Page 2 of Saved By Her Guardian
Even though Aralyn had the most connected relative in the reaper ranks, Deidre came from a long line of wealthy reapers who were able to buy anything and anyone they wanted, and assignments, while overseen by Grim, were chosen mainly by the school staff.He only stepped in when he wanted a reaper for a specific assignment.
Like her.
“It’s kids, Deidre.”Her eyes stung with tears, and she pushed them back, determined not to fall apart like a little girl on the first day of school.
At her confused look, Aralyn explained.Then Deidre sat on the bed with a speculative hum.“Well, I’m sorry about your assignment, but you can’t just say no.If Grim says go somewhere, you just have to do it.”
“I can’t.”
“I’m not sure you have a choice.”
“Says the girl who gets to ferry tourists while sipping cocktails on the beach.”
Deidre hummed in a way that sounded like a middle finger.
With a sigh from somewhere deep inside, Aralyn stooped and picked up her bag.“Good luck in Maui.I’m sure you won’t get eaten by a shark.”
Deidre squeaked out a noise of shock as Aralyn walked to the door.
“Well, I’m sure your uncle, who is so well known for beingkindto reapers who refuse to do what he wants, won’t kill you or stick you in Siberia.Have a nice life.”
Aralyn let out a low growl from her throat as she walked through the doorway, then turned and flipped off the overhead light, plunging the apartment into darkness before she slammed the door shut.
Lifting her chin at Deidre’s angry shout, she took the stairs to the lobby and made her way to the portal at the side of the complex.
The minutes ticked by as she waited for her turn at the portal, but she refused to look at her phone to see just how much time had passed.She could only get to her uncle’s location when she did.
As she stepped up to the magical portal, she looked at the location pin: Saint Morrigan’s Church in Eldermoor, Kentucky.The name of the church sounded vaguely familiar.She’d dressed warmly, considering that the typical Savannah, Georgia weather for early December was not nearly as cold as it would be in Eldermoor, especially as the sun set.
After a glance over her shoulder at the apartment complex, she stepped through the portal to Eldermoor, wondering if she’d ever return.
* * *
As the frigid air hit her face when she walked out of the portal, Aralyn gasped, bracing against the chill that swept over her.The portal closed behind her, and she felt a surge of magic, followed by nothing but icy cold.
Her eyes adjusted to the darkness and the dim lighting provided by old-fashioned gas lamps that ringed a waist-high, crumbling stone wall and a decrepit double gate.A church that seemed shrouded in fog stood at the center of the stone wall’s barrier, and in front of the church was what looked like a very old cemetery.
Something clicked and she turned to see her uncle close the lid on a gold pocket watch.
“With a minute to spare, you’re just like your mother,” he said dryly.
Grim was her mother’s brother.When her mom had passed away, he’d become her guardian until she turned eighteen.He looked like her mom, and a pang of grief hit her.He’d come to her graduation, but they hadn’t spoken because he’d been called away on business.And then she’d refused her assignment and here she was.
Standing in Grim Reaper’s presence.
He was tall and well built, with a powerful aura that made him seem larger than life.They shared the same long, black hair with a single shock of silver-white through it, like they’d been touched by death itself, and they both had the same ice-blue eyes.But that was where their familial similarities ended.She was curvy and petite and loved the color pink.He always wore black, and tonight was no different.He wore all black, including a high collared, long coat that seemed to melt into the shadows around him.
It was no wonder that there were so many scary stories about Grim.He looked like a villain, like a monster come to life.
And he held her future in his hands.
“Hello,” she managed to squeak out.
He let out a low growl.“Come.”
He walked through the gate and into the cemetery toward the church.It was a classic Gothic-style church, and as she followed him, she gotallthe creepy, old cemetery vibes.The church was well maintained, as was the cemetery, but a glance at a nearby gravestone as she stopped a few feet from the front door of the church told her that the cemetery was two hundred years old at least.
“Listen,” she said, ready to explain herself.
