Reaper

The world would be a much safer place if Reapers were alone.

But, much to the dismay of the human race, they are not. Reapers are one of three token species left in the world who hunt humans for what they can – vampires, werewolves, and Reapers. The three groups vie for the human body, each feeding from parts that the others cannot. Vampires take blood. Werewolves take flesh. Reapers take souls. It has been said that the three factions are on the brink of war, fighting the necessary battle to stay alive and hidden all at once.

Isis sat on her makeshift throne, seething at her loss. She knew she had acted too quickly, too rashly at the cabin. She had made a fatal mistake – she had underestimated Sawyer’s power. But that was hardly her fault. How had she known he was such a powerful Reaper? After all, he kept hidden so well among the other lowly Omegas, no one would have the right mind to guess he was any different.

Ah, but he was. Which was why the young girl called to him – she was unbreakable to all but him.

The woman smiled to herself.

She knew exactly how do make him bend to her will. Bend them until they both break.



I wasn’t sure how long I sat in the back seat of the car, but I knew that I had slept intermittently throughout the ride. I didn’t know where we were going this time or if Sawyer even knew where we were going, but at least now I knew that the danger Sawyer was trying to protect me from was real.

Very, very real.

As we drove, Sawyer gripped the wheel tightly in his hands, his knuckles nearly white under his tanned skin. He was clearly agitated, that much I could tell, but he was trying very hard not to let on. I decided not to push him, since I knew, best case scenario, that he would ignore me. Worst case scenario, he’d crash the car. So I dropped it, and kept my mouth shut.

It seemed like Saphira got the message as well. She hardly said a word to him, except to ask where the turn was or which exit he was taking, given that she held the map in her nervous hands. But there was no small talk, no polite chatting, not even muted music from the radio to fill the deafening silence that had descended.

Jesse, however, displayed the little social sense he had left, and promptly threw it out the window.

“Did you see that thing?!” He looked out the back window, expecting Isis to be standing there again, even though we’d been on the road for at least three hours. “Dude, she made you guys look tame. Wait – aren’t you guys the same thing?”

Neither Sawyer nor Saphira responded. “Reapers,” I murmured under my breath, hoping that they wouldn’t hear me, even though I knew they would. I saw Sawyer’s knuckles tighten on the wheel visibly, so much so that I was concerned that he was bending the plastic. “Jess, now isn’t a great time-“

“And what the fuck were we even doing there? I mean, it’s cool, I’m glad you at least kinda knew what was coming, but damn! That was some luck right there!”

Sawyer’s jaw twitched. “I brought Charlotte there because I thought she’d be safe under our surveillance. It was not my intention for Isis to strike while I was away. You just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

Even Jesse seemed to understand that Sawyer wasn’t goofing around. He dropped the subject, preferring instead to sit back and lean his head against the headrest, pondering something that I’m sure he had about a million questions about but was too intimidated by Sawyer to ask.

I sighed and looked back at Sawyer. I was sitting behind Saphira, so I could see clearly his profile in the dim light. His lips were drawn into a tight line, as usual, and his eyes were staring hard at the road, but there was something different about him this time. If Jesse had done this yesterday, Sawyer would have stopped the car and kicked his butt out. But now, he seemed to be able to control his temper. I wondered why.

And then I remembered – I told him to Feed.

That fact fell like a weight in my chest. Sawyer could control himself now because he wasn’t starving. I had known that he hadn’t Fed in a while, but I hadn’t realized the need had been so bad that he was losing control of himself because of it. Because of me. He felt guilty to be himself because of me. Granted, I still wasn’t okay with what Sawyer was, not entirely. But I at least wanted him to be alive.

Sawyer sensed what I was feeling and glanced at me out of the corner of his eye. It was a quick glance, but it told me everything I needed to know. I’m glad you’re safe. I’m sorry I left.

It felt good, knowing that I was getting the hang of being around Sawyer. Maybe someone could actually understand him. He glanced over at me as the thought passed through my head. Jeez, this was getting creepy.

It was a few hours of awkward silence and a few cat naps that we pulled up to a beat-up motel on the side of the road. It seemed as though Sawyer simply turned the wheel at will and picked the place, but I wasn’t complaining. I still had yet to really sleep restfully, considering the fact that I’d only slept about an hour or so before my dream woke me up, and then only about an hour total in the car. I could feel my eyelids drooping.

At least the hangover was gone.

Sawyer cut the engine and sat there for a moment, staring blankly out of the car. “I’ll go inside and secure some rooms. Saph, call Simon and Lina and tell them to get their asses to wherever the hell we are. We’re going to need them.”

I felt a pang in my chest. I wasn’t sure why it bothered me so much that Sawyer called Saphira by a nickname, but it did. It bothered me. When he called me Charlie, it was an expression of passion, of loss of control. But not proximity. It wasn’t endearment, not like Saphira’s was. Of course, logically, it made sense for the two of them to be close – like siblings. But I had a nagging feeling at the back of my head that that wasn’t all that lay between them.

And how was I supposed to compete with someone like her?

Saphira nodded and quickly made the call with her phone, speaking lowly and quickly as she relayed the information to other people. I knew they were part of his pack from the very few things he had said about them, but that was all.

I looked around as she talked. The sky was getting lighter, little by little, as we sat, turning yellow at the edge of the sky. Normally, sunrise was something I dreaded seeing. It meant the dawn of a new day, a chance to mess everything up and avoid other people as much as possible. But that day was different. For the first time, I felt the real danger of the situation I was in with the Reapers. I had seen the mild violence before, but the threat to my own safety hadn’t been real to me until now.

And now, seeing any new day was good news.

I hugged my legs to my chest, wincing as I pulled a muscle. It had been sprained in our quick escape.

“You alright, Red?” Jesse murmured, nudging me with his knee.

I gasped, taken by surprise that he was even awake. “Oh! Uh, yeah, it’s just a sprain.”

Jesse stared me in the eyes for a moment. Then, quickly, his signature smirk flashed across his lips. “You and I both know that’s not what I meant.”

Damn. I sighed and looked away from his intense gaze, suddenly uncomfortable to be so close to him. “Well, what did you mean? There’s my leg, then there’s the fact that Isis showed up out of nowhere, then there’s the massive headache I have, and then there’s that kiss-“

My eyes widened as I realized what I said. I hadn’t meant the one with Jesse, but it occurred to me that I hadn’t even thought about it over the course of the night. Not once. I was too concerned with Sawyer and Saphira and myself to even think about why he had done it in the first place, let alone think about what it meant. I mean, sure, we were both pretty unable to think rationally at that point, but surely we were aware of it. Right?

Jesse exhaled loudly, making Saphira glance over at him mid-sentence. “Charlie, listen, there’s something you should know-“

Sawyer knocked on the windshield. “Rooms are ready. Follow me.”

Saphira got out of the truck quickly, landing gracefully on her feet. I followed suit, reaching for my door handle. “What’s that?”

Jesse shook his head and got out. “Doesn’t matter, I guess.”

I wanted to press the subject, but my eyelids and my limbs betrayed me as I got out. I slid down clumsily from my seat, hanging on tightly to the handle. I groaned as pain shot through my leg, newly irritated by the fall.

Sawyer was next to me in two seconds. “Are you alright? Are you hurt?” he demanded, inspecting me from top to bottom.

I shook my head.

We made our way into the building otherwise unscathed, thankful that Sawyer had gotten us adjacent rooms that were on the first story. I hobbled under his arm as he led me into the dimly lit beige room. In the center was a single bed, made up nicely, and a bedside table and a restroom, typical room for rent. I was grateful that the room was clean, and warm, considering the temperature outside had dropped drastically since we had started driving. And all I had to wear was the thin shirt.

Jesse followed us in, suddenly silent, standing awkwardly in the doorway as Sawyer helped me in.

He turned to him, his face blank. “Jesse, would you mind giving me a moment with Charlotte? I need to speak with her in private. I’m sure Saphira would enjoy the company.”

Jesse looked to me for some sort of confirmation, but I had none to give him. I didn’t know what was going on, either. So he just shrugged and left, closing the door behind him.

I turned to Sawyer. “So, what did you-“

Before I could get any more words out, Sawyer had cupped my face in his large, calloused hands and crashed his lips to mine. I was so taken aback by the kiss that I gasped, to which he gladly took the opportunity to claim my mouth with his. My eyes were wide open as I watched him kiss me, almost too shocked to respond. He pulled me into a tight embrace, wrapping one had around my waist and another around the back of my head, holding my body flush against his. I felt his hot breath on my face, and I felt myself begin to respond in ways I hadn’t dreamed of.

Slowly, Sawyer’s lips slowed their assault, bringing me gently out of the kiss. He leaned his forehead against mine, and for a moment he just stared into my eyes, breathing heavily, with such an awed look on his face that I took every care to memorize it.

“What was that for?” I breathed.

His face looked pained for a moment before he pulled away, leaving me colder than I was before. He sat on the edge of the bed, his elbows on his knees and his hands clasped between them. “Charlie, I…” His voice was strained when he spoke. “When I sensed your fear, I was already at the diner. It took me far too long to get back. And when I saw Isis standing there, dashing around the house…”

He looked up at me, and I looked into his green eyes. They told me all I needed to know. I could see the fear in his eyes, the anger, the sadness, all in one.

“I was afraid she’d gotten to you. I don’t know what I would’ve done if something had happened. I had made you think you were safe, and here you were, right in the heart of the danger.”

I bit my lip and looked away, suddenly unable to handle his stare. “Why?”

Sawyer scoffed, running his hand through his hair. “Why? Because I’m concerned, that’s why.”

I sat up a little straighter, suddenly finding a little more resolve. “Why?” I felt like a toddler, but maybe this was the only way to get to him, to see what he was thinking.

He quirked his eyebrow. “What are you, four?” When I didn’t respond, he sighed again and rubbed his jaw. “I’m concerned because I care about you, Charlotte.”

That was what I wanted to hear. But something in me, for some reason I wasn’t aware of, decided to press on. “Why?”

He was silent for a moment this time, choosing his words very carefully. He wrung his hands nervously as he did so, biting his lip. I noticed every move he made, waiting for the answer that I had been in search for for so long.

“I don’t know. I find myself thinking about you every second of every day, whether I’m with you or not. My only concern is how to keep you safe. And then, when you’re here, in front of me, you call to me like no other and I can’t Feed from you. Not that I would want to. And I care because you seem to feel the same way, but I can’t be what you want me to be. I can’t give you everything. I’m not human. I’m far, far worse. And I’ve dragged you into my world, when what you deserve is someone who will love you from yours. Someone like… your friend.”

I wasn’t sure how to respond to that. I had been waiting for this for god knows how long, and here, with it all layed out for me, I froze. I had hoped that he felt the same way about me, but I had no idea his feelings ran so deep. I wasn’t alone. I made him feel the same way he made me feel – giddy, and warm, and wanted. But he was so unsure of himself.

And I had only added to that.

“You saw the kiss.” It wasn’t a question, because I hadn’t asked. I could tell by the way he spoke.

He sighed, his jaw suddenly tense. “Yes. I understand if you choose him over me. In your situation, it’s the logical choice.”

I scoffed. “Sawyer, since when do I act logically?”

He paused for a beat and then smiled at me. I was almost taken aback. A true smile from the mask of stone. I wasn’t sure it existed, but here was proof that it did. And it was magnificent. I couldn’t stop myself – I leaned forward and closed the gap between our lips, feeling myself fall for him all over again.

We broke apart when he started to notice my fatigue. I was almost unwilling to hold myself up, I was so tired. “You should rest, Charlie.”

“Stay with me,” I mumbled as he pushed me onto the bed lightly, pulling the covers over my cold body.

“Of course.”

“No,” I protested, shaking my head. “Stay here. With me.” I patted the space next to me on the bed.

He looked conflicted for a moment, deciding which course of action to take. After a moment or so, I slid out of his leather jacket and his jeans, preparing himself for sleep. I watched as his hands made quick work of his clothing, wondering how it would feel to have him undress me like that. He smirked in my direction as he climbed under the covers next to me, wrapping his arms securely around my waist. I buried my face in his sculpted chest, relishing the feeling that I had dreamed about for so long.

“Will you be here when I wake up?”

Sawyer hummed in agreement.

“Promise?”

“Promise.”