Reaper (8 page)

René was very talkative on the way home. I was so wrapped up in our conversation about the spirit realm as we walking into the house that all the weapons on the table didn’t register as weird in my brain.

Needless to say I was shocked to see Julia and David in the kitchen. But René had to be even more shocked because weapons of all sorts were spread out on the table and Julia was cleaning a large cut on David’s arm. She had one herself above her right eye.

They froze like deer in the headlights when they saw René.

“It’s ok!” I assured them, though I wasn’t sure if it really was. Hunter raced over to greet us.

“Wow.” René knelt down and let Hunter sniff her. “He’s not normal, is he?”

“No,” I said quietly, not quite sure what to do.
 
“What happened?” I asked Julia and hurried over to her side.

“Reaper demon,” she said quietly so René wouldn’t hear.

“It’s nice to see you guys again,” I said to be polite, though it felt weird saying that after a demon attack. Ethan emerged in the room, gun in hand.

“Good, Annie, you’re back—” he cut off when he saw René.

“It’s ok,” I told him. “What’s going on?”

“The, uh, things Sam was hunting followed her. Luckily my dad and Julia were there to clean up her mess.”

“Things? As in more than one?”
 
I asked. A flash of panic coursed through my veins. I knew it was inevitable that I would face more demons; I just didn’t expect it to be so soon and without a warning. Not that I expected demons to call before they came over, but I did expect at least some time to prepare.

“Yeah. And they might have followed us back here,” David said, wincing as Julia stitched the wound closed.

“Just one, hopefully.” Ethan gently pulled me aside. “I think you should take René home.”

I shook my head. “I’ll put her in my room; she’s had a rough night, doesn’t want to be alone, and is really drunk right now so she might not even remember this. Hunter will entertain her while you explain. If demons are around, then I shouldn’t leave, right?”

“It would be nice to have you turn that thing into a pile of ash,” he said with a smile.

“What’s a reaper demon?” René asked. She was still sitting on the floor. I shook my head; I didn’t know. “Is it the Grim Reaper?”

Julia’s hand froze in mid air. Her eyes flicked to me, René, and then Ethan.

“Do you want to see Romeo?” I asked René. She smiled, nodded, and struggled to get up. I extended a hand to pull her to her feet.

“If you find the Grim Reaper, you tell me ok?” she slurred her words and stumbled up the stairs. “Because I’m gonna take his axe-thing and not give it back until he visits Scott.”

“That’s a good idea,” I said with a laugh. “But even if we find the Grim Reaper, I don’t think we can get his scythe.”

“Darn.”

I opened the door to my room and mentally asked Hunter to keep an eye on René. I let Romeo out, told René I would be right back, and hurried down the stairs to the hunters.

“Please tell me it’s not the real Grim Reaper,” I only half joked to Ethan.

“Not at all,” Ethan explained. I shuddered at the thought of a real Grim Reaper. Ethan must have noticed because he put his hand on the small of my back and continued. “Though they do tend to go after people who are already dying, which gives them the name ‘reaper’. But they don’t cause death like and Angel of Death would”

“Dying victims are an easy target,” I speculated.

“Right. Everyone has energy—an aura— and when you die it gets released. That’s what reapers feed on; wait until that moment life ends and gather the energy.”

“Well, that’s not all they take,” Julia added softly.

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“Most reaper demons eat their victims’ flesh,” she grimaced.

“Lovely,” I said. “So, how did it get away? I thought Sam said she finished her mission. I took that to mean she killed it.”

“It’s not that easy.” Sam’s icy voice came from behind me. “Killing demon’s just isn’t that easy. Like you would know.”

“Then tell me,” I retorted.

All attention turned to Sam. She narrowed her eyes but didn’t respond. Tension filled the room. Hunter’s thoughts entered my head and he let me know that René was on her way down the stairs. He also showed me that he closed the door to keep Romeo in.

“Thank you,” I said quietly.

“Who are you talking to?” Ethan asked.

“Hunter,” I told him. “I guess I don’t need to say it out loud.” I shook my head. “Habit, I guess.” I smiled and shrugged. “René’s on her way down.”

“Distract her for a bit?” Ethan asked. I nodded and padded into the family room.

 
“Want to see the horses?” I asked René as soon as her feet hit the bottom stair.

“Ok.” René agreed. We walked silently to the barn. “Holy crap!” René looked around. “This place is amazing!”

“Thanks!” I beamed. René just earned major points by complimenting the barn. “I actually came up with the design myself.”

“I’ve never seen a barn like this! I think it’s nicer than our apartment!” She ran her hand over a stall door. “It’s so elegant!” She whirled around, making herself dizzy. “Is it weird to think a barn is elegant?”

“Not at all.” I took a long look down the aisle myself. “That was what I wanted.” I motioned for her to follow me. “I’ll give you a tour.”

“I don’t mean to be rude or anything,” René said cautiously after she saw the entire barn. “But how the hell can you afford this?”

“Oh.” I didn’t even think of explaining my extravagant spending. “I inherited a lot of money from my great aunt, along with the house.” Simple enough, I thought.

“Lucky.”

“Yeah,” I agreed. I felt awkward talking about the money. Everyone (expect Ethan) made a big deal about it. Having a lot of money didn’t make me any better or worse than anyone. I was different enough from the rest of the world already and really didn’t want or need something as mundane as money making me any more different.

We walked in tandem to the pasture. I cupped my hands around my mouth and called the horses in for their dinner. Rene wobbled when opened the gate for me and she trailed behind as I led both horses into the barn.

“So do you still want to be my friend now?” I half joked.

“What do you mean?” René asked.

“The weapons…talk about reaper demons,” I muttered.

“Oh,” René pushed her eye brows together. “Yeah. I think I can still be your friend.”

“Good,” I said though I was unconvinced. I shut Mystery’s stall door. I wondered how she’d be taking this if she hadn’t guzzled almost a whole bottle of vodka.

 
We brushed the horses, fed them, and went back into the house. René stopped a few feet from the back door and looked at the barn again.

“It looks like your house,” she observed.

“That was the idea. I wanted it to match,” I admitted, feeling slightly embarrassed.

“It even has those tower thingies.”

“Copulas,” I corrected.

“I like it.” She smiled at me.

“Thanks,” I said and beamed. Apprehensively, I led the way into the house. The weapons had been cleared off the table. Three Order members were in the family room watching TV. Belinda sat stiffly in an armchair; Ethan was on one end of the couch, leaning against the arm. Sam was in the middle next to him, making it impossible for me to take a seat by my boyfriend. I sat down on Sam’s other side, trying hard to show that she wasn’t going to get to me.

“Where did your dad and Julia go?” I looked across Sam to Ethan.

“To get their stuff from the hotel. They’re staying here tonight, if that’s ok with you,” Ethan said.

“Of course,” I smiled. “I think we should all stick together until this is over.” I turned my attention to the TV but was feeling restless again. “Want anything to eat?” I asked René.

“I don’t care,” she sighed, sounding sad again.

“I do,” Ethan said with a smile.

“I’ll make something,” I offered, since I had gotten into a bit of a cooking kick lately.

“I’ll help,” René told me, and followed me into the kitchen. “So what’s the deal with the blonde bitch?” she whispered once we were out of ear shot. I pulled a cookbook down from a cabinet and sat at the island counter. René stumbled when she pulled out the stool. Blinking, she sat down and shook her head. “She’s been staring daggers at you.”

“You can tell?” I flipped through the book.

“Hell yeah. She’s sending major hate-vibes your way.”

I laughed. “That’s for sure.”

“So, what’s her deal?”

“She likes Ethan.”

“Oh, so she’s a jealous bitch.”

“I guess you could say that.” I flipped to a recipe (roasted chicken with rosemary) and slid the book in front of René. She nodded approvingly. “Sam and her sister, Julia, moved in with Ethan and his dad after their parents died, like over ten years ago. Ethan had no idea she even had a crush on him; he thinks of her as a little sister. Needless to say, she hates me.”

“Then why is she here?”

“I wondered that too. Supposedly, she was ‘in the area’ but I think she really just wanted to check in on us.”

“And she probably was hoping to see you two fighting or getting sick of each other,” René said over her shoulder as she grabbed ingredients out of the fridge.

“Probably,” I agreed and preheated the oven. “But Ethan cares about her, and she’s family to him, so I’ll put up with her. And I do believe her about missing Ethan; they did grow up together,” I said softly.

René closed her eyes for a second before shaking her head at me. “You’re too nice, Anora. Who cares if that girl misses Ethan? That doesn’t mean she has to be such a little drama-queen, bitch-face.” René straightened up. “In fact, it’s people like her that give people like us a bad name! They think they can stomp on us like we’re little, teeny-tiny ugly bugs, but no! They can’t. Not anymore. We need to take a stand!” When her speech ended, she steadily held my gaze for a few seconds, face set. Then she groaned and put her head on the counter.

 
I laughed and grabbed a glass from the cabinet. “She even tried to accuse me of cheating on Ethan with my own brother,” I said as I filled the glass with water.

René laughed too, her voice muffled. “I didn’t know you had a brother.”

I set the glass down next to René. She eyed it, slowly sat up, and took a long drink.

 
“We’re twins actually. His name is Harrison, but I call him Harry.” I sighed, “I miss him.”

René didn’t say anything but she looked intently at me.

“What?” I asked, feeling her eyes on me.

“I get the feeling like you don’t want to say,” she began. “But why did you move?”

I hesitated.

“It’s ok,” she told me and drank the rest of the water.

 
“I’m sure I’ll tell you someday.”

“Whenever you’re ready.”

I smiled. “Thanks.” Before I started getting out ingredients, I retrieved a jar of peanuts from the pantry. I opened the lid and slid it across the counter to René.

“Thanks,” she told me and picked out a few nuts. “Ugh, I’m never drinking again!”

“Do you want any aspirin?” I asked, thinking she might have a headache.

“No, I feel like I’m going to puke. I’m not,” she added quickly. “After I eat I’ll feel better,” she assured me and tossed a handful of peanuts into her mouth. “And I say I’m never drinking again every time I drink,” she laughed. “I wonder if he’s thinking about me,” she said so quietly I could barely hear her.

“I’m sure he is,” I assured and opened the fridge to grab the necessary ingredients. “And I’m sure he’s regretting what he did.”

“Has anyone told you that you are a terrible lair?” she asked, pointing her finger at me. “But thanks, Anora.” She ate a few more handfuls of peanuts before getting up to help me make dinner. Along with the chicken, René and I had made steamed asparagus, mashed potatoes, and sweet rolls.

 
Since this was the first time I’d had company over since moving into the Victorian, I formally set the table in the dining room, complete with the fancy cloth napkins Aunt Estelle has stashed in a cabinet. The house was stocked rather well for having been empty. It struck me as odd, as if she knew I would end up here.

After dinner, René asked if I could read her tarot cards. I jogged upstairs to get the cards. We sat in the breakfast nook: I handed her the cards and she shuffled them repeatedly while I spoke.

“There are a lot of different spreads to read, but I sorta made up my own of just asking what’s in store and taking the top three,” I explained.

“Ok. Show me what is in store,” she said to the cards. She shuffled once more and laid three cards on the table. She flipped the first one right side up: ten of Swords. The next was the Hanged Man, the next was the Tower. I could feel the blood drain from my face.

“What’s wrong, Anora?”

“Those aren’t good cards.”