that you would defy the fates for her saddens me. Before Arianne, I just was. Performing my duties without any thought to what I did. I even allowed myself to fade away.” He stared at her face on the screen. It wasn’t really his Arianne, but he drew strength from the uncanny similarity. “I wouldn’t have known someone like her existed, if not for the events that brought us together. She saved me, Master. She became every breath, every heartbeat, every waking moment. If that makes me less of a Reaper, then you’d do better to just kill me. I’m of no use to you anymore.”
Chapter 27
ARIANNE FLOATED LIKE A LEAF on a stream, unafraid, allowing the flow to carry her where it would. She could see and not see all at once. The world looked different. A kind of dullness permeated her vision, everything in black and white with hazy edges. She couldn’t smell, but she could hear. When she’d agreed to the plan, she’d asked Tomas if it would hurt.
“Dying, I mean,” she clarified as they walked into the spacious living room of Niko’s house.
The wide-jawed beast of a fireplace remained cold, ash asleep on its tongue. Two delicate settees faced each other with a squat coffee table separating them. A wooden ceiling-fan with floral lamps watched over the peace in the space. French windows opened to a portico with rose bushes in clay pots and an iron table with four chairs.
The older Reaper shook his head and indicated the large daybed in the corner. “If the both of you would please lie down, we may begin.”
Ben had been adamant about going with her. She’d tried to talk him out of it, but he must have felt her reluctance for him to leave because he ignored her, only listening to Tomas from then on. She had brought him with her after all. And she suspected he stayed mostly out of morbid curiosity. She certainly wanted to know what Carrie went through when she’d been taken away.
“Last chance,” Arianne said, settling her back into the soft cushion. “You don’t have to do this.”
“As if I’d let you have all the fun.” Ben walked to the other side of the daybed and arranged himself beside her.
Tomas spoke in a butter-melting voice. “Everyone experiences death differently, but the process of the soul leaving its body remains the same. Now, if you would close your eyes…that’s right. I will pull your souls out, but they will remain attached to your bodies by your lifeline.”
Arianne allowed herself to be soothed by the way Tomas spoke and the warm presence of Ben beside her. She was eager to get to Niko, and the quickest way there was if she relaxed into what Tomas was about to do.
She felt a quick pinch then a tug. Tomas asked them to open their eyes, and Arianne’s knees wobbled. Before her lay her body, a calm expression on her face.
“It’s like I’m sleeping,” she said.
“An out of body experience rarely leaves the individual in distress.” Tomas handed her a black robe like the hooded ones monks wore. “I’m sure you know what I mean. You’ve been through it before.”
“What?” Ben glared at her. He already had his robe on.
“Can you turn around, please!” she squeaked. “I’m naked here.”
He obliged quickly, as if he’d forgotten the consequence of their current state.
As Arianne pulled on her robe, she rewarded Ben’s question by saying, “Remember when I told you I could see dead people? Niko explained that it came from a near death experience.”
“You’ve never been in a near death experience!”
Ben’s incredulous words made her smile. “When I donated a kidney to Carrie, I did.”
“Oh.”
Arianne wished she had a camera. Ben’s realization was a cross between horror and awe, something she wanted to post on her Facebook page—if they made it back.
“But I’m fine now.” Her gaze returned to her body on the daybed. “All things considered, that is.”
“Come,” Tomas interrupted Ben’s next words. He clapped once and they were transported to a room with no walls. The floor just seemed to stretch like a limitless rubber band.
To her right came Niko’s voice. “…saved me, Master. She became every breath, every heartbeat, every waking moment. If that makes me less of a Reaper, then you’d do better to just kill me. I’m of no use to you anymore.”
The giant wave of love for Niko that she now surfed could already decimate mountains. But when she processed the last part of what he’d said, she flew toward the direction of his voice. Tomas moved in front of her in an instant. His strong hands on her shoulders prevented her from moving any further.
“Let go of me.” She didn’t think she was capable of growling, but she managed it like a cornered pitbull.
Tomas seemed unaffected by her ferocity. “You can’t just charge in.”
“Didn’t you hear what Niko said?”
“Remember, you have a Certificate on you. If our master sees you without me, it’s all over.”
Arianne dropped her tension by sighing, but she saved him the worry. “Hurry.”
Tomas showed her the briefest smile. “I want to save him, too.” He glanced behind her. “Ben, can you keep her close? Wouldn’t want both of you to get lost now.”
An arm, familiar and solid, rested on Arianne’s shoulders. She looked up at Ben and squeezed his hand. His ever present smile, the one that had disappeared after Carrie’s death, made a return appearance. He nodded, and they followed Tomas toward where she’d heard Niko’s voice.
The trek didn’t take long. To Arianne’s surprise, they’d been closer than she expected. But seeing Niko strapped to a piece of wood by his bleeding wrists and ankles locked her legs in place. The beautiful man who stood by him in robes like hers and the LCD TV that floated in the air didn’t matter to her. Ben’s arm edged her closer to his body. He’d felt her apprehension. What he didn’t feel was the rage that roiled within her like a whirlpool. She wanted whoever had hurt Niko to pay. She vibrated from it. Her heart punched her chest and her blood flowed hot. When her gaze met with Niko’s, she watched him reflect her fury. He roared.
“Tomas!” he spit the name out. Then, like a flashbulb going off, sadness replaced his anger. “How can you do this to me?”
“Niko—” Arianne began, but Tomas held an arm out in front of her—a barrier that cut her off.
“Nikolas,” Tomas said, “does she look reaped to you?”
Niko raked his eyes over Arianne. She tried to give him a brave smile.
“But you still shouldn’t have brought her here,” he admonished. “You even brought Ben. What were you thinking?”
“Yes, Tomas.” The beautiful man finally spoke. His voice like harp song. “Explain to me this betrayal.”
When Arianne finally studied him, she found herself spellbound. His delicate features didn’t take away any masculinity from his being. And he had power. He radiated with it, pinching Arianne as it spread all around them. She wondered if Carrie had a chance to see him when she’d crossed-over or whatever it was that happened to souls. Her sister would have stared, maybe even squealed. Arianne tucked her heartache away for another day. She couldn’t save Carrie, but she sure as rain wanted to rescue Niko.
“You misunderstand, Master.” Tomas showed the respect of a humble servant in his deep bow. “I am here to save you.”
“Oh really?” The man, who Arianne assumed was Death, inclined his head. “And how do you propose to do that?”
Tomas indicated Niko and Arianne. “Isn’t it obvious? You’ve tortured him for how long in here, and yet, he would rather die than enforce the Certificate.” Even with Death’s raised eyebrow, he continued, “And even though she has a Certificate on her, she doesn’t hesitate to come and save him from you. Master, they love each other. We may have a job to do, but we are not cruel creatures.”
Death sighed, short and quick. “That may be the case, but I’m still down a soul. Unless you can find me a replacement—”
