final fight. If he planned to take Rhodes, he’d have to take us all.

Before our blades could connect, the air was sucked from the room. Like water on the beach being pulled back into the ocean before a tsunami unleashed its fury on the land, it was all the warning we got for what was coming.

A heartbeat later, an unseen force slammed into Loch and me, flinging us through the tunnel walls like we were toys. My eardrums threatened to burst as his power flowed over and around my prone body. It burned as hot as a furnace, melting the blade I still clutched in my fist.

What kind of reaper was this?

Just as quickly as it had come, the power crushing me into the stone floor vanished.

I searched the room, worried the first reaper would launch another attack, but both cloaked figures were gone.

Axelle kneeled over Rhodes’ prone body, her shoulders shaking and her cries echoing around us.

Rolling to my side, I tried to push myself off the floor, but my body was drained of energy. Across the chamber, I saw Lochlan was facing the same struggle.

The reaper hadn’t killed us with his blade, but he might as well have. We wouldn’t have the strength to get ourselves out of the tunnel until we fed.

There was a chance a ghost might wander by, but I didn’t have the energy to teleport it to any of the vortexes. If a collector fed on a ghost, the ghost would fade and be lost forever. My kindhad sworn to protect the ghosts in our care and could only feed on energy the ghost left behind after moving into the beyond.

No matter how desperate the situation, we’d starve to death in these forgotten tunnels rather than break our oath.

My trembling muscles gave way, and I collapsed on the stone floor. Twisting my head, I watched the tiny female ghost lay down beside Rhodes’ motionless form.

I would’ve thought he was already gone if not for the nightmarish gurgling that accompanied his slow, labored breathing. He was dying, and I was powerless to save him. If I’d been well fed, I could have used that energy to heal Rhodes.

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