Reapers -- The First Familiar (Reapers Chronicles Book II)

1 - Dilemma

I still wore the earring every day in the hope that maybe I could catch images from his mind. Though, I doubted the sentries hadn’t already found out that Vincent wore one.

“A rosary, huh. I never pegged you for the religious type,” Carter muttered, eyeing on my arm. He uneasily shifted himself on his seat as Rico started to prepare the new set of instruments on the table.

My heart sank, the image of Rosario suddenly touching my mind. “Yeah,” I murmured, lost in my thoughts. “Let’s just say, I’ve been saved once or twice and this is all I can do now to show how grateful I am.”

Yes. It was all I could do. I couldn’t say everything there was to say to her anymore because she was dead. Rosario’s blood was in my hands and I would have to carry that burden.

Something in me wished that she hadn’t sacrificed her life for me. That I was the one who died and not her. Because she gave me a gift but made sure that that gift would haunt me for the rest of my life. She hated me that much. At least, she was consistent until the end.

Wearily, I struggled to clear my mind and focused on the present. Rico was already working through the outline of the tattoo on Carter’s forearm. With a heavy sigh, I silently watched Carter. It seemed to be a huge effort for him trying to keep his face straight until the tattoo was done. But I didn’t try to tease him or anything. What he did today was really brave. And sweet. Sort of. So I thought, maybe I would give him a break for once.

I didn’t even know how we ended up in a tattoo parlor. After class, he just asked me if I wanted to go out. Since I didn’t have much of a life besides lurking in the woods and sneaking to Centralia every night, I said yes. It was something to look forward to. Eating somewhere nice, going to the movies. Normal human stuff.

When Lindsay cancelled at the last minute, Carter didn’t even look disappointed. Maybe because I had been spending more time with Lindsay nowadays. After all, she was the one normal person on earth who knew my secret.

“That was… fun,” Carter said wryly as we got out of the tattoo parlor. “Not to mention, impulsive. My mom will kill me once she sees this.”

At first glance, his tattoo didn’t look too promising. Looking closer, I saw a series of symbols I didn’t recognize tattooed around his wrist. It was made to look like a thin bracelet.

I bit my lower lip. I sure hoped Dad wouldn’t try to kill me for getting a tattoo. Not again.

“If we both skipped school tomorrow, then we’re probably both dead,” I replied, pulling my sleeves down.

Fixing his clear blue eyes on me, Carter let out a hesitant chuckle. It was getting dark, wisps of indigo slowly taking over the orange of the sky. The last rays of the sun danced on the tips of his wispy blond hair. I found myself smiling back at him. Somehow, I didn’t feel that much tired anymore.

“I hadn’t seen that in a long time,” he said in an undertone, I barely heard him.

I gave him a confused look. “What?”

Uncomfortably, he pocketed his hands and stared at his sneakers. “That smile.”

It was a long time since I had a reason to smile. And this brief moment, I owe to him. Even if it was a bit awkward, I couldn’t erase the smile on my face. For once, it felt nice doing normal stuff, worrying about normal things.

“So what do you want to eat?” he asked.

“Actually,” I started, glancing up to see that the sun had already set. The dark was spreading quickly, like the unsettling feeling that began creeping in my chest. “Dad’s expecting me. I think it’s late.” Late for me.