Page 45 of Vexed
Then it hit me. Lily wasn’t stupid. She knew this place was dangerous. She’d listened to me.
I told her to run and hide if she wouldn’t make it.
Colbat Cove was on the other side of this forsaken place, close to the edge. I started running, rushing past reapers, hoping that they wouldn’t see me.
What if they found her? What if she’d gotten lost?
I have to get to her.
The Dark Planes was never a picnic. Even for a reaper like me. Gnarled, skeletal trees clawed at the dim, sulfuric-tinged sky. The air was thick with the smell of decay and regret.
And tonight, it was a goddamn obstacle course. Branches smacked me in the face, thorny vines snagged at my already ripped shirt, and the ground was uneven, threatening to trip me with every frantic step.
“Damn it, Lily! Where are you?” I muttered, kicking aside a pile of brittle leaves that scattered into ash. I was supposed to protect her. Get her to safety. I’d told her to hide in Colbat Cove, a place I knew the Arc Reapers avoided.
But here I was, tearing through this godforsaken forest, convinced she’d done the exact opposite of what I told her. I cursed again, the sound swallowed by the oppressive silence of the woods.
Then, out of the corner of my eye, I saw her.
Standing at a graveside.
Not the cave. The GRAVESIDE.
“Lily!” I rushed towards her, ignoring the sting of branches as they whipped across my face. I grabbed her arm, pulling her away from whatever she was looking at.
She yelped, startled, then her eyes widened. “Vex!”
Relief flooded her face, and she threw her arms around me, squeezing tight. “Oh, Vex, I was so scared!”
I reluctantly hugged her back, then pulled away, scowling.
“What are you doing here? I told you to go to the cave! Are you trying to get us both killed?” My tone was harsh.
She pulled back, her face clouding with a hesitant guilt. “I did! I went to the cave. But on the way, I saw this.” She gestured vaguely at the tombstone. “I was just… curious.”
Curious. CURIOUS?!
“Curious? Lily, Arc Reapers are going to be out to get me! They’ll pull you apart if they find you here too! Curiosity almost killed the cat, and it’s definitely going to kill you!” I ran a hand through my hair, trying to regain control of my voice.
She bit her lip, looking down at her boots. “I know, I know. I just… well, it was really old graves. And I was curious to know why there are graves in the underworld. I thought reapers can’t die.”
“Lily,” I sighed, my voice softening. “I understand, but this isn’t a safe place. We have to go.”
She sighs and places her hand in mine and we make our way to Colbat Cove. I can’t risk her life by dwelling around here. Ophiel and the others have probably discovered that I’m gone by now and they’ll come looking. If they find out she is here, they won’t go easy.
We finally make it to the cave, both of us heaving from the running and constantly falling over branches. I hate that fucking forest.
“Oh, wait. I have something for you.” She exclaims, running further into the darkness of the cave. The frown etched on myface is quickly replaced by disbelief as she walks back with my scythe in hand. Well, barely. It probably weighs just as much as her.
I place both hands on my hips and let out a chuckle, “You actually did it.”
She smiles proudly before frowning, “You thought I wouldn’t?”
Shit. Smooth move Vex, you idiot.
“Uh…”
A smirk forms on her lips and she drags the scythe closer for me to grab. The cold steel of my scythe vibrated in my hand, a familiar thrum that sent a jolt of power through me. I was whole again. All thanks to her. Lily stood before me, slightly breathless, her eyes wide with a mixture of awe and concern.
