“She doesn’t know about dad, does she?”
“No. I wouldn’t tell her yet, either, given everything that’s going on. She’s better off staying there in relative safety,” my mother replied. “Relative” being the key word here. There was only so much GASP could do to protect the fae from the Hermessi’s growing influence.
“Okay, we’re ready to deploy,” Varga announced.
Indeed, they’d all brought their backpacks and swords and pulverizer weapons, and they all shared a similar expression of determination, along with the kind of spunk I loved about each of them.
Eira gave me a soft smile. “How are you?”
We hadn’t spoken since late last night, after we’d all gone to our rooms. Just to be careful, my mother had arranged for our accommodation in the servants’ quarters, making sure none of the fae still in the palace knew that we were there. Secrecy was of the utmost importance, given that the Hermessi cult had spread to non-fae, as well. I’d thought about going to Eira, just so I could be near her, but I didn’t. She’d needed all the rest she could get.
“Eager to do this,” I said.
I knew she was worried about me after my father’s abduction, but that was a painful topic that I couldn’t bring myself to address. My mother had assured me that GASP was doing everything they could to find him. I needed to focus on finding Zetos, instead.
“Any word about Sherus?” Amelia asked.
Lumi and Nethissis were still mostly quiet and grieving. I doubted they’d gotten much sleep last night, but the anguish was bound to gradually subside. Time had a way of healing all kinds of wounds, even those left behind by wonderful people who’d chosen to die so that the rest of us could survive.
Despite the gloom and doom that had been following us around since the beginning of this mission, none of us seemed anywhere near calling it quits. On the contrary, we were all driven now more than ever to stop the ritual and to save our worlds. Getting Eirexis had certainly contributed to our overall state—it was proof that we could still do this. That all wasn’t lost just yet.
My mother shook her head. “No, but they’re working hard to get him back home,” she replied. I sensed the tremor in her voice, but there wasn’t much I could do about it. Her husband, her soulmate, had been taken because of me. Despite her fragile emotional state, my mother wasn’t going to give up. “I need you all to focus on Zetos next,” she continued, looking at me. “I think I’ve made that more than clear.”
I nodded. “We will. Thanks for letting us crash here. I’m surprised the Hermessi didn’t come looking for us.”
“Well, you or Riza would’ve immediately zapped us out of here, if they had,” Raphael replied.
“I might’ve had something to do with it,” Mom said, clearing her throat. She gave me a sheepish half-smile, as if I’d caught her doing something exceptionally naughty—which was quite ironic, since I’d always been the troublemaker in our family.
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“I’ve sent out some local GASP agents to act as a diversion. I had them fitted with Devil’s Weed, borrowed some of your clothes from The Shade and Calliope… They’re out there now, pretending to be you. One of the witches was even kind enough to change their appearance with magic,” she explained.
“Whoa,” Eva said, her eyes wide. “You sent out copies of us? As decoys?”
My mother sighed. “I’m not proud of myself, if that’s what you want to hear. But the agents volunteered, late last night, after you all went to your rooms, worried you wouldn’t be safe. It kept the Hermessi away, in the end, and that’s all that matters.”
“What about the agents?” Herakles replied. “Where are they now?”
“Still moving. They update me every other hour or so. They make themselves seen by various fae in different cities—one of the team members is a jinni, so that has helped them,” Mom said. “I didn’t tell you because I wanted you all to rest and recover. You have a hard day ahead of you.”
“No, it’s okay. It’s actually… It’s a brilliant idea,” Riza said. “I actually feel five percent dumber for not having thought of it first.”
“It won’t last long, though,” I muttered. “The ruse, I mean. I have Eirexis. There’s a possibility that Brendel, at least, will look for its energy signature in that group of agents when she finds them.”
“Right now, the Hermessi are having a hard time catching up to them. Unlike you, they don’t have to be somewhere specific, so they just move around from city to city,” Mom said. “It’ll buy you all at least a few more hours before they catch on.”
“Thank you,” Lumi finally spoke. “It’s an excellent tactic, and we shouldn’t shy away from using it, going forward. It will likely work every time, until they catch on. I will also think of a way to conceal Eirexis’s energy signature. It’s bound to cause us trouble later. An object with such power and age is easy to sense by entities of creation like the Hermessi.”
“How is everybody else in GASP?” I asked my mother.
She sighed again—a recurring reaction with her since my father had fallen ill, and it had gotten more accentuated since he’d been taken. “Troubled and working hard on their own plans. You know Derek and Sofia are preparing a mission to Yahwen.”
“Yes. When is that expected to happen?” I replied.
“Today. Time isn’t on our side,” Mom said.
Nethissis gasped when the Widow Maker materialized next to her. She nearly jumped out of her skin. “Holy… You scared me!” she snapped.
“Sorry,” he shot back, his tone low and desert-dry.
“Where have you been?” I asked him.
“Around. Making some inquiries,” he said. I had nothing to study in terms of deception, as far as the Widow Maker was concerned. His entire body, including his head, was covered in leather. The only part of him I could see were his eyes, which sheltered dark galaxies within.
“Inquiries? With other Reapers?” Amelia replied.
He nodded. “I’ve been trying to get in touch with Death, and I couldn’t figure out why it didn’t work. I do now. I don’t like it, but I trust her judgment.”
“Wait, I’m confused. How does a Reaper go about getting in touch with Death?” I asked.
Chuckling, he looked at me. “It’s a little too early for your Reaper training, don’t you think?” His snark wasn’t sharp enough to merit a response. He knew I wouldn’t entertain him. I gave my mother a sideways glance, knowing my future Reaperhood was still a slightly sensitive topic for her. This was something she and I had already talked about, briefly. In a sense, she was relieved that I’d been marked by Death, since that meant I wouldn’t die. At the same time, she was a little unsure about how she felt regarding my Reaper future. Overall, however, she’d understood the facts and would eventually accept them, though it didn’t stop her from worrying about me.
“Telepathy,” he continued. “We’re linked to Death through our minds. Though, mind you, that only applies to the upper circles of Reapers. She doesn’t talk to all of us.”
“So, what, you got demoted and lost your telepathic connection to Death?” Raphael asked, more or less seriously, though I could see a smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth.
“No, Chicken Wings. The moment I agreed to help you, I was cut off from Death, for reasons I am not at liberty to say,” the Widow Maker retorted.
