Forbidden Bond: The Alpha King's Reaper Mate

Until the next red moon

Daphne POV

'’how foolish of you to go against the rules of the reapers!’’ Denzel yelled at me.

I felt a cold hand on my shoulder, and I turned to see Denzel standing behind me. His face was stern, and his eyes burned with anger.

"You foolish girl," he said, his voice low and dangerous. "What have you done?"

I tried to pull away, but his grip on my shoulder was too strong. "I had to save him," I said, my voice shaking. "I couldn't just let him die when he needed to protect someone!’’

Denzel sneered. "You have no business meddling in the affairs of the living. That man should be dead, and now his name has disappeared from the Book of the Dead. You have upset the balance, and there will be consequences. Terrible consequences!’’

I felt a knot form in my stomach. I knew Denzel was right, but I couldn't help feeling like I had done the right thing. "I don't care about the consequences," I said confidently even though I feared what might happen to me later. "I couldn't just stand by and watch him die."

Denzel's grip tightened, and his eyes bore into mine. He grabbed me by the throat and raised me. "I could ruin you right now but I will let you go so you can face the rulers and they will deliver a satisfying punishment to you. Not only did you not break the rule, but you also tampered with the name of the dead. I should have ended you right now but your punishment will be much worse!’’ he chuckled and threw me to the ground.

I coughed as I struggled to breathe and then I looked up at him. "What will happen to me?" I asked, my voice trembling.

"That is left for the rulers," he said and looked at the man whose life I had saved. "But know this: you have crossed a line, and there will be consequences. Be prepared to face them." With that, he turned and disappeared into the shadows with the reapers that he came with.

What have I done? I questioned myself and stared at my hands, the same hands that had saved the man's life. They were shaking, and I felt a strange mix of pride and fear.

I had crossed a line, meddled in the affairs of the living, and upset the balance. But I couldn't help feeling like I had done the right thing. I had saved a life, and that had to count for something but I had ruined everything. All the years that I have worked as a grim reaper.

I looked over at the man, still unconscious on the ground. His wounds had healed, but he was still unresponsive. I wondered what his story was, what had brought him to the brink of death.

Just then, I felt a chill run down my spine. Another group of reapers had arrived, led by my senior, Mario. ‘’Daphne!’’ he shouted my name as he appeared in front of me.

I stood up from the ground and heaved a deep sigh. I tried to run, ‘’senior Mario!’’ I muttered his name. One of the reapers moved toward me and threw a chain toward me. The chains wrapped around me, binding me tight.

Mario looked down at me with cold eyes, his face unreadable."You have upset the balance, Daphne," he said, his voice low and menacing. "You will face the consequences of your actions and I am so disappointed in you after you have accomplished your mission!’’ he yelled at me.

‘’he called for help and he was still alive and I…’’

‘’you are a grim reaper, Daphne! You have no business with the living! That is the first rule of the reapers and you broke it!’’

I tried to speak, to explain why I had done what I had done, but my words fell on deaf ears. The other reapers closed in around me, their hooded faces watching me with a mix of curiosity and disdain.

‘’what you just did now is breaking the thousands of years of rules of the reapers and you will deal with by the rulers.’’

‘’I only did one thing by saving a man and he…..’’ A bolt of lightning struck me, sending me reeling backward. I felt the chains loosen, and I tried to run, but it was no use. The other reapers closed in around me, their hooded faces watching me with a mix of curiosity.

‘’you are such a foolish girl!’’ Mario shouted at me. ‘’I never expected that you will ruin all those years to save him,’’ he pointed to the unconscious man on the ground. ‘’Take her,’’ he ordered and the reapers around me grabbed my hand. Before we disappear, I turned to face the man and smiled at him hoping that he would save the life of the person he wanted to protect.

I was helpless as they took me away, deep into the underworld. I didn't know what was going to happen to me, but I knew it couldn't be good. When we reached it, I was thrown into a cell and my senior Mario before he left, turned to face me. ‘’All those years were all for what?’’

‘’The man had someone that he wanted to save and…’’

‘’And you decided to play hero,’’ he spat angrily and chuckled. ‘’I never expected that you will change that fast,’’ he tutted and walked out of the cell leaving me alone in the dark and that was the last time that I saw him.

Days turned into weeks, and weeks turned into months. I was trapped in a dark, lonely cell, with nothing to do but think about what I had done. Had I been foolish to save that man?

The reapers came to see me every day, but they never spoke. They just watched me, their eyes cold and unfeeling.

And then, one day, they came for me. They took me to a large chamber, filled with other reapers. Mario was there, along with Denzel and several others I didn't recognize. The room was vast, filled with shadows that flickered and danced in the dim light. I could hear the sound of my breathing, ragged and shallow, as I stood before the five rulers of the underworld.

Mario and Denzel stood behind me, their faces are stony and impassive.

"What is this?" I asked, my voice hoarse from disuse. ‘’where have you taken me!’’ I yelled as I was pushed to the ground.

Mario stepped forward. "You have been found guilty of interfering in the affairs of the living," he said. "The rulers will now pass on judgment on you,’’ he announced.

I felt a cold dread settle in the pit of my stomach. Judgment? I looked up to face the rulers but I couldn’t see their faces as it was covered by the cloak they had on.

‘’little reaper!’’ the first ruler said and the voice sounded like a female’s. ‘’you have broken the rule of the realm and for that, you will be punished but before then, may I ask why you had done that?’’ she asked me.

"I saved the man because he had someone he wanted to protect," I said, trying to keep my voice steady in order not to show my fears in front of them.

"And what business is it of yours to meddle in the affairs of humans?" asked the second ruler.

"I didn't mean to interfere," I replied, my voice trembling. "He called for my help and I couldn’t ignore him.’’

"But you broke the rules," said the third ruler. "And for that, you must be punished. Denzel!’’ The fifth ruler called and Denzel walked forward. ‘’I need you to let her have a taste of the eternal whip!’’ he ordered.

My eyes widened when I realized what he meant. The eternal whip was known to cause pain to those who have a taste of it. As I tried to speak, I felt a lash tear in my flesh. I wanted to scream, but I knew that wouldn't change anything. I had to endure it. The eternal whip made me dizzy and tears rolled down my face as I struggled to contain the pain I felt.

After what felt like an eternity, the flogging finally ended and I let out a deafening scream.

‘’you have ruined your chance at reincarnation and the only way you can prove yourself again is after we have made a decision,’’ the fourth ruler informed me.

I felt a chill run down my spine as the rulers conferred amongst themselves. When they finally reached a decision, the fourth ruler spoke up.

"You have two choices, Daphne," he said, his voice grave. "Either you return as a grim reaper and kill the man, or you perish. "

What? I wanted to say that out loud but I couldn’t say a word. I knew that the option was nearly impossible but I knew that killing him would make all of my efforts wasted. It was because I saved him that I was in this situation.

The fifth ruler spoke up, his voice filled with warning. "If you fail, you will be punished. Severely."

I nodded, my heart heavy with the weight of my task. "I understand."

‘’That is why I am going to do this,’’ the first ruler stood up and pointed his fingers towards me.

A dagger suddenly flew towards my chest. Instinctively, I closed my eyes and braced for the impact. But when I opened my eyes, I realized the dagger had become invisible.

"What is the meaning of this?" I demanded, turning back to face the rulers.

"You will feel the pain of that dagger every full moon," said the first ruler, her voice filled with malice. "And only the man you saved can ease your pain. If you failed to accomplish either of your missions, the dagger will enter into your heart and then you will perish forever!’’

I gasped in shock, feeling a sudden surge of pain as the invisible dagger plunged into my chest. I placed a hand on my chest and coughed out blood. ‘’why?’’

‘’Because you broke the rules!’’

‘’The rules!’’ I shouted. ‘’I only saved him and I …..’’

‘’rules are rules little girl,’’ the third ruler told me. ‘’it has been existing for thousands of years and those who break it face the consequences!’’ he stood up and the rulers also did the same. ‘’you will be reduced to a powerless human and your mission must be completed before the next red moon, ’’He added and then all the rulers disappeared in the blink of the eye.

I had until the next red moon to either choose to kill the man I saved or perish.