Page 35 of A Shadow in the Reaping
Ashen laughs again. "Deal."
"I don't know what's rarer around here," a male voice interrupts. A shadow materializes from the door. "A bright soul in the Shadow Realm, or Ashen laughing."
Ashen steps around the edge of the steel tray and the body, putting himself between me and the man who saunters toward us. He's young, tall. There's a surfer vibe about him with his shaggy blond hair and bright blue eyes. He's handsome in a boyish way, like his face is just that bit too vibrant or squishy with youth. The hands of time haven't yet carved the planes of his face into sharper angles, and they never will.
"What are you doing here, Cole," Ashen demands.
"Looking for you," Cole says as he comes to a halt a few feet away. His hands are in the pockets of his black jeans, the edges of his dark grey t-shirt pushed up by his tattooed wrists.
"What do you want?"
Cole's eyes glimmer in the dim light. "Aren't you going to introduce me?" His gaze hooks onto me and I see curiosity and interest. If there's malice, it's too well-hidden to find, but his presence causes a swell of adrenaline in my veins. I keep my expression blank as we assess one another and he smiles.
"Cole, may I present Lu. She is helping me with the hybrid case. Lu, this is Cole."
Cole extends his hand and I take it, his skin hot against my cool palm. I feel the heat of Ashen's body close to my side. His wariness is like a wave that washes through me the longer Cole grasps my hand.
"Pleased to meet you, Lu. How are you finding our realm so far?" Cole asks, holding onto my palm a moment longer than he needs to.
I tilt my head and raise my other hand, giving him aso-sogesture. He smiles in reply and finally lets go.
"What do youwant, Cole," Ashen says, his voice thick with feigned boredom and irritation. He flicks his gaze toward me and I see the fire in his pupils. I see his worry embedded like seams of gold in the rich brown hues of his eyes.
Cole walks to the tray of compartment forty-seven and looms over the body, staring down into the hideous face. "I've got some info I thought you might like." There's a long moment of silence as Cole's gaze follows the patterns of the silver fur, the curve of the snout, the bow of the lips. He leans closer and I start to smirk at the idea of him making out with the fuck-ugly corpse.
Ashen steps closer, edging his shoulder between me and the newcomer. When I glance up at him I see a fleeting gleam of predatory malice in his eyes, as though he’s ready to kill this unexpected visitor. But I see something that looks a lot like fear there too. I'm not sure whether it's fear for me, or fear of where he knows my mind has predictably wandered off to.
"Are you going to enlighten us, or is this a game of twenty questions?" Ashen asks, turning his attention back to Cole. The boredom soars to new heights in his voice. Cole turns his head and meets Ashen's gaze while still leaning weirdly close to the corpse.
"I do love a good game," he says, looking once more toward the hybrid before he straightens and turns to face us. "But no. I've come to tell you that your Alpha has found a new pack. He's killed the former leader and taken control. It was Rosaria Wyre."
I look up at Ashen and his jaw tightens. The flame brightens in his eyes. "Rosaria's dead?"
"Yes, both she and her brother were killed last night. It's Semyon's pack now. I don't know if they were aware of what he's been up to. If they didn't know before, they know now. They've dispersed and he's gone underground." Cole turns his gaze to me, a flicker igniting in his eyes. "For now."
Ashen looks down at me and the flame grows bright in his pupils. Black smoke curls from beneath us, creeping through the room. He looks back to Cole and tips his head in a single nod of thanks. The young Reaper gives an untroubled smile in response and heads toward the door.
"Watch yourself, Lu," Cole says as he catches my gaze over his shoulder. "Don't go convincing yourself that it's any safer here than it is in the Living Realm. It's not." His eyes dart to Ashen before he looks my way again and gives a little salute. He turns back to the door, disappearing into the twilight and fog.
"Insufferable," Ashen mutters.
I didn't think he was that bad, I write, showing him my note with a shrug.
"You haven't known him long enough." Ashen's gaze stays fixed on the closed door for a long moment, until he seems sure that Cole won't return. When he looks back at me, the flame and smoke have dispersed, but he still seems unsettled. "What did you find on the body?"
Two pitchers?
"Two pitchers."
First of all, he didn't breed, thank fuck. I don't think I could handle the smell of hybrid vagina on top of decomposing dog dick today.
"Fair enough."
What I DID smell is a medical facility. Bandage adhesive. Rubbing alcohol. But something else, very faint. Clay. Anthracite. Ash. An old brickworks. I think they kept him in a repurposed factory before they moved him to where Cole found him.
Ashen's eyes light with excitement and he beams a bright smile at me. My heart turns over a heavy thud in my chest. "That is a solid lead, Lu," he says as he turns away to push the table back into compartment forty-seven.
If you promise to make me two more pitchers of fangria, I'll tell you the most interesting thing that I found, I write, grasping his arm to show him my note.
