Reaper's Hollow: The Complete Series

Chapter 19-1

Chapter 19

“You’re awfully quiet,” Lyric surmised as she drove Cutter’s truck toward Angel Grove. “You haven’t said more than a couple of words since you got in.”

Pulling her eyes off of the trees in the distance, which littered the ground with the fleeting remains of what had once been autumn revelry, Ru said, “Oh, I’m sorry. I was just thinking about… something.” It had been so hard for her to get Kyle off of her mind. Even though she’d spoken to him just a few hours ago, she wanted to see him again. Instead, she was being hurried off to a meeting at a place that gave her the heebie-jeebies with a group of people she was pretty sure might be certifiably insane.

“It’s okay,” Lyric shrugged. “I don’t mind just listening to the music. I just wanted to make sure you were all right.”

One of Ru’s favorite songs, “Revelations” by Audioslave, was playing, and she hadn’t even noticed.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” she replied, forcing a smile.

“You know, listening to the lyrics of this song, it’s kinda fitting,” Lyric half laughed. “Especially the part about knowing what he’s dreaming and holding the keys and the rules. I guess I never thought about that before.”

Ru happened to know all the words by heart, but she’d never listened to them with the intention of relating them to her current situation. “That’s true. And here I was thinking Blue Oyster Cult was the official rock band of the National Keeper’s League.”

Lyric laughed so hard, she actually snorted, which made Ru laugh as well. “Now, that’s funny. Seriously, you and Rider with the pop culture references. You two are going to be fast friends in no time, I just know it.”

Ru got her laughter under control and wondered how that could be possible. Ever since she’d met Kyle, she’d been thinking less and less about actually going through with this Keeper gig. She didn’t want it, had never asked for it, and didn’t really see Nat as a threat at this point. The last time she’d spoken to him, he’d been sitting in the middle of a flower garden crying, so really, how much of a menace could he be? But she kept her thoughts to herself.

“Cutter mentioned you had a date last night?” Lyric said. Ru could tell she was trying to keep it nonchalant, but the slight lilt in her voice gave her away. She was asking for a reason beyond being polite or mere curiosity.

“Uh, yeah,” Ru replied, not sure what else to say.

“That’s nice,” Lyric said, turning her head slightly to smile at Ru. “What’s he do?”

“Graphic design.”

“Cool. Live in Reaper’s Hollow?”

“Just moved here from NYC.”

Lyric nodded. “Did you have a nice time?”

“Yep.” Ru could tell she wasn’t going to stop asking questions any time soon, so she thought volunteering a bit of information might pacify her. “We’re going out again tomorrow. Just for a walk. But it should be fun. I could use the fresh air.”

“Yeah, and tomorrow’s supposed to be nice. Just like… a hike in the woods or something?”

“I think so,” Ru replied. “Not exactly sure. He mentioned wanting to explore Rockefeller a little bit, so I guess that’s where we’ll go.” Ru absently wondered where her hiking boots even were. She’d need to find them.

“Well, I’m glad you had a good time. Seems like a nice guy.” Once again, Lyric smiled at her, but Ru could tell it was fake. Why Lyric would pretend to be happy for her was beyond Ru.

The sun was beginning to set as she made the turn off of the country road into the narrow path between the trees. As the truck bounced over ruts, Ru was glad Cutter had sent Lyric to get her. Not only was she certain she would’ve missed the turn off if she’d tried to drive out there herself, it was better than riding in a vehicle with Cutter. Right now, she couldn’t really stand to be near him without feeling the intensity of how badly he wanted her to join their team. Even at school the last few days, it seemed every time they were in the same vicinity, he was boring holes through her with his eyes. As much as she liked him and thought he was a great guy, she sort of hoped they’d all move on soon. If they were going to try to find Seraphina, they should get to looking for her and leave Ru alone. Maybe then she could settle back into her ordinary life.

The house was lit up well against the backdrop of dark trees. Ru wondered how far away they were from the forest she’d be hiking in tomorrow. It couldn’t be too far. While this land was privately owned, Rockefeller trees blended in with lots of other properties. Maybe this one was attached as well.

As Lyric brought the truck to a stop, Ru unfastened her seatbelt and popped the door, jumping down to the ground a good two feet below her. She was ready to get this over with. Before the night was over, she’d have to tell these people she was out. Hopefully, it wouldn’t take too long, and maybe at least one of them would be nice enough to give her a ride home. She knew she could call Kyle to come and get her if need be; something told her he’d be able to find her if she were a sugar cube in a hailstorm.

The welcoming committee met them on the porch. Rider and Cutter were both out the door before they even reached the steps. “Hey, there!” Rider called. “Long time no see.” He spread his arms, and Ru dutifully stepped into a hug, not exactly sure why they would normally be so friendly. They’d only met each other once. Of course, in his mind, she was the Holy Grail.

“Nice to see you,” she said as he released her.

Cutter was not quite as enthusiastic, timidly hanging back a bit. “Hi, Ru,” he said, a cautious smile on his face. He didn’t hug her, but he did pat her on the shoulder. “Doin’ all right?”

“Just great,” she said, trying to be as friendly as possible.

“That’s good to hear.” He walked alongside her until they reached the door and then he pushed it open for her to go through before allowing Lyric in and following, Rider in the rear. “Ivy is cooking dinner. It should be just about done.”

Whatever she was making, it smelled delicious, and Ru felt her stomach rumble. She hadn’t eaten too much that day; she’d been so preoccupied with thoughts of Kyle. “Great. I’m starving,” she said, smiling politely. She began to twist her hands, not sure what to do or what to say.

“You’re here!” Ivy entered the room half running, half sliding. “Hi, Ru!” She stretched her arms open as she collided with Ru, who had little choice but to hug her back. Since she couldn’t remember anyone ever seeming so happy to see her, she couldn’t help but chuckle at her enthusiasm.

“It’s nice to see you, Ivy.” Regardless of what she thought about this group’s mission as a whole, Ivy really did seem like a genuinely nice person.

“I hope you like lasagna because that’s what I’m making. It’s a secret family recipe, and it is so good!”

“I love lasagna,” Ru nodded.

“Perfect! It’ll be done in a few minutes. Of course, it’ll need to cool…”

“How long until food, Ivy?” Rider demanded.

With a school-girl giggle, she said, “Let’s say fifteen minutes.”

Rider nodded like he might be able to stand a rumbling tummy until then, and Ivy skittered back off toward the kitchen.

“What can I get you to drink, Ru?” Cutter asked, taking a few steps toward the kitchen.

“Oh, uh, water’s fine.”

“Ice?”

“Sure.” She forced a smile, but she knew he could see right through it.

“Well, have a seat,” Rider insisted, gesturing toward a nearby plush, beige sofa.

This was not the room they’d chatted in before, and Ru was pretty sure it had been empty the last time she was here. Sitting down on the couch, she looked up at the ceiling and could see all the crown molding was new. “Did you do that?” she asked, pointing with her head.

“Sure did,” Rider replied, a proud look on his face. “And painted. And refinished the floors.”

The walls were a soft gray-blue that complimented the furniture nicely, which was all deep beige in a shade slightly darker than the flooring. “It looks really great,” she nodded.

“Thankya,” Rider said, beaming. “I figure I ain’t got much else to do.”

Lyric growled and rolled her eyes. “Don’t. The word is don’t. Why do you talk like that?”

“Sorry. Guess we can’t all be as good with words as you are, Lyric.”

Ru couldn’t help but laugh at the terrible pun, which made Rider wink at her.

“Don’t encourage him,” Lyric insisted, taking a seat in a chair near the sofa where Ru was perched.

“I think you mean ‘ain’t’ encourage him.”

Once again, Ru found herself laughing, despite her situation. Before the two could continue their antics, Cutter returned with her water. “Sorry. Got sidetracked.”

“Ivy ask you to baste something or butter something?” Rider asked, picking up a beer bottle off of the table next to him and taking a drink.

“Butter and garlic,” Cutter nodded.

“Well, when we are enjoying that deliciousness in a bit, we will all thank you for your contribution.” Lyric’s comment filled an otherwise quiet void. The room shifted from somewhat playful to uncomfortable the second Cutter sat down on the couch a full cushion away from Ru.

After a painfully long silence, Ru cleared her throat and timidly asked, “So… angels drink beer?”

“Hell, yeah,” Rider replied. “Show me in the New Testament where it says you can’t.”

He was more diplomatic than defensive, but Ru was still surprised.

“And where the hell in the Bible does it say you can’t say s**t?” Rider continued. “I mean, it’s just stringing some letters together. The Bible wasn’t even written in English so how can we not say whatever the hell we want to?”

“So long as you don’t take the Lord’s name in vain?”

Rider shrugged. “Yeah, I know it says that. But that’s the Old Testament. I’m more of a New Testament kinda angel.” He winked at her again, and Ru began to feel a bit charmed in an older-brother, cool-uncle sort of way.

“We do a lot of things the Bible says we’re not supposed to in one testament or another,” Cutter stated. “We aren’t perfect. But then, no one ever said we had to be.”

“Hmmm,” Ru replied, mulling that over. This information went against everything Liddy Brown had ever pounded into her head growing up.

“Ivy will kill us if we get too deep into anything without her out here,” Lyric reminded the gentlemen. “But we are dying to see your scars.”

Ru’s eyes opened widely. “My scars?” she repeated. “Why would you need to see my scars?” She had been trying to hide them her whole life. Why would she intentionally show them to anyone.

“To see if we can decipher them,” Lyric explained with a small shrug, like it was not a big deal.

“What do you mean?”

Lyric looked at Cutter, as if she was somehow asking permission to proceed, despite the fact that Ivy was in the kitchen. He nodded. “All of us are named for the shape of our scars. When we’re born, our parents look at our scars and determine what our name should be.”

Once again, Ru was having trouble understanding what she was hearing. “So you all have them, too?”

“Yes,” Cutter replied. “That’s how I knew you had them.”

“Right.” She’d remembered him mentioning them once before, but she hadn’t realized literally all of the Keepers had them. “What are they from?”

The three looked at each other for a second, as if they were silently debating who should tell her. “Wings,” Cutter finally responded.

Ru turned to face him. “What’s that?”

“They’re from where our wings would’ve been attached, if we were full-fledged angels instead of only half. We can’t have wings, so we have scars instead.” Cutter said it as if it should make perfect sense to anyone

“But that implies that we once had wings,” Ru reasoned.

“We don’t honestly know why we keep the scars.” Lyric leaned forward in her chair, as if to say she understood what a difficult concept it was to understand. “But all Keepers do.”