Page 135 of Reaper's Ruin
“Even though the word is foreign to you, they’re my friends. They will help us,” Taelon said simply. “Not to mention this will intrigue them thoroughly. When Death himself rebels... well, that’s a cause worth joining.”
I was silent for a moment, considering our options—which were few and desperate.
“Let’s say I agree,” I said slowly. “What’s the plan?”
Taelon’s face lit up, and he pulled me deeper into the shadowed alcove. “The cells are in the eastern wing. You go for her. Then the guys and I create a distraction—big, loud, impossible to ignore. While the Enforcers and Reapers are dealing with that, you make for the gates. If all goes well, you’ll be outside the barrier before anyone knows it.”
“And if it doesn’t go as planned?” I asked, already knowing the answer.
Taelon grinned, shrugging. “We’ve got Death himself on our side. I’m a Flame Warrior, Lorien is a Tide Warrior and Skorn was a Frost Warrior. Our powers still work down here. I’m not saying we can take on the Sentries, Enforcers, and Veil Beasts, plus a few hundred other Reapers and at least a few dozen who also have court warrior powers, but I bet we can hold them off long enough we can all get out of here.”
“And if we can’t?” I arched an eyebrow.
He clapped a hand on my shoulder, his infectious grin widening. “Then we’ll probably all get obliterated.”
Despite everything, I felt a grim smile tug at my lips. “You’re insane, you know that?”
“So they tell me.” He shrugged. “But I’ve been here eighty years, and I’ve never seen anything worth fighting for until now. Until I saw the way you look at her.” His expression softened. “Some things are worth dying for, Rhyker. Even for us, who are already dead. This purgatory is supposed to be about forgiving ourselves for our crimes in life, right? Well how the fuck would I ever be able to forgive myself for standing by while you were forced to reap the woman you loved. I’d be cursed here for eternity. No. I’ll take my chances, and hey, maybe I’ll get an instant door the second I help right this wrong for you. Maybe this will be my final atonement for a life filled with regrets.”
I was silent for a long moment, studying this Reaper who’d spent eight decades trying to befriend me, who I’d rebuffed at every turn. This fae who, despite everything I believed, was willing to risk oblivion to help me save the woman I loved.
“If this goes wrong,” I warned him, “we’re all getting sent to oblivion. The Veil Lords don’t forgive betrayal.”
Taelon just grinned, that familiar cocky smile that had always irritated me before but now felt strangely reassuring. “Eh, I was getting sick of this place anyway. Better oblivion than getting stuck here for eight hundred years like you.” He clapped me on the shoulder again. “If I’m going out, what better way than helping Death fight for love?”
Despite everything, despite the desperate situation, despite the near certainty of failure, I felt something I hadn’t experienced in centuries: a genuine connection to another being besides Soraya.
Friendship.
“Alright,” I said finally. “Get your friends. Tell them what’s happening. But make it clear—if any of them have second thoughts, they walk away now. No hard feelings. This is my fight, not theirs.”
“Our fight now,” Taelon corrected. “And don’t worry about them. They’ll be thrilled for a chance like this.”
I nodded, then hesitated. “Taelon... thank you.”
He looked genuinely surprised for a moment, then recovered with a grin and pushed away from the wall. “Don’t thank me yet. Save it for when we pull this off.”
“And if we don’t?”
His grin widened. “Then I’d say I’ll see you in oblivion, Death, but...” His voice trailed off as he shrugged.
I allowed myself a small smile in return. “You... you can call me Rhyker.”
Surprise flickered across his face, followed by a genuine warmth. “Rhyker,” he repeated, as if testing the name. “I’ve got your back. Now come on. Come talk to the crew with me. They’ll be pretty excited you’re finally going to give them the time of day.”
A small smile tipped the corner of my lip, then with one final nod, we fell into step together, moving to fulfill our part of the plan.
As I strode with him through the dark corridors of the Umbral Keep, I felt a strange calm settle over me. The fear was still there, the desperate need to reach her, to save her. But alongside it was a certainty I couldn’t explain.
We would escape.
We would find a way.
Because I refused to accept any other outcome.
Because I refused to lose her now that I’d finally found something—someone—worth existing for.
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
