Page 155 of Reaper's Ruin
Once inside, Skorn and Lorien approached Soraya, their expressions warming as they looked at her.
“So, this is the soul worth risking oblivion for,” Lorien said, taking her hand and pressing it to his lips with a courtly bow. “A pleasure to formally meet you, love.”
“Such a gentleman,” Soraya laughed, then turned to Skorn who stood awkwardly to the side. “And you must be Skorn. Thank you for what you did.”
The big man shifted uncomfortably, but there was unmistakable softening in his usually stern features. “It was nothing.”
“It wasn’t nothing,” she insisted, and to my surprise, stepped forward and wrapped her arms around him. “You risked everything for us.”
Skorn stiffened, clearly unused to such contact, but after a moment, he gave her an awkward pat on the back. I might have been jealous if the whole scene weren’t so unexpectedly... touching.
“Well,” he grumbled, “I was planning on letting the Veil Lords reap me once you were safe. But then Taelon told me Death found a way to get a body again. Had to see it with my own eyes before I took a scythe to the throat.”
She squeezed him tighter. “Well, I’m glad you helped me, and I’m even more glad you didn’t let them kill you. There’s going to be a door waiting for you—therehasto be. Someone who took such a risk for me deserves the best afterlife ever.”
“Told you she was special,” Taelon called from the table, his mouth still full. “She’s got Death wrapped around her little finger, and now she’s taming the beast Skorn. Next she’ll have Lorien taking a vow of chastity.”
“Let’s not get carried away,” Lorien chuckled, running a hand down the dark stubble on his jaw.
I turned my attention to Jade, who remained near the door, watching the interactions with guarded interest. “You still haven’t explained why an Enforcer is here,” I said, the edge in my voice unmistakable.
Taelon wiped his mouth, suddenly serious. “She helped us escape. Provided a distraction for the Sentinels, led us to a side passage I didn’t even know existed.”
“Why?” I demanded, directing the question at Jade herself.
She met my gaze evenly. “Because what they’redoing is wrong.”
“You’re going to have to be more specific,” I said, crossing my arms.
Jade glanced at the others, then back to me. “May I sit? It’s a long explanation.”
After a moment’s consideration, I nodded. Soraya sat beside me on the small bed, Taelon and Lorien at the table, Skorn leaned against the wall, and Jade perched on a stool near the fire. When we were all settled, the former Enforcer began her story.
“In life, I was of the Sylvan Court,” she said, her voice soft but clear. “An empath. One of the rare ones who could sometimes hear thoughts, not just sense emotions.”
I raised an eyebrow, skepticism evident in my expression. I’d heard of empaths like her, but they were rare. Maybe one or two in a lifetime.
“But that’s not why the Veil Lords chose me as an Enforcer. In fact, they didn’t know and I kept it that way,” she continued. “There’s a lot more power in keeping my abilities a secret.”
“And why are you betraying them?” I demanded.
“Because I’ve been sensing something wrong with them for years now,” she said, leaning forward. “Something... not right. As an Enforcer, I was closer to them than most. I saw things. Heard things I wasn’t supposed to hear.”
“Like what?”
She hesitated. “Whispers. Fragments of conversation. Nothing concrete, but enough to make me question whether things were as they were supposed to be. And then...” She looked directly at Soraya. “Then you happened.”
Soraya stiffened beside me. “Me?”
“When they sent Death to reap you, it made no sense. You’d barely died. Souls get weeks, sometimes months to find their peace, their door. It’s one of the core principles of the afterlife. But they wanted you gone immediately. I couldn’t understand why.”
“Did you ask them?” I pressed.
“Enforcers don’t ask questions,” she said flatly. “We follow orders. Not to mention, they had no idea I could hear their thoughts and knew they were sending Reapers after a newly dead soul.”
Soraya leaned forward. “So what did you hear? Why did you risk everything to help us?”
Jade’s gaze moved between us, something like wonder crossing her features. “Because I felt what was between you. A love so rare, so genuine, it blazed like a beacon in the Shadowveil. And I knew that if the Veil Lords were willing to destroy that—to obliterate a soul who hadn’t been given a fair chance at peace—then whatever they were doing couldn’t be right. We’re supposed to be the keepers of the balance. But somehow I feel that something is corrupted. Something is just... wrong. I can’t explain it. Just a feeling.”
