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An entire stack crashed to the floor, my pile having unbalanced it. I staggered back as the books replaced themself gracefully, fluttering as if my mishandling offended them. I rushed forward to help them along.
“Smooth,” Gaksi’s voice mocked.
“Curse you!”
“I’m not the cursed one,”Gaksi replied.“That’s you, sweetheart.”
“You’re supposed to stay hidden!” I shouted at the roof.
“The yelling is helping with that, I’m sure.”
“You’ve seen me run around these stacks for so long, and you haven’t helped me at all!”
“It is important for children to learn their independence. And to self soothe.”
“Go to hell, Gaksi.”
“Already been and wasn’t much impressed. Reaper and I much prefer this realm.”
“Do you think he killed that wolf?” I asked, sitting. “I’m serious, Gaksi. Not joking.”
“Unlikely. I’ve never seen him kill anyone. Torture, sure, threaten, absolutely, but murder just isn’t his job.”
“How do I stop him, then?”
“You can’t, any more than you can stop death.”
“Well, then, how do I stop the murders?” I asked, exasperated.
“That is not your job,” Gaksi says, “it is Reaper’s.His responsibility is to stop the gumiho.”
“And what is the gumiho?”
“I would show you, but it appears she has already stolen any mention of herself from this library.”
“Then just tell me.”
“The gumiho is the creature likely causing most of the murders on this campus. She must have crossed the veil somehow. Her presence is likely causing other creatures to follow the massive pull of her energy, causing more mortals to perish. She uses her beautiful face to trick men before she slaughters them.”
“Well, how do I eliminate her?”
“You don’t. Reaper will.”
It clicked.
Is this how you’ve been evading capture?
“That’s why… Reaper… wants to kill me? Because he thinks I’m this gumiho thing?” A grunt in my mind confirmed. “Why would he think that?”
Stone creaked behind me. “The gumiho is said to seduce vulnerable men with her beauty,” a gravelly voice said, distant footsteps echoing nearer.
Reaper.
Ice shot through my veins. My pulse throbbed in my neck, where his mark sat.
“Did you come here to burn all the books mentioning yourself?” I asked.
Broad hands landed on my shoulders, twisting me around. I kept my chin up to face him. The sharp angles of his face were even more prominent when illuminated by candlelight. If I wasn’t so indebted to him, so angry at him for forcing me into this bargain, I could admit that my toes curled when he put that kind of light pressure on my shoulders. Feather-light, despite his hard gaze. Despite my trembling soul.
