Page 45 of Reapers Don’t Ride

The older angel stood up, and so did I.

“Come with me,” the angel said, holding out his hand.

Was I supposed to take it? I hesitated and then slowly put my hand in his. He smelled icy pure, like daggers of death and pain, but his skin was actually warm, comforting, protective. He was a protector of innocents. Not that I was innocent. He could kill me very quickly. I would prefer that much more than turning slowly into stone before shattering.

He took me to a small closet where it was dark, surrounded by electric cords, and had me sit in front of a machine that looked like it would swallow my head and rip it off my body. It didn’t, just flashed a dozen times.

“I’m taking pictures of your eyes.”

My eyes burned by the time he was finished. I stood up and gave him a polite smile. In the dark. Apparently, we could both see in the dark. “Thank you for taking the time. We really should go. Unless you feel that you have to kill me, in which case, do it quickly before Gavriel gets in the way.”

“Do you want me to kill you?”

“It would be a good death. Clean. You have that smell.”

“You can smell more than corruption. The demon that had you for a hundred years, how did he die?”

“I killed him.”

“How did you know how if you couldn’t do research?”

“I asked around.”

“What was the demon’s name?”

“Tralcon.”

He made a face like he’d bitten into something sour. “Not a good demon.”

“There are no good demons. Neutral is the most you can hope for. Can you get me glasses or not?”

“I can, but it will take time to craft. A week at least.”

“A week? Can you ship to Singsong City?”

He flipped out his wings. “I will deliver. Be careful with the angel. Angels can be very beguiling, even if you are a hardened spinster.” He opened the door and let me out into the main room, which was half kitchen/laboratory, and half library/living room.

When I saw Gavriel standing there with a book, my chest eased slightly. I’d been nervous about his safety without realizing it.

He smiled at me, and warmth spread through me. Angels were beguiling, particularly the deathly ones.

“I’ll leave the glasses with the scholar’s laboratory,” the angel said.

“Do you have a name?” I asked.

He raised a brow. “Are we doing names? I’ll need your human one in exchange. You probably don’t remember it anymore.”

I frowned at him. “You tell me yours first.”

“Ever Storm.”

I stared at him. That was the weirdest name I’d ever heard. “Oh. It’s lovely. I was Louisa Barlow, but after I turned I became Ruby Blood.”

He gave me a hard smile. “Tralcon’s Blood. I did hear about you. He trained you to kill for a hundred years. That’s how you could kill him, not asking around. Who do you report to? I mean, among the angelic ranks?”

“I don’t report. That’s Gavriel’s job. We do have the team leader, Richard.”

“Team Leader?” Ever frowned at Gavriel. “She’s met the Team Leader, personally?”

I stepped between them. “In prison. He interviewed me before he released me into Gavriel’s care.”

“You were in prison?”

“Yes. I was Mr. Good’s assassin as well as Tralcon’s. I’ve worked with the best people.” I gave him a hard smile. Giving him my human name made me very uncomfortable. I didn’t like thinking of what I’d been. That existence was finished. Like this interview. The entire situation was so uncomfortable. I was better alone. I was looking forward to going back to my prison cell once all of this was over. But this time I’d make sure Crucible had someone to take care of him first.