Page 21 of Reaper's Quest

If Mr. Aldine had known, why hadn’t he given us a heads-up?

Yeah… I didn’t appreciate that…at all.

No wonder the train conductor refused to take us.

Holding on to the top of the seats to steady himself against the car’s unsteady rocking, Chace made his way pastme toward Mr. Aldine. “Hope you brought a crossbow or a flamethrower. Unless, of course, you’re planning on reaping the winged beasts.”

Our elder held up a circular item, one unlike anything I’d seen in our combat training. “We shouldn’t need to resort to fire. Now shield your eyes.”

He tossed the item out the open window, and?after a count of eight?a brilliant blaze of light exploded wide, overlayed with a zigzag of electric fizz. The creatures closest to the side of the train howled and fled from sight.

Chace extended an open hand. “Can I have a few of those?”

A tingle crawled down my spine and settled, heavily and erratically, in my belly. “We’re guides to the afterlife. We’re not supposed to determine when or how such deaths will occur.”

“The flashes are nothing more than a deterrent.” Mr. Aldine wiped the sweat from his brow and then tossed another circular item out the window. The throw lacked height, but a burst of light followed nonetheless. “It won’t kill or even hurt them.”

“How come we’ve never worked with these tools or this scenario in training?” I asked.

The light from the detonation vanished over the landscape.

“Because these tools are only useful here. And this location is not part of the regular training curriculum.” Mr. Aldine coughed a laugh. “That might need to change.”

One of the monsters slammed against the window at my side. I jumped back.

Its fleshy underbelly flattened against the side of the train, only I didn’t see something terrifying.

A face stared at me. The monster’s face. A face almost recognizable as humanoid in features and expressions—not anger or madness, but confusion, fear, and sadness.

I jabbed a finger at the window just as the creature slipped from view. “Did you see that?”

“One of them hit the window.” Chace moved into a position across the aisle from me. He smiled, mockingly, and glanced over me, his attention lingering on my hair. Hints of humor danced in his eyes. “Did it scare you?”

“That’s not what I’m talking about.” I fought the urge to kick him in the teeth…or the shin.

I nonchalantly smoothed my hair back from my face.

I’d clearly slept longer…and rougher…than I had expected. Too many strands had escaped my ponytail and now likely looked like a frizzy mess framing my face. Bedhead was not my friend. I quickly tugged the hairs back into place, trapping them with the restraining band.

He shrugged and looked away. Mr. Aldine shook his head, implying he, too, had seen nothing. Both of them tossed flash bombs out the window. Were they too busy acting out of fear that they couldn’t see what I’d observed in the creatures? Maybe I, alone, had my eyes truly open.

Only…

Were my eyes open? Or was I projecting?

The metal of the train banged and popped. Outside, the flying things screeched and tore at our transport.

Mr. Aldine dashed down the aisle and, in a clumsy exchange, handed me several flash bombs. They tumbled from his moist palms into my hold, even thoughI didn’t want them. Hadn’t asked for them. I didn’t believe an attack was the right course of action.

I pointed again, directing Mr. Aldine’s attention to the window once more. “But…there was a face on the creature. An almost sad face.”

Mr. Aldine returned to his position at the front of the car. “Don’t be lured in by a sympathetic emotion. Sad or not, if we don’t clear these things, they’ll be all over us when we get to the station.”

My father’s words surfaced at the forefront of my mind.Emotion will only cloud your thoughts.

Were my thoughts clouded by the emotion I perceived in the creature’s expression? Or were the thoughts of my teammates clouded by fear?

Father’s wisdom had never seemed more unhelpful.