‘Why? What’s going to happen if I don’t?’ I pull my arm free. Michael grabs it again.
‘What the hell is your problem?’
‘God and darkness, Michael, if you don’t tell me what’s going on I’ll hunt you myself,’ I hiss. I swear the vampire nearest to me snorts with laughter.
‘This isn’t a hunt!’
Oh, that’s it. I’m going to burst into flames. ‘Then what?—’
‘Save your lovers’ quarrel until you’re settled in, chickens.’ Cass folds her arms. ‘We’re here.’
Michael’s arm slides around my waist as we come to a stop. I’m about to pull away when I take in our surroundings. My jaw drops.
We’re in the middle of a huge square clearing, deep in the woods. Trees rise, tall around us. And, bordering the clearing, are houses. Smoke comes from the chimneys, faint lights twinkling in the windows. Ivy shrouds most of them, green curtains softening their shapes, offering only the occasional glimpse of brick and timber. Lights shimmer, deeper in the trees. More houses, I realise, dark shapes among the soaring trunks.
There are whole villages in there.
It’s like being in a fairy tale, glimmering candles and ivy-strewn dwellings deep in the forest. But the vampires surrounding me, clad in black, tell a different story.
‘Welcome to the Greenwood. I am Cassandra, captain of this cell.’ Cass turns, taking in the group of wide-eyed humans. One of them, the woman who spoke to me, is sobbing, relief in every gasping breath. ‘This is your home, now,’ Cass continues. ‘You have passed through, leaving all sorrow, all fear behind. In the name of Lady Morvenna, I welcome you.’
I stiffen. Lady Morvenna? What the fuck? But if this is one of the settlements, does that mean… ‘You’re Reapers,’ I breathe.
‘We are.’ Cass smiles as she turns to me, her fangs dropped. ‘And so is Michael.’
* * *
‘You need to tell meeverything.Now.’
Michael and I are in a small bedroom on the top floor of a house, with its own adjoining bathroom. A dormer window in the sloping ceiling frames a square of dark purple sky and black branches, a few stars visible. Rose-patterned paper covers the walls, more roses on the soft bedspread, the huge iron-framed bed the only piece of furniture in the room apart from a chest of drawers. A smell of cooking drifts up from below, indicating we’re not alone.
I fold my arms, leaning against the wall. I need answers. I’m also aware that we’re both missing, and that’s going to be a huge fucking problem. Answers, and then a way to get out of here.
Michael paces back and forth, dragging his hand through his hair. ‘What do you want to know first?’ His voice is strained.
‘How about we start with who Cass is? Your secret girlfriend?’
‘No.’ He laughs. I want to smack him. Or kiss him. ‘Gods, no. She would laugh her head off if she heard you say that. She’s my sister. Half-sister, to be exact. Not that anyone knows. My father liked to fuck around, which is probably no surprise.’
‘Your half-sister?’ This is the absolute last thing I expected. I gape at him. ‘She’s Mistral’s daughter?’
‘Don’t ever call her that. Not if you want your throat to remain intact.’
‘Okay.’ I blink, shaking my head. ‘Tell me the rest.’
‘The rest?’
‘All of it. How are you a Reaper? That story you told me about escaping from a Reaper patrol was bullshit, wasn’t it?’
‘Not all of it. I did escape,’ he says. ‘Just not quite as I told you. Cass helped me come here after my father threw me out.’ He pauses. ‘You’ve seen my scars, right?’
I nod, remembering what I saw in the practice ring. Realisation dawns. ‘Yourfatherdid that to you?’
‘Yeah. Him and my brothers, after he tried to change me to vampire and it didn’t work. I ran away but they caught me, savaged me, then left me for dead. Cass had heard, somehow, and she was there, waiting in the darkness. I wouldn’t have made it, otherwise. She brought me here and they healed me. I was a good fighter, so they trained me as a Reaper. But then Cass and I argued and I asked to leave. She refused. I was so pissed off that I ducked out on my next day patrol. I was lucky to get away.’
‘What do you mean, get away? Couldn’t you just have caught the bus out of here?’
‘When you come here, you leave your life behind. There’s a place here, I’ll show you tomorrow, where you can get your Raven mark removed.’
